Hello Folks,
I'm writing from North-Central Florida (home of the Gators, for
you sports fans :-)), where it's a cold 75F days and about 45-50F
nights. Had to put away my shorts and put on a sweat shirt! (and
long pants)
Finally worked up nerve enough to offer a comment.
But first, my deepest appreciation for your discussions on an
issue important to me but from a point of view with which I am
not familiar. I know that I have not yet grasped the essentials
of "Nondual"; but John McClellan, rest assured that you have
stimulated me to a further pursuit of the concept.
May I offer some personal comments on a couple of topics; perhaps
they will resonate with someone.
On Technological Change - An anecdote:
I grew up on the rural prairies of southern Alberta Canada) in
the 20's & 30's. I remember when my father shifted from horse
farming to tractors. B.T. (before tractors) we started the day
feeding, watering the horses and other chores. We would have a
comparatively leisurely breakfast while the horses ate. When we
started work in the field, well after sunrise, we had to be
protective of the horses - stopping for rest & water regularly.
At noon we went back to the barn - feed & water again. We would
have a hot dinner and then a nap while the horses rested. Then
back to the routine until time for supper. Back to the barn,
feed & water, let the horses roll and spend the night asleep.
Then Dad got a tractor. It could go hour after hour, night and
day, stopping only for gas, grease, oil & maintenance. A short
stop for lunch (sometimes hot) eaten with the smell and taste of
gas/oil, often sprinkled by the wind with dust. There seemed to
be no end to the monotonous drive. (See Chaplin's film _Modern
Times_)
The horses were our friends, warm and sheltering when it was
cold, offering a spontaneous nuzzle, playfully cavorting in the
early morning. I loved the barn, the smell of animals, hay,
straw & even the manure was preferable to gas & oil.
Of course, technology made much of farm life much easier,
especially for my mother after electricity and indoor plumbing.
(I remember being amused when my in-laws installed a bathroom
after WWII. My father-in-law never really got comfortable with a
toilet indoors - too unsanitary!)
But for me, the tractor changed the relationship I felt with the
farm, farm life & work. It interjected itself, in subtle ways,
between me and Mother Nature as manifested in rural life of that
time.
On Truth - one image:
Truth (big T) is a working hypothesis; a work in progress. And
there are many ways of seeing it. Perhaps as many ways as there
are people. Sort of like the blind men describing the elephant,
each one seems to have a little bit of truth (small t).
This became apparent to me while working with people during my
career as an analyst of water and land "problems", programs and
policies. I finally came to realize that I had to try to
understand at least some important categories of truths held in
the communities. Because it was my responsibility (with
colleagues) to provide information to others about the
consequences of actions/inactions, I needed to give information
that had meaning to people in terms of their several truths and
related values.
It seems to me that we who are concerned about the world around
might further the cause by offering information about the issue
in terms that resonate with folks with differing views of the
world.
----------------------------
Everyone in this seminar has shown some aspect of truth that helps
me in my continuing search.
Thank you, John McClellan, for being such a successful and caring
catalyst; and to each of you all, please accept my most sincere
respect for your wisdom. (I've never been much for "bowing", but
I have a lot of respect to offer)
Don Roper, this was an excellent seminar on one aspect of a most
important issue. It was good to set an end time. But, as
evident, there are other ways of seeing this world and our
environment. I wish that this could be the first in a series of
seminars on the same subject but each beginning with a
contribution from another viewpoint.
Sincerely,
Ray Lanier (rlanier@radius.vector.net)
P.O. Box 698, Micanopy, Florida, USA 32667