Friday, July 2, 2021

Radical Acceptance




photo: NASA et al

Someday you’ll simply cease to exist. Even Hemlock Society “lifers”  may not desire this condition, but if you look at the brighter side, it’s actually a liberating prospect. For a comparatively infinitesimal period of time, you’re charged with molding a rather intractable and resistant material. It’s a Sisyphean project where two steps forward are followed by two steps back. No sooner have you dammed the hole then a new crack in the fabric of what's essentially an illusion appears. Even the illusion termed "existence" begins to fray from the dawn of consciousness. When you’re born, you begin to die. Turtles have a lifespan that’s comparable to humans but at least they have a shell, which acts like sunglasses to prevent the overexposure and seduction of light. Homo Sapiens with their "eyes wide shut" to cite the ingenious Stanley Kubrick locution, are condemned to a perennial state of wistfulness that only ends with the termination of their "analysis" or life—whichever comes first. Striving is tantamount to controlling and “desire”as the Buddhists say, “is the beginning of suffering." You're here for a short stay. You have to mind the three S's, shave, shit and shower, but, otherwise, when all is said and done, why continue to fight? Why not just lie back, accept and enjoy the view.

Read "The Seven Ages of One Man" by Francis Levy, The East Hampton Star

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