Spider Robinson - Waking Spirals

Striving

“This is what it is to be human: to see the essential existential futility of all action, all striving — and to act, to strive. This is what it is to be human: to reach forever beyond your grasp. This is what it is to be human: to live forever or die trying. This is what it is to be human: to perpetually ask the unanswerable questions, in the hope that the asking of them will somehow hasten the day when they will be answered. This is what it is to be human: to strive in the face of the certainty of failure. This is what it is to be human: to persist.”
― Spider Robinson

Thrown down to the bottom
again and again
yet still I pull myself up
and start to crawl
to walk to climb to soar
until the crash comes
I persist through it all
and will continue
to do less would mean to
deny my being
I may never find the end of my quest
but that has never mattered
and matters less the further I go
— G A Rosenberg

Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Warrior by G A Rosenberg

Frayed Nerves by G A Rosenberg

Travelling in Books

“In books I have traveled, not only to other worlds, but into my own.”
— Anna Quindlen

All of my life I have been an avid reader. I’d be the kid always walking around with the book in his hand. In class, I’d have a novel hidden under my school books and trusted to my memory to fill in the blanks in the lessons. So much that other people did and said puzzled me that I looked to the characters in books and how the writers handled their interactions to clarify the relationships in my own life and it helped. I read a lot of non-fiction and from those I gain knowledge but it is from fiction that I tend to get the most insight. From Spider Robinson’s Callahan stories I learned about the importance of empathy and sharing both joy and pain. From Frank Herbert’s Dune novels I learned about the many layers that communication happens on and how to handle it when overwhelmed by emotions. The litany against fear (http://dune.wikia.com/wiki/Litany_Against_Fear) works with all emotions. From Charles DeLint’s stories I learned much about how to overcome past pain and the sheer wonder and magick that exists in our everyday life. From these and so many others I’ve learned so much that I’ve been able to apply and share with other people and I am grateful for the light that they have shone in my world.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Taurus by G A Rosenberg

Fractal Seeds in an Abstract Garden by G A Rosenberg

Shared

Shared joy is increased,Shared pain lessened and thus we refute the law of entropy.”
–Spider Robinson

There are very few things better than sharing a good time with people whom we care about. We rack up memories of golden moments, of laughs and pure enjoyment of a day. We remember most the sunrises, sunsets and walks under the stars that we have shared with others and few things can be as wonderful as pure laughter of a joke shared. The joy of the moment is more than doubled.
Likewise when we are hurting, little helps more than being able to unburden ourselves on those we love. We can cry and cop to the things that we did wrong in the situation and ways we have hurt others and the pain that we allowed them to give us and find release where in solitude the pressure would just build up until we surrendered to it. It is important to have friends with whom we can do this and not fear the response, knowing that we will find understanding and solace and possibly a kick in the ass when we wallow in it. It helps also to know that we can be there for other people when they are hurting and be that sounding board they need, helping them find solution and absolution.
I have been lucky in my life to have people with whom I can share both joy and pain. They have taught me the true meaning of friendship and caring. I hope that I will have the chance to share this lesson with many others.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

A Space in My Head by G A Rosenberg

Gaze Deeply by G A Rosenberg

Compassion and Paradox

“Toast, toast, toast…nothing trite, nothing corny, nothin crude. There went most of my repertoire. I remembered once I’d heard a wise old barkeeper say once, and used it: “To the ones who weren’t as lucky.”
–Spider Robinson

I recently thought of a paraphrase of the old capitalist motto: “He who dies with the most joys wins”. By this, I mean that a life measured in moments of joy, love and wonder seems much more worthwhile than a life measured in things acquired. Of course, to really up our joy levels, it helps if we discover and live our life’s purpose, our true will for a life filled fulfilling one’s purpose would almost naturally be a life enjoyed.
I have had friends challenge me on this. They ask me how I can enjoy my life when there is so much misery around. The very planet itself suffers from the rather horrible things being done to her. People live in terror and poverty and shame. Where is their joy and how can I possibly be happy without turning a blind eye to all of the pain. The simple answer is that I can’t turn away. I feel the suffering of others and feel it acutely. I do what I can and it is never enough.
Like so much in life there is paradox involved. Can I help others best by wallowing in misery with them or can I do more by radiating the joy of a life lived to its fullest? Compassion can often mean that our heart hurts and we feel the joy of existence simultaneously. This is seldom an easy balance but a worthwhile one to find.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Projecting From the Centre by G A Rosenberg

Humaniform by G A Rosenberg

Multi-Wheels by G A Rosenberg

Here’s To Adventure

“Mankind is divided into two basic sorts: those who find the unknown future threatening … and those who find it thrilling. The rupture between those two sides has been responsible for most of the bloodshed in history.”
― Spider Robinson

I love to experience new things. Whether it be food or drink I’ve never tasted, places I’ve never seen, or ideas I’ve never encountered, I embrace them all. I know that I am not unique in this but I also realize that other people experience life much differently. Their mental maps have many unexplored areas marked “Here there be dragons” and they stay away assiduously. Perhaps it is because their lives are so comfortable that they have no desire to risk upsetting the apple cart. On the other hand perhaps it is because their previous encounters with the unknown proved to be upsetting. Perhaps it is for another reason altogether. I prefer to be like James Branch Cabell’s Jurgen who will “taste any drink once” I long to taste the adventure that is life and find some form of adventure in each new day. The best thing about this love of adventuring is that I realize no matter how much I experience in this lifetime, it is but a speck among infinite possibility. Here’s to adventure.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Goddess by G A Rosenberg

What are the Rules? A Consciousness Stream

“If Life is just a game…

What are the rules?”
— Vajra Krishna

Kindergarden rules yet most adults lose the simplicity. Kindness works but when it doesn’t learn to accept and deal with it and others according to our truest natures (the law of Thelema)…. oh yeah discovering those natures would be high on the list. As would most of what Richard Bach put in the Messiah’s Handbook in the book Illusions (http://jungian.info/library.cfm?idsLibrary=14) and what Johnny Depp said about confusion (“I cultivate confusion because I like what it does to my face”). Above all first use the fear and then lose the fear. It may be a friend but it all too easily overstays its welcome.. Remember that the people in our lives are there because we drew them (and the image i get is at least two meanings of draw both with a pen and with a deck of cards), They are here to both teach and learn from as we are to them. Did I mention be kind? If so rewind and here it again. Not only be kind to others but save kindness for ourselves. Let’s add the law of Callahan’s as stated by Spider Robinson (“Shared joy is increased, shared pain is lessened and thus we refute entropy). Oh yeah and most of all, the game is kind of like Special Olympics, everybody wins tho it may be a very long blink of an eye game.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Stop and Smell the Flowers by G A Rosenberg

Travelling Towards Escher Land by G A Rosenberg

Being There

“There’s nothing in the human heart or mind, no place no matter how twisted or secret, that can’t be endured – if you have someone to share it with.”
― Spider Robinson

I’ve heard it said that so strong is the need to share that prisoners in solitary will name insects and talk to them as pets just as a way to externalize what has been bottled up for so long. Given my nature, I would do that (heck I even used to name the lobsters my sister would bring home to cook for my parents, until she made me put them in the pot for her but that’s another tale altogether) tho given my nature, i would probably either bring along imaginary friends or find new ones. Still I see this point even more in its absence. It’s when we feel isolated, when we feel ourselves unable to share what we carry inside that the difficulty lies. Each of us can make a difference by reaching out to those who seem too isolated and by being there as we can when we can. Sometimes just having someone to share with can make all the difference in the world. Being there for other people also cuts down on our own isolation for how often can you hear someone sharing their most intimate selves without sharing at least a bit of our own as well? In addition, the more we can open ourselves up to people the more our capacity for compassion grows so there are benefits all around.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized:

Whispering by G A Rosenberg

On Strange Shores by G A Rosenberg

“Sometimes I think I must have a Guardian Idiot. A little invisible spirit just behind my shoulder, looking out for me…only he’s an imbecile”
— Spider Robinson

Most of us can relate. We have so many near misses in our lives. Times when it feels like life has taken a wrong turn only to find out that that wrong turn saved us from a far worse one if we had zigged instead of zagged. I remember fights with my parents that resulted in me moving out first from my mother’s to my father’s then from my father’s to staying with friends. Stupid fights yet looking back they happened at just the right time to stop conflicts from getting worst. Hitting my head that time and almost knocking myself out. It kept me home that night that one friend got killed and another arrested. Perhaps I needed that hit in the head. Still I have to say that sitting here in my office writing this with loved ones upstairs, I have to say my guardian idiot has done more than a bit ok. I am truly grateful.
Blessings, G

Like me on FaceBook : https://www.facebook.com/WakingSpirals

Click on images to see full-size

Synaptic Circuit by G A Rosenberg

Dweller by G A Rosenberg

Real Characters

“If you will practice being fictional for awhile, you will understand that fictional characters are sometimes more real than people with bodies and heartbeats”
— Richard Bach

There are times when I lie awake at night and have conversations in my head with characters from books. Malachi in Edgar Pangborn’s Still I Persist in Wondering, never bored and asking the question Why do we love when we know it will end up hurting us. Sometimes in my mind I find myself trading bad puns with the denizens of the Callahan stories by Spider Robinson and sometimes I find myself sharing some of the rougher problems I’ve had with them and thereby lessening the pain. When my mother passed away I found myself receiving solace from the personification of Death as written by Neil Gaiman. THere are so many characters I’ve read over the years that they have taken on a life of their own at least in my mind.
Does that seem far fetched? Do you have friends who you’ve only spoken to on the internet? How about casual acquaintances and distant relatives who most of what you know about each other is myth that you’ve used to fill in the blanks. How real are they to you? How real is the clerk at your local grocery store whom you smile and joke with? Do you even know their name?
At best, the amount of matter we give to a person or thing in our lives whether fictional or corporeal varies based on our mindfulness and our interest. Yes I have loved fictional characters and given them more life than I have the casual strangers I meet each day. Doing this has allowed me to have more appreciation for other beings in general and a keener appreciation for the real.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized

Dream Journey Mandala by G A Rosenberg

Exploding Maze by G A Rosenberg

Quote of the Day – January 29 2013

“This is what it is to be human: to see the essential existential futility of all action, all striving—and to act, to strive. This is what it is to be human: to reach forever beyond your grasp. This is what it is to be human: to live forever or die trying. This is what it is to be human: to perpetually ask the unanswerable questions, in the hope that the asking of them will somehow hasten the day when they will be answered. This is what it is to be human: to strive in the face of the certainty of failure.
This is what it is to be human: to persist.”
“For this is what it means to be human: to laugh at what another would call tragedy.”
— Spider and Jeanne Robinson, Stardance

I embrace my humanity and that of others. We’re the damnedest / blessedest creatures. We persist in perversity and we persist in glimmers of hope at the lowest moments. We persist sometimes when there seems to be no hope at all. Such beautiful ugliness in our shadow and sun. We learn through tragedy as well and persist even then. We have so far to go to reach our potential but with such persistence we actually have a hope of getting there.
Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-sized

Encompass by G A Rosenberg

Diamond Star Dance by G A Rosenberg