Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Transition, Change and other "Morphatious" things

I did it again, made up another word: "morphatious". I looked up morph in the dictionary and it described the complete process of change, For example a computer graphics program that can morph a snake into a bird and the transitions are so small you can't see them from one frame to another.

I think it's a good word to describe everything. It is only an illusion that something (anything) you are are looking at right now is unchanging. One quick example, but I think that most of my readers know the constantly changing nature of everything.
There's a bottle sitting on my desk right now. It does not appear to be changing, however at one time it was just silicon sand, and a year form now it will most likely be recycled into something else. I just looked at it again, it appears the same but it has moved thousands of miles through space (along with the rest of the planet) and even if I I can not detect it it has moved along in the decompostion process.

Well, it seems to me that there is not anything that is unchanging (anything in this world of "things" at least), so if I were to describe anything as "morphatious" it must be correct. Which actually describes the "enigma" of "describing" anything. We of the human species developed this thing called "language", well, language requires that we put static definitions on things that are not static, but as long as we acknowledge the the changing nature of things it works well as a communicating tool.

And that is just what I am trying to put my finger on. (Kinda like grabbing a handful of jello) I want to feel like I am the master of my destiny, like I actually know where I'm going and what I'm doing. But my reality is too morphatious ---- it's just changing and changing and changing-----I feel like Dorothy and Toto in the Wizard of Oz --------are we back in Kansas yet???

To be continued



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Saturday, February 21, 2009

What´s it all about Alphie

I really haven't learned how to manage one blog, but I feel compelled to start another.

Que Pasa Ken ? Un poco loco in el cabazo?

This "sister" blog is a place for me to put some of my more in depth writings, (as opposed the the shallow witty pieces I really enjoy writing.) It's mainly a place for me to store them and edit them, but, I love to share.

Peace

Ken

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Here and Now - vs - There and Then

¿Passion for life, where does it come from, where does it go?



Here and now, that´s all that really exists, I know this. It is in the core of all the great teachings.

I must admit that I am a bit perplexed at the moment. It may be because I am in "comparison mode. (Or is that: "judging" mode) The question I am asking myself is "Where does Passion come from"
Here are some places it doesn´t come from;
dulling your senses
building a wall around yourself (figuratively or literally)
trying to "figure out" what is wrong
dwelling on the past (or the future)
pointing a finger outward and thinking "If only .....then....." You fill in the blanks.
I think for me all these things ring true. There is no passion to be found in any of these activities, the only possible exception is dwelling on the future. I am a builder of things and for me building includes the vision, the process and completion. Does passion dwell in the vision, or the process, or both?

I really don´t know the answer to that one. I do know that passion is a fleeting thing for me at times. My passion might be NIA dancing for a portion of my life, then it may be flute playing, or writing, or juggling, or building, or designing, or combining these things, or, or, .....

So what´s the deal. Is finding passion like trying to hold on to a handful of water, or trying to keep the bliss felt in one moment so it can live again in another moment.

I guess I´ll sleep on it.

I've slept on it a bit and my conclusion is that passion is similar to God, or Spirit on however you want to describe the Great Mystery. It is something that has no definitive form, yet it exists in everything we do and it always has unlimited ptoential. Venturing a step further on to the thin ice of defining passion:
It is the source of the energy we put into an action or activity. The amount of energy at the source is infinite, and individually we have choices as to how much of that passion we put into anything we do. We always have the choice: Do I open the passion valve a little bit here or open it all the way.

Passion is not a static thing, it is a mode of action. It is the "gusto" we put into the activities of our lives.

That has been helpful for me to (figuratively) spit this out. Now I can go back to my travel journal and make an entry for San Pedro which is what inspired me to write this.






Thursday, February 12, 2009

To live outside the law you must be honest-- Dylan thinks so

Guatemala is surely a county of contrast and without a doubt uno piaz muy ironico.
Poverty, desperation overcrowded houses and streets are just one wall (topped with razor wire) and a gate (manned with armed guards) away from living conditions many American would envy.

I have talked with many people, Guatemalans and others who think the government here is corrupt beyond the point of no return. All the wrong people are in jail, and the same goes for the people who are paying taxes (the wrong people pay most of them). (Actually, both those sound like the US of A)

Once you are away from the city there are not as many walls, but the contrast still exists. It's more than contrast actually, I think it is a schism. The extremely poor have no connection whatsoever with the world of even the moderately wealthy, As in some eastern countries living with the caste system there are people here who are born into a life of poverty, they will either farm, produce crafts at wages so low that survival is the only goal they have, or they enter the "serving" class. I was talking with an American last week about this, I asked the question: "Is there a road away from this leading towards equality?" His response was quick and sure: "No, there will always be 'haves' and 'have nots' ."For me to believe that is to live a life of despair. We are all in this game together, and survival must be a communal effort. In the past maybe it was acceptable to believe the world could be divided that way. Today there are no more "far away untouched places" nor can our planet (and it's occupants) tolerate much more exploitation.
Here's a quick aside, maybe to put the concept of competition in a new light. The word "competition" has it's roots in Latin, it means "to seek with"
We know now, the Earth is an intimate little world, everything has an effect on everything else.
I am encouraged by what I see as a New Wave (Yes it's a cliche, but I like it) That wave is just beginning to swell right now, it's nowhere near cresting,but it's building.

My father a devout Catholic and very learned physicist has put all this together in a concept he called "omni flux" the best I can explain it in words is: Everything everywhere, from the smallest atom to the largest system we can conceptualize is connected by omni flux. Omni flux is the invisible but real connective substance in the universe. What this theory has to do with what I am writing about is this: It is impossible to disconnect yourself from everything around you. Every thought, every action, every purchase, every decision we make sends ripples out that effect everything.

I've come a long way in this little essay just to say this. Next trip to the store of your choice, please take the time to look where something was made. Chances are, if it was made in a third world it was made with virtually slave labor. They are hard to find, and it costs more, but by purchasing fair trade commodities you are voting for a world free of the injustice of extreme poverty.

A few links should you be interested in learning more about fair trade.

Slowfood is about connecting ourselves and our communities to the food we eat, and becoming concious of where it comes from.

Ken Casler

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www.solidaridad.

www.slowfood.com

www.fairtrade.net