today’s Musing written and published from
Morning walk: 3C/37F amid blazing sunshine heralds, I hope, arrival of a warmer day/week; Gusta followed the bird noises by the reeds and cat tails, I observed that yesterday’s handymen were not out today . . . perhaps sleeping late.
This Victoria Day holiday weekend is, for many Canadians, a day for opening up the cottage (don’t have one), planting the garden (don’t have one), going camping (don’t camp) or having backyard gatherings (after last night’s effort by the neighbors till 2:30AM I have no appetite for that) . . so, what to do? I have some work to do – postponed from yesterday (took the day off!) + I’m taking my dad out for lunch.
I’ve been pondering a time-worn subject of understanding – how to achieve it, deal with it, and how to deal without it – and by that I mean understanding that which, it appears, is not to be understood without more information . . . like guessing games in the dark. Probably not tough for a blind man, but really tough for me.
It seems we can under-achieve, under-perform and under-appreciate; these are concepts so easily comprehended, but the one I have the most trouble with is under-standing. To help me understand, I researched the clever words of people who seem knowledgeable on the subject. These words help, a little, but not enough:
‘And verily, a woman need know but one man well, in order to understand all men; whereas a man may know all women and understand not one of them.’ – Helen Rowland
‘Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.’ – Carl Jung
‘All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.’- Galileo Galilei
Clearly Galileo was focused on the entire universe rather than women. He obviously underestimated the problem, or maybe he just avoided the impossible in favor of the massively difficult. Jung is right, of course, because it seems Jung is always right. Rowland cleverly states what all men know; as if giggling as she wrote it.
I’ll go through this day without understanding much about many things, many issues and certainly not better informed about women. Instead of focusing on that insoluble problem, I’ll do some work and run the world (OK, maybe just my world), for a day. Happy holiday!
~~~
FRIDGE DOOR POETRY - archived poetry
Moths are inexorably drawn
to a flame or bright light
late at night, much like
magnets attract to metal
as humans are drawn
to attach to other humans,
types we are so very
strongly attracted to - but,
because we are so much smarter
than moths (we think)
we see light, know light,
know the flame, know better too
but despite that wisdom
we are drawn to the light as if
no other thing mattered; but,
since we label it love, we find no
difficulty with this because
we enable it, before we
label it – love - and put it in
a compartment in our brain
not unlike putting a jelly jar
in the fridge because that is
where we keep it stored, safe
where harm will not come
and when we want a spoonful
of that sugary recipe it will be
there, waiting for us, preserved,
protected, unused since
the last time we brought it out
to serve with French toast and
bacon – but this morning with nobody
to make French toast for, jelly waits
there, resting, inside fridge door.
~~~
Mark Kolke
322,280
RESPONSES/COMMENTS ALWAYS WELCOME; send to: dailycolumn@markkolke.com
May 23 Comments
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May 23 – NEW STEAK KNIVES - Please forward this message to SW from Couer d’Alene ID. Congratulations…way to go …good for you…although I don’t know you, I do know the journey you have taken and I am so happy for you to have found the treasure that you are...it is easy to loose ourselves…in the day to day of our life, the lives of others, of trying to survive and cope…of loving and wanting to be loved…. The journey is not easy but the wisdom and discoveries along the way are worth the effort… and… when we discover that we are so much more than we have ever believed we are…a gift. Thank you Mark for the quote today from Norman Mailer…..”Every moment of one’s existence is growing into more or retreating into less…one is always living a little more or dying a little bit”…a great reminder to me to resist the easy route on my journey - retreat(ing into less) and to choose growth, moving forward, taking a chance and living a little more each day…in spite of how uncomfortable I feel or the fears that I have. Mark, I am not sure why our paths have crossed…divine guidance perhaps….but I am grateful everyday to have your musings to reflect on, take from and to apply to my life journey…..thank you…your writing helps people change their lives… , CH, Red Deer, AB |
May 23 – NEW STEAK KNIVES - I haven't commented on your column in several days. Let's see, what was the first thing you wrote today that got me - Am I telling my story or someone else's? Because you write your story, I am able to write how it relates to my story. I appreciate this about what you do each day. It's why I keep coming back. The second thing, was Norman Mailer's quote: 'There is nothing safe about sex.' Amen. And, 'I'm hostile to ... poor cockroaches." Living in
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