Monthly Archive for September, 2009
Finger Rock, Arizona
I was one troubled teenager for a time. I’d go off to the mountains for some peace and solitude. I wasn’t all that concerned with my safety either, life didn’t seem to offer much advantage over death. For instance, one year I climbed Finger Rock (photo right) without ropes. Going up was easy; going down was terrifying. Yikes! Was this a latent suicidal death wish? I guess not, primarily because I am not all that emotional by nature. Although, neither am I drawn to rock climbing or thrill seeking in general, so who knows. As a kid I heard stories about a guy falling off Finger Rock and breaking so many bones that his body turned to the consistency of Jello. Recalling that probably got me to turn around before reaching the top (and so saved my life, no doubt). Continue reading ‘Suicide Just Doesn’t Work’
Hypochondriacs are folks obsessed with health issues. They make illness mountains out of wellness mole hills. If you change the ‘issue’ to something that bothers you personally, the making of mountains out of mole hills may sound familiar. I reckon we are all obsessed, to some degree, with some area of life. Thus, the hypochondriac’s cure really applies to us all.
I call this a hypochondriac’s cure because of a recent discussion with my son over his hypochondriac tendency, slight though it is. Obsession, what ever the issue or degree, occurs when thinking goes to extremes (pushed there by emotion, naturally). Pulling thought back toward the middle is difficult, especially when in the throws. The mind needs a model of moderation to refer to. Continue reading ‘A Hypochondriac’s Miracle Cure’
A circle has its ups and downs as it spins around. Biology drives the perception that these ups and downs are truly different. It all begins at the elemental cellular level: neurons flip flop between on (up) and off (down). The billions of neural connection in a complex nervous system make for countless ‘not quite up’, ‘not quite down’ areas. Even so, the dividing line is there. The essential role of the Taoist view is to help remove that line from perception. Continue reading ‘An Essential Taoist Secret’
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