Well said. So many reasons to "blog" or write but one of the most forceful is existential, to show you are alive, you matter, by touching others and affecting eternity. Teaching is the same and our lives (as a kind of pen) are the same. We exist in the world to "touch" or "be touched" and break through the aloneness that cocoons us. Music another force in this war against our immersion into the all.
Well said, David. Teaching is a great example too. My son-in-law is an elementary teacher, and his motto, and what the says to each kid and parent he meets is: "You matter." And so we do. Each of us. And music, yes. Thanks for reading and responding. That means s lot too.
He's a gem of a human being your son-in-law, at least of spirit. I have so many posts about "why blog" "why write" - for me, I learn through responding, touching. It helps me center and find the center that holds. I'm better for it. As an aside, I once was very immersed in studies about aloneness (different from loneliness). I have a folder somewhere from months in libraries, I'd find a gem and photocopy it (pre-digital days), just needed it for reference. Esp. remember one Japanese writer. I believed and still do, there should be a whole science/discipline devoted to this - our original sin, thrust from the garden of eden to live as "seperate" and forever in search of the "other". Kundera by the way, wrote a lot about this - I also think of Satre's Roquentin and of course, Dostoevsky without a doubt, was the apex of literature of estrangement, a la Camus. I don't see this type of literature anymore - I think possibly because of TV, Video, visuality so dominant. The mind takes second place. The heart third.
So interesting what you say about aloneness being different from loneliness. Id love to see some of your notes on that subject someday. Also what you say about that thrust from the Garden of Eden and our quest for wholeness, the "other". I wrote a series of posts on that--not sure if you saw it. Here's a link to the first one. https://deborahbrasket.substack.com/p/language-and-literature-loss-and
I quoted from Hass's Meditation at Lagunitas:
All the new thinking is about loss.
In this it resembles all the old thinking.
The idea, for example, that each particular erases
the luminous clarity of a general idea. That the clown-
faced woodpecker probing the dead sculpted trunk
of that black birch is, by his presence,
some tragic falling off from a first world
of undivided light.
I agree, a whole discipline should be devoted to this. It does go to the heart of what it means to be human.
The first thing a child experiences in this world is the touch of its mother. And, if we are lucky, we will die holding somebody's hand. It is so important. Even to animals. I just read a beautiful article about how important it is for a dying dog to be held by its beloved owner. Touch in all its forms: Nurturing, gentle, loving, emotional, spiritual, aesthetic, sexual, creative, and emotional are essential to our well-being.
On a side note, I also like how you discuss the need to express words. I make notes throughout the week, but my best writing is done very early in the morning. I often wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays and will write until 10 am. The creative juices and the clarity of vision and voice seem to come best early in my day.
Thank you, as always, for touching us with your poetry.
Yes, that physical touch is so important, a way of connecting, an affirmation of I see you, hear you, understand you, feel for you, like you, love you--all the ways people connect. but on a deeper level is what you refer to as touching/connecting spiritually, emotionally, creatively, intellectually---through words, art, music.
It's interesting how the early and late hours of the day seem to feed us more creatively. Perhaps just because it's quieter, we have more privacy at those times. But sometimes I wonder if it has to do with the fact that these are liminal moments, during transitions from sleeping t waking, or from our mind/body gearing to move into sleep again. Being in sync with the the earth's turning from dark to dawn.
Anyway, I'm so glad you came here to share your thoughts, and help carry the conversation forward.
You’ve expressed some ideas here that give me pause, Deborah. I know that unexpressed grief can be withering, but I had never considered extending that idea to the panoply of other unspoken thoughts and feelings. That’s worth thinking about some more.
I certainly agree with you about the value of reciprocity. It’s really wonderful when you discover that something you feel also resonates with others.
Thanks for resurrecting your thoughtful poem and including it here. It reminds me of advice I received years ago from an aunt who died of an unexpected illness when I was a child. Touch people while you can, she said. Because one day it will be too late.
Thanks for writing and sharing this valuable post.
Thank you Andrew for coming here and sharing your thoughts. I love your Aunt's advice. Yes, touching people while we can is so important. It's the thing I'll miss most about those I love. When I touch them now I try to remember exactly how it feels so I will always have that. Even the dog we lost a few years ago, I still remember how soft and silky her fur was and that helps me to still feel connected with her, her being in the world.
