Default justice

“Every man thinks God is on his side. The rich and powerful know he is.”
~ Jean Anouilh

The favor of the Gods is the ego’s illusion, until circumstances change, and one realizes that God, fate, karma, or random chance can take everything away in a moment’s time, including one’s fortunes and sometimes life itself. The higher the climb on the backs of others, the more disillusioning the fall when those backs shift position, as they always do.

Everything seeks its equilibrium point, moving from the low to the high, the high to the low, from side to side, and finally to the flat ground, where purposeful activity ceases and all is balanced again. This is life’s default form of justice: the birth, rise, fall, and eventual flatlining – an immutable process that nobody escapes, including the rich and powerful.

If a higher form of justice exists, and I hope it does, then maybe it rests upon this immutable default justice; our attitude towards it being the difference between being reborn as a worm or saint, or anything in-between.

Field trip

The lot of us roamed the state park, back and forth, like zombies searching aimlessly. We’d keep going until Liz – the activities coordinator – blew the whistle, and then we’d scramble back to the bus.

Lenny and Chip, the OCD sufferers, zigzagged the grounds in convoluted patterns, understood by them alone. Reminded me of the football patterns I ran with my mates behind Foley field, about 40 years earlier. The difference being that we never crossed into each other’s lanes in those days. But, Lenny and Chip crashed into each other at one point, almost coming to fists over it, before arriving at a compromise with my assistance.

“Avoidance is the key,” Lenny told me after calming down.

“Yep, stay in your own lanes, and all will be good,” I said. And I gave him a thumbs up. He smiled, gave me a pat on the back and continued his zigzag patterns. I felt validated from the pat.

Continue reading “Field trip” →

Possess and control

We are engrossed by the illusion that we can actually possess or control anything, other than ourselves – and even that has limits.

Hacking away

In all honesty, I’ve been somewhat of a hack at everything I’ve pursued, maybe an unintentional impostor at times. A possible case of Impostor Syndrome?

Nevertheless, I’ve been good enough to impress a few people, supporting my illusion that I have the talent or wisdom to pull off whatever I am doing or being. Illusions can become powerful motivators, pushing us forward and sustaining our efforts over time, despite our perceived limitations.

Continue reading “Hacking away” →

Perpetuating fantasies

Some fantasies continuously rewrite themselves to fit the current time, place, and situation of one’s life. The original “wish” perpetuates through the later versions, but everything else must change for the fantasy to remain relevant and offer the air of possibility.