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A couple of [my] 'top ten' lists -- plainly presented one through ten, rather than David Letterman style... |
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top ten favorite "things": (enjoyment of items 3-10 is wholly contingent to 1 and 2; while
1 through 5 present a logical order, 6 through 10 are arbitrary) |
| 01. The First Cause of Being. The supra-existent
and uncaused cause of existence. The archetypical Good, the Prime Mover,
"the thing in itself," the Eternal Constant, the primordial One.
The Mystery of subsequent mysteries, the Presence of presence; the Unchanging,
the Absolute, the nameless -- in a mere word God -- the infinite, eternal
Mind whose active thought is the universe. 02. Free will -- the necessary context for adventure, love, wonder, wisdom, and cognition of beauty. 03. The human mind -- an amazing mystery and a dim semblance of the infinite Mind. 04. Those transcendent "things" whose true existence lies beyond the material world of mere mechanism -- in the realm of consciousness. 'Things' like mathematics, music, art, wisdom, wonder, joy, humor, humility, perseverance, and compassion. 05. Love, the greatest of these transcendent "things". ... My wife and my children, who do not let Love wander far from my consciousness. 06. "The deep and thoughtful quiet of winter." People who pay little attention can praise spring, summer, and fall. 07. Days of thick, slow moving nimbostratus and relentless light rain. The variations of light on partly cloudy days. 08. Clear night skies in the wilderness. 09. Wilderness. Solitude in wilderness. 10. Books that cannot be comprehended if read superficially; books which the superficial will not actually read. |
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top ten "don't"s:
the order of listing here is strictly arbitrary... |
| 01. don't live for entertainment products, e.g., movies, tv,
video games, sports. (don't surrender your mind) 02. don't live for money, "toys", or any other material acquisitions. (don't run with the pack) 03. don't hate anyone, strive to not even 'resent' anyone. (don't surrender your mind) 04. don't submit to pointless anger or to irrational fear. (don't surrender your mind) 05. neither accept nor reject statements of "fact," look into it yourself. (don't surrender your mind) 06. don't "keep up with the Jones'," i.e., don't envy. (don't run with the pack) 07. don't esteem comfort above meaning, but don't overlook the balancing qualities of rest. (don't run with the pack) 08. don't stop learning, being careful not to esteem so-called "knowledge" above wisdom. (don't surrender your mind) 09. don't overlook beauty, you can find it everywhere. be always thankful. (don't surrender your mind) 10. don't need to have your way, rather minimize all self-focused "needing." (don't surrender your mind) |
| "Everything of importance has been said before by somebody who did not discover it." -- Alfred North Whitehead |
| It is said that 'seeing is believing'. It seems readily apparent what "believing" is; but what is "seeing"? Seeing implies perception, and we discover that perception may not be such a simple matter. There are the types of "seeing" that are contaminated by emotion, by disinterest, by self-obsession, by fashionable foolishness, by presupposition, by ignorance. There is also the type of seeing in which one ventures outside of himself, outside of the demands and expectations of the crowd and enters something larger. So which is it... is seeing believing -- or is believing seeing? |
| Best of all song is bird song in the quiet, but first you must have the quiet. - Wendell Berry A Timbered Choir: Sabbath Poems |
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Does the physical universe
infer the necessary existence of an extra-cosmic
Mind? |
| For a rather small monthly contribution, you can help feed, clothe, and educate a child. A child that needs your help. In many cases these are children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in Africa. You will receive information about the child you are specifically sponsoring and may write to him/her if you wish. Click on the World Vision logo to learn more. |
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| "Vanity is so anchored in the heart of man that ... those who write against it want the glory of having written well..." - Blaise Pascal |
