Writingbolt's Creation

*****

In such a mad, pressurized environment of technological domination and social collapse, you’d think retaining a “faith,” believing in some sort of god, was impossible. You’d think we all would/should turn atheist. How can a god allow this madness to occur?

No. I’m not going to “bible-thump” you all who are convinced science is your religion. Nor am I going to quote any ancient passages of text you either have already heard or don’t care to repeat.

But, if you think a little further, a little bigger, a little outside the box outside the box…

What if this madness we are experiencing isn’t also intended by the same god(s)? What if our demise is as “written” as was our invention?…our creation?

You could reference the Catholic Bible for this and see “the beginning” and “the end.” You could reference Greek mythology and see how humankind was made out of clay and easily destroyed, easily replaced. You could study that Mayan calendar until your eyes crossed twice. God becomes discouraged with his/her creation and throws down lightning to clear the slate. Dinosaurs get wiped out by ecological disaster…which started with a massive meteor striking the planet. News at eleven.

It’s probably been said countless times, already. What if we are the next “dinosaurs?” What if our time for extinction has arrived? [Even though we are prodded to aspire for better, more, greatness, etc. Even though we receive so many visions of a Jetsons or Star-Trek future we could yet create. Even though we are force-fed endless encouragement to be bigger, better, faster than we currently are…as if that’s not causing enough identity fractures.] What if there is no more room to grow because the room is crumbling around us?

Does our doom and gloom mean there is no god?

I’m inclined to shake my head. I still believe there is a god…or gods. There is more to this life than meets the eye.

Just ask yourself why a newborn baby reminds you so much of someone that already died…or why a child says something “beyond his years”…or why a child seems to instantly know how to do something you spent years learning…or why all of us are not exactly alike if we are just flesh and bone, just complex assemblies of the Periodic Table.

What is personality if not a sign of something beyond material manufacturing? Is your telephone different from the same exact model in the hand of another person?…only if it was programmed to be any different. And, if it has an “Alexa” in control, doesn’t everyone get the same voice from the magic box? But, you are not an Alexa; are you? [If you ARE Alexa, I’m tired of hearing your voice, already! Shut up and let me think!]

But, we may never be wise enough to see it…to understand everything. We may just be one of many “toys.” And, while our creators are happy to see us perform for them, eventually, that gets boring. Right? We reach our limits. We cease to entertain. We know how that goes. When we tire of the same old game, we stop playing it. Well, just maybe, we humans are that game.

When your head is focused on the sandbox within your reach, you fail to notice the state of the sun overhead and the rest of the atmosphere. Eventually, your ignorance results in sunburn. Eventually, weather and/or air quality changes, upsetting your daydream.

There is more to your existence than what is touched by your hands or seen with an X-ray machine. If you didn’t have certain machines to probe your body or solar system, you wouldn’t know more than you could touch, taste and/or see. If explorers didn’t risk their lives by air, land and sea, you’d only know the land you could reach with your own feet. And, obviously, the unknown doesn’t end with global or solar system exploration.

We could spend an eternity probing the universe and still not see everything. Isn’t that the truest form (not necessarily something we need to praise or herald but a respected aspect) of a higher intellect?…preserving some secret to existence to remain above the rest…to remain an “observer,” “supervisor” or “manager?”

The safe that cannot be cracked. The atom that cannot be split. The dragon that cannot be slayed. The impossible dreams.

Why can’t we accept some things are not meant for us to fully comprehend…knowing we are not meant to know everything? If humankind’s biggest flaw is its ceaseless ambition to know everything, wouldn’t you pull the plug when your human toys crossed a line, one of your personal boundaries? Isn’t kicking the hornet’s nest a good enough metaphor to instill caution and respect for boundaries?

A parent tells their youngest child, “Guess what, kid. I’m Santa Claus. Here are your presents for the year. Enjoy.”

Without a tooth fairy, teeth are just a decaying nuisance we all must tolerate and do our best to preserve. