Human Constraints
September 12th, 2008 § Leave a Comment
These seem to be two constraints humans face:
- We’re constrained in one way by the reality that to get much done, we need to collaborate with other people.
- We’re constrained in another way by the limits of groups of people to collaborate, both among themselves and with other groups.
It’s a persistent dynamic tension and a kind of ecosystem. It’s amazing how much those two constraints relate to: a diversity of emotions, a diversity of social groups and forms, a diversity of technologies, a diversity of businesses, a diversity of people.
Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind.
A Light Touch
April 15th, 2008 § Leave a Comment
Pretty much anything done to excess or to the exclusion of variety can make you angry, bitter and ineffective. What you are doing can also seem strained or excessive to others, making it less effective. Similarly, too much variety can also make you angry, bitter and ineffective.
So it seems we must have some variety and do things with a light touch. Doing things with a light touch is a non-excessive way of doing things. The saying about having a light heart probably gets at the same thing. So, have a light touch.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Follow the More Interesting
April 2nd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
In today’s dizzying world, enough can’t be had, or perhaps, it’s just a false goal. You can never get enough, or do enough. There is always something else you could be doing. And even knowing there is never enough is not enough!
I think that our goal, or direction, should be rather to seek the more interesting. More interesting than what? More interesting than whatever you have now. Not to lessen the importance of now. We must appreciate now. But I think the way now unfolds into the future is through the more interesting.
The more interesting pulls the now forward. Not that the more interesting trumps all other ways to move forward. But I think the more interesting is a more interesting way to move forward! (A nice recursive touch there, too.)
More interesting is a blend of intellectual, emotional, spiritual and physical. When in doubt, you might try more interesting. Let more interesting be a leading edge, a direction or vector, of your life.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Banality is Deep
February 23rd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
The banal is often the most deep. However, it can take some effort to see it. But you can go from “The sky is blue” to “The sky is blue! (And so amazing it’s about to blow my mind.)” This can be done without drugs. In fact, it’s way, way better without drugs. Nature doesn’t have an advertising agency, which is a shame.
Of course, you can’t be this way all the time. You’d never get anything done. But in this there’s another banal but deep observation: You can’t do anything all the time anyway.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Life Like a House
February 2nd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
One’s life is like a house. Different moods, different personalities, different awarenesses, are like different rooms you can go into at different times.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
The World Dares You
February 2nd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
The world dares you to have a personality.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Needing People
February 2nd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
People who need people are the most needed people.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Starting Over
February 2nd, 2008 § Leave a Comment
It’s astonishing how often I need to start over. Completely redo something from the beginning. The less an issue I make of it, the better things go.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Zen: Mutual Arising of Opposites a Powerful Idea
January 21st, 2008 § Leave a Comment
The mutual arising of opposites is one of the more powerful ideas I’ve come across. I first heard it in talks by Alan Watts about Zen on KPFK in Los Angeles.
The mutual arising of opposites implies many things. It means the pairs mentioned below arise together, which can be incredibly calming. It means you gain both at the same time. It lets you slip into and out of time at the same time! Funny! And other things too.
Some mutually arising pairs: Chaos and order. Breathing poorly and breathing well. Fairness and unfairness. Stillness and busyness. Sense and nonsense. Invoke one and you also get the other. So don’t be afraid of either. They come together. Embrace both.
This also helps solve the problem of not having enough time. Accept you don’t have time, and you have time.
More mutually arising opposites pairs: Starting over and moving ahead. Fear and courage. Motion and stillness. Perfection and imperfection. Wealth and poverty. Near and far. Now and not now. Tension and relaxation. Organization and disorganization. Fullness and emptiness. Good posture and bad posture. Good grammar and bad. It’s a constant dance between these pairs. To experience one you need the other. It’s an oscillation. The faster the oscillation, or perhaps the more entangled they are, the more magic.
The only danger perhaps is getting stuck on one of a pair of mutual arising opposites. I guess the trick to getting unstuck might be to remember that if you have one of a pair, you have the opposite as well, and to increase the oscillation or entanglement.
I think mutual arising is one reason I liked skiing so much. You are constantly playing with, and on the brink of, disaster and control. And why I needed to quit for a while – it had become too predictable.
~ Proxri Deal: As you find our relationship rewarding, proxri with the proximity in mind. ~
Beach Thoughts
July 31st, 2006 § Leave a Comment
Went for a walk on the beach around sunset. From a systems perspective, different animals, insects, and species play different roles in helping the system keep going. What are the roles humans play, from a systems perspective? Perhaps to take care of each other, and take care of the earth. Perhaps. Among other things …