Well said. So many reasons to "blog" or write but one of the most forceful is existential, to show you are alive, you matter, by touching others and affecting eternity. Teaching is the same and our lives (as a kind of pen) are the same. We exist in the world to "touch" or "be touched" and break through the aloneness that cocoons us. Music another force in this war against our immersion into the all.
Well said, David. Teaching is a great example too. My son-in-law is an elementary teacher, and his motto, and what the says to each kid and parent he meets is: "You matter." And so we do. Each of us. And music, yes. Thanks for reading and responding. That means s lot too.
He's a gem of a human being your son-in-law, at least of spirit. I have so many posts about "why blog" "why write" - for me, I learn through responding, touching. It helps me center and find the center that holds. I'm better for it. As an aside, I once was very immersed in studies about aloneness (different from loneliness). I have a folder somewhere from months in libraries, I'd find a gem and photocopy it (pre-digital days), just needed it for reference. Esp. remember one Japanese writer. I believed and still do, there should be a whole science/discipline devoted to this - our original sin, thrust from the garden of eden to live as "seperate" and forever in search of the "other". Kundera by the way, wrote a lot about this - I also think of Satre's Roquentin and of course, Dostoevsky without a doubt, was the apex of literature of estrangement, a la Camus. I don't see this type of literature anymore - I think possibly because of TV, Video, visuality so dominant. The mind takes second place. The heart third.
So interesting what you say about aloneness being different from loneliness. Id love to see some of your notes on that subject someday. Also what you say about that thrust from the Garden of Eden and our quest for wholeness, the "other". I wrote a series of posts on that--not sure if you saw it. Here's a link to the first one. https://deborahbrasket.substack.com/p/language-and-literature-loss-and
I quoted from Hass's Meditation at Lagunitas:
All the new thinking is about loss.
In this it resembles all the old thinking.
The idea, for example, that each particular erases
the luminous clarity of a general idea. That the clown-
faced woodpecker probing the dead sculpted trunk
of that black birch is, by his presence,
some tragic falling off from a first world
of undivided light.
I agree, a whole discipline should be devoted to this. It does go to the heart of what it means to be human.
The first thing a child experiences in this world is the touch of its mother. And, if we are lucky, we will die holding somebody's hand. It is so important. Even to animals. I just read a beautiful article about how important it is for a dying dog to be held by its beloved owner. Touch in all its forms: Nurturing, gentle, loving, emotional, spiritual, aesthetic, sexual, creative, and emotional are essential to our well-being.
On a side note, I also like how you discuss the need to express words. I make notes throughout the week, but my best writing is done very early in the morning. I often wake up at 5 am on Saturdays and Sundays and will write until 10 am. The creative juices and the clarity of vision and voice seem to come best early in my day.
Thank you, as always, for touching us with your poetry.
Yes, that physical touch is so important, a way of connecting, an affirmation of I see you, hear you, understand you, feel for you, like you, love you--all the ways people connect. but on a deeper level is what you refer to as touching/connecting spiritually, emotionally, creatively, intellectually---through words, art, music.
It's interesting how the early and late hours of the day seem to feed us more creatively. Perhaps just because it's quieter, we have more privacy at those times. But sometimes I wonder if it has to do with the fact that these are liminal moments, during transitions from sleeping t waking, or from our mind/body gearing to move into sleep again. Being in sync with the the earth's turning from dark to dawn.
Anyway, I'm so glad you came here to share your thoughts, and help carry the conversation forward.
I enjoyed the post but really enjoyed the poem. It captures what most people don’t think about and fewer people try to articulate. It’s a great poem.
Thank you, Julie. That means a lot to me.
You’ve expressed some ideas here that give me pause, Deborah. I know that unexpressed grief can be withering, but I had never considered extending that idea to the panoply of other unspoken thoughts and feelings. That’s worth thinking about some more.
I certainly agree with you about the value of reciprocity. It’s really wonderful when you discover that something you feel also resonates with others.
Thanks for resurrecting your thoughtful poem and including it here. It reminds me of advice I received years ago from an aunt who died of an unexpected illness when I was a child. Touch people while you can, she said. Because one day it will be too late.
Thanks for writing and sharing this valuable post.
Thank you Andrew for coming here and sharing your thoughts. I love your Aunt's advice. Yes, touching people while we can is so important. It's the thing I'll miss most about those I love. When I touch them now I try to remember exactly how it feels so I will always have that. Even the dog we lost a few years ago, I still remember how soft and silky her fur was and that helps me to still feel connected with her, her being in the world.