I appreciate your breakdown of people as “worshipping beings.” I think that spirituality is a major pillar to the human psyche, but nowadays it’s confused for religiousness. I think we’re seeing a spiritual revival because in avoiding religion many people have neglected spirituality. And like you said, we don’t all believe in any god but we all pursue heaven or “home.”
every word, every paragraph touched my soul. to be alive is to live wanting something! but not in a materialistic sense, in a spiritual complete my soul sense🤍
I think the idea of absence as the shape of what we want could be explored further, alongside the concepts of negative and positive space in Art and, in particular, Architecture. The discipline looks at how we move through negative spaces and inhibit positive ones. Negativity typically promotes movement, while positive spaces encourage lingering. Your writing has such insightful depth and I always walk away wanting to read your essays to anyone who will hear.
I find that there are things I want and things that I long for. Wanting is just wanting. But longing is actually a desire for God which I have placed onto something else.
Wanting gets slandered by every tradition that mistakes it for greed. But the absence of wanting isn’t peace — it’s the flatline. Desire is just the nervous system still betting the future is worth showing up for. The day you stop wanting anything is the day worth worrying about.
“Iron rusts from disuse; stagnant water loses its purity and in cold weather becomes frozen; even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind. So we must stretch ourselves to the very limits of human possibility. Anything less is a sin against both God and man.” — Leonardo Da Vinci (professedly?)
This makes me go back to the idea that as humans we must always be "becoming". It is like reality itself is not enough, what is enough and keeps us going is the vision of the future reality we can obtain! We do not live in facts, we live in hopes, dreams, possibilities, etc!
To be more is to be oneself as one is before that Otherness. Stare into it, and it stares back at you. Only, you don’t lose yourself, you’re shown yourself. Its gaze solidifies you. It makes you who you are.
Also great song. If you ever get the chance, take a drive down the blue ridge parkway. Keep the song playing on loop. Magic
"I think we have a heaven drive, a libido that insists on moving toward wholeness."
Reminds me of Dr. Chuck Macknee, former professor of human sexuality at my alma mater, and his insistence that sexuality and spirituality were inextricably linked precisely because they shared a common source—namely, man's incomplete soul and its longing for wholeness.
I was reminded of a very, VERY old cartoon from 1950's or before. It was about a little mole who lived near a dump. He was nearsighted and outside in the sunlight everything is blurry. He would look at the dump pile and see a beautiful castle. One day a peddler came along (a skunk!) who gives him a pair of glasses. He puts them on and can see everything clearly, including the dump and how ugly it is. But he is so amazed at being able to see everything else, he races around shouting I can see! I can see! Until, he falls into a river (and a whirlpool), looses his glasses and is eventually washed ashore where his mother, frantic, finally finds him. (I can still here her telling him "stay close to home!.")
Once home, he again sits outside, looking at the dump pile looking at his castle, so relieved it is still there.
This made such an impression on me, how imagination and magic and wonder are important.
I appreciate your breakdown of people as “worshipping beings.” I think that spirituality is a major pillar to the human psyche, but nowadays it’s confused for religiousness. I think we’re seeing a spiritual revival because in avoiding religion many people have neglected spirituality. And like you said, we don’t all believe in any god but we all pursue heaven or “home.”
I think one of the greatest feelings is crying with strangers at a concert when an achey song comes on!
I think we are all seeking some sort of connection to the divine and we must sort out what that means to us individually!
every word, every paragraph touched my soul. to be alive is to live wanting something! but not in a materialistic sense, in a spiritual complete my soul sense🤍
adore this, and all the pieces that inspired it too !!
I think the idea of absence as the shape of what we want could be explored further, alongside the concepts of negative and positive space in Art and, in particular, Architecture. The discipline looks at how we move through negative spaces and inhibit positive ones. Negativity typically promotes movement, while positive spaces encourage lingering. Your writing has such insightful depth and I always walk away wanting to read your essays to anyone who will hear.
“how thirst alone proves that water exists” that really stuck out to me
Stellar!
I find that there are things I want and things that I long for. Wanting is just wanting. But longing is actually a desire for God which I have placed onto something else.
Wanting gets slandered by every tradition that mistakes it for greed. But the absence of wanting isn’t peace — it’s the flatline. Desire is just the nervous system still betting the future is worth showing up for. The day you stop wanting anything is the day worth worrying about.
The “phantom heart syndrome” idea is gorgeous! This was a beautiful, beautiful read <3
Thank you for posting this. It felt like I needed it and gave me new inspiration. ♥️
“Iron rusts from disuse; stagnant water loses its purity and in cold weather becomes frozen; even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind. So we must stretch ourselves to the very limits of human possibility. Anything less is a sin against both God and man.” — Leonardo Da Vinci (professedly?)
This makes me go back to the idea that as humans we must always be "becoming". It is like reality itself is not enough, what is enough and keeps us going is the vision of the future reality we can obtain! We do not live in facts, we live in hopes, dreams, possibilities, etc!
Wow such a profound read!
❤️❤️❤️❤️ thank you for linking sherry
To be more is to be oneself as one is before that Otherness. Stare into it, and it stares back at you. Only, you don’t lose yourself, you’re shown yourself. Its gaze solidifies you. It makes you who you are.
Also great song. If you ever get the chance, take a drive down the blue ridge parkway. Keep the song playing on loop. Magic
"I think we have a heaven drive, a libido that insists on moving toward wholeness."
Reminds me of Dr. Chuck Macknee, former professor of human sexuality at my alma mater, and his insistence that sexuality and spirituality were inextricably linked precisely because they shared a common source—namely, man's incomplete soul and its longing for wholeness.
I was reminded of a very, VERY old cartoon from 1950's or before. It was about a little mole who lived near a dump. He was nearsighted and outside in the sunlight everything is blurry. He would look at the dump pile and see a beautiful castle. One day a peddler came along (a skunk!) who gives him a pair of glasses. He puts them on and can see everything clearly, including the dump and how ugly it is. But he is so amazed at being able to see everything else, he races around shouting I can see! I can see! Until, he falls into a river (and a whirlpool), looses his glasses and is eventually washed ashore where his mother, frantic, finally finds him. (I can still here her telling him "stay close to home!.")
Once home, he again sits outside, looking at the dump pile looking at his castle, so relieved it is still there.
This made such an impression on me, how imagination and magic and wonder are important.
I just found it! 1941. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k22E9Sa49q4