The Fall of Icarus by Peter Paul Rubens, 1636 Musée Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Belgium A form seen in the distance Becomes clearer the closer we get to it. If a mirage were water, Why would it vanish when we draw near? The farther we are from the world, The more real it appears to … Continue reading Awakening and the Fall
In the light of day, I traveled to a remote forest area several miles from the base in Massachusetts. I had driven-by the turnoff several times before while navigating through the surrounding areas, and the entrance always caught my eye. Curiosity got the better of me one day while I was still in what they … Continue reading Deep Forest Vision
http://bncdance.com/company/performances/a-journey-of-the-human-spirit/ "Once we find the transcendent experience and open up to a greater flow of spiritual energy and security within, something profound begins to occur. We begin to see ourselves and our behavior from a higher perspective, from a viewpoint of our more energized higher self. Our sense of identity moves past the insecure reactions … Continue reading Journey of the Human Spirit
"Memory performs the impossible for man; holds together past and present, gives continuity and dignity to human life." -- Mark Van Doren, Liberal Education, 1943 "In a large sense, learning and memory are central to our very identity. They make us who we are." -- Eric Kandel, In Search of Memory, 2006 "Has it ever … Continue reading Ancient Mountain of Memory
Sitting on that hill in California overlooking Monterey Bay was an extraordinary moment--one for which I was also totally unprepared. Life is like that sometimes. We work to find a place for ourselves, searching occasionally in places where we never thought we would find ourselves, and expending efforts that may go on for months at … Continue reading Working To Find A Place To Begin Again
"Every human being, and every human mind, has roots that extend indefinitely far back through time…the consciousness of the individual is inextricably tied to the consciousness of the whole…Everything in nature is actually connected or implicated with everything else…" - David Darling, philosopher, from his book, "Equations of Eternity "David Darling has pressed the matter … Continue reading Consciousness and the World We Create: Part Two
"The spiritual life justifies itself to those who live it; but what can we say to those who do not understand? This, at least, we can say, that it is a life whose experiences are proved real to their possessor, because they remain with him when brought closest into contact with the objective realities of … Continue reading Two Worlds Merge
mlewallpapers.com As a young soldier in 1974, on the journey of a lifetime in California, one might suppose it would be unlikely for me to know how important the events of those days would be, and even less chance that I would appreciate them fully at that point in my life, and prior to the … Continue reading California Impressions Part II
Moving to California was almost like landing on a completely different planet for a young man from the East Coast. In all my prior travels up to that time, I hadn't been further north than Boston, MA and only as far south as Washington, DC. Just about every trip that had taken me anywhere beyond … Continue reading The Heart of Life
A recent conversation inspired me to return to a small book of poems by Elizabeth Barrett Browning called, "Sonnets from the Portuguese," which contains her best known and "most anthologized" sonnet number 43, in which she enumerated the ways she loved Robert Browning. Each of the sonnets in this collection have their unique appeal, and … Continue reading A Look Into the Soul of a Poet
John's Consciousness 