The Fear of Loneliness

Why do we fear being alone?
I am not talking about being alone forever, rather I am speaking of being alone for a short period of time without any interaction with other members of the human race. Rarely do I see a person who is walking by themselves who is not talking on a cell phone. At the university I watch as students leave class, pick up their phone and talk while they are walking to their car. I do not try to listen to some of these conversations, but sometimes I cannot help it. Typically these people are talking to their roommates, their parents or their significant others. Usually they are on their way to see these people, and usually their conversation is about what they are currently doing (which is walking to their car or the bus after class). I am sure this is not the case for everyone, but I fear this is the case for too many people.

We seem to demand activity at all times in our lives. We demand high speed internet, we demand thirty second news sound bites, we cannot wait ten minutes for our food at a restaurant, we cannot sit through three minutes of commercials during our favorite television program, we cannot listen to a song longer than three minutes without getting bored, we cannot wait 2-3 business days for our online auction purchases to arrive at our front door…However, we do not demand even thirty minutes a day where each one of us can sit and think and be quiet and be *gulp* alone.

I sometimes wonder what this world (or at least our western culture) would be like if each one of us took a few minutes to be alone and to reflect, rest, pray or meditate. Maybe instead of taking out your road rage on the construction workers, who are “delaying” your drive home by halting traffic, take those few minutes to reflect. Instead of turning on the TV as soon as you get home, kick off your shoes and enjoy the quiet. Maybe all we need is a little time to ourselves. Then again, that just sounds too easy…

Public Service Announcement

For those who care, and those who do not, I am currently in the process of moving to a new place of residence. Once my computer gets set up again and what not I will have a couple new and improved postings. (Er...improved? maybe not. Probably just more political rants because that is what has seemed to be stirring inside of me recently).

 

"A scientist had a bird in his hand. He wanted to find out in what part of the bird's body its life was and what the life itself was. So he began dissecting the bird. The result was that the very life of which he was in search mysteriously vanished. Those who try to understand the inner life merely intellectually will meet with a similar failure. The life they are looking for will only vanish." - Sundar Singh

Briefly Speaking…

Just in case you are wondering…

1) From USA Today 6/1/04 : “President Bush is using Air Force One for re-election travel more heavily than any predecessor, wringing maximum political mileage from a perk of office paid for by taxpayers.”

Hmmm…and who was up in arms for Clinton using Air Force One?

2) From Yahoo! News : Ron Reagan to Address Democrat Delegates

Very interesting….

3) Does anyone else find it oddly frightening that there are talks about postponing the November 2nd election? Terrorism or not, the United States of America is supposed to be the model of free and clear elections right? We’ve never had to delay the Presidential election for war…I just find this a scary thought….

Belated Independence Day

Rarely do I enjoy a weekend where I do not get online for one reason or another, this was one such weekend. Therefore, I decided to post my Independence Day post a couple days late.

To clarify for my fellow Americans, the holiday is not called "Fourth of July", that is the actual date, the official name is "Independence Day". Sometimes I think we forget the meaning of holidays and despite what others like The GW Bush Blog have to say, Independence Day is actually commemorating the day that the American colonies declared independence from Great Britain. That is not to say that we should not reflect on the sacrifices made by those fighting for our freedom, which should be a daily activity. However, what this holiday should remind Americans of is the fiercely unique and autonomous spirit of the group of individuals that joined together to rid our country of an authoritarian presence almost 230 years ago.

Historically we are not a people who like to be spoon feed. We are not a people who like to watch things happen, but not participate. We are not a people who ignore the rights of our fellow citizens. And we are not a people who leave others who are in need of assistance. We are a people, who have strong ideas, morals, and beliefs, but we are not a people who are afraid to stand up for those same ideas, morals and beliefs, nor are we afraid to make compromise with each other because of our respect for the rights of others.
We need to get off our butts, turn off those TV's, walk out of those high-priced department stores and get involved in our communities and the political process. Our government was not setup so we could all just sit on our thumbs and watch the world go by. On this and every Independence Day please reflect on why our founders acted the way that the acted some 230 years ago.


The Declaration of Indpendence

The U.S. Constitution