Life 101, A Wise Man's Advice for Adulthood

If a picture is worth a thousand words, maybe a drawing can save a lot of unnecessary verbosity, a drawing that will provide a simple image to portray the arena in which we live out our entire lives.  The figure that I propose is that of an unfinished triangle.  I call it " eternal " which means that it is basic to all of us lifelong.   It arises from the fact that our lives are described by three relationships. Our lives are, in fact, impossible without them. It is out of a relationship that all of us are born and it is in relationship that we become and remain human.  It is also in relationship with the surrounding physical world that we continue to survive.  Moreover, it is in  relationship with something we consider to be " ultimate ", something beyond every thing else (whether or not we call it " God ")  that we continue to live what we consider to be a " meaningful " life.  This context of relationships provides the arena in which our lives...

There is a report that Daniel Boone was once asked if he'd ever gotten lost. "Lost?" he said. "No. never. I was once mighty confused for about three weeks, but never lost." If we are not lost in this fast-changing world at least we are confused In discussing relativity I said that it's the word "absolute" that is being called into question. Everything is so "on the move" that there seem to be no fixed points, no objective standards. So a word that's come into increasing use to describe this increasing ephemeral quality of life is "LIQUIDITY." It is a metaphor for the world around us. Sociologist Sigmund Baumann speaks of "liquid modernity" by which he contrasts the present with the "old days" which were more solid. In those days people built cathedrals and value was placed on things that were permanent, established. But that's true no more. (We can't even guarantee the permanence of the World Tr...

If it's true that no one, including ourselves, has a corner on the whole Truth and if it's true that we won't learn as much just talking with people who think as we do, as from those who think differently from ourselves, and if it's true that dialogue is a useful strategy for persons wanting, not so much to win an  argument, as to learn from each other, what do you do with someone who isn't interested in dialogue, but only in argument?  Especially if they're persuaded that they do  have the whole truth? There are such people. "Thinking Man", by Tim Holmes They are very much like the mental patient I heard of who was  hospitalized  because of his firm conviction that he was a corpse.  A young ward attendant who didn't know much about mental illness, thought he could "reason" the patient out of such an untenable position.  "So you think you are a corpse?" "Yes," replied the patient. "Corpses don't bleed do they?...

"There are three truths: my truth, your truth and the Truth." --ancient Chinese proverb Because of the truth of that proverb which I've repeated above. it's important for us to be in touch with people who see Reality differently than we do because there's always the possibility that we might learn something new and helpful.  A contemporary Jewish philosopher, Martin Buber , popularized the idea of dialogue as the best means for dealing with the differences of perception among us in our quest for Truth. Dialogue, he says, is much different from a pair of monologues, or argument, or debate.  The purpose of dialogue is not to win over an adversary, but rather to work cooperatively to draw closer to the truth.  The process of dialogue involves two things: on the one hand the willingness to articulate one's point of view as carefully as possible, and on the other hand to listen to the point of view of the other as carefully as possible. This means that liste...

We've spoken of how things have changed over time and how rapidly some things are changing right now.  The fact is some things still need changing. Change is often as frightening as it is inevitable.  A certain biologist has noted that the human mind treats a new idea the way the body treats a strange protein, it rejects it. What often happens in the face of change is the establishment of firm battle lines between those who proclaim the necessity of change against those who want to protect the status quo (the way things presently are.)  Virtually all of the changes that have taken place during the last half century– changes that have begun  to bring more justice and rationality to the issues of racial and gender equality, the needs for environmental protection, the rights of the disabled, the safety of consumers, refinements in the political process, etc. – that most of us today would acknowledge are good and appropriate changes, were strongly resisted by one group o...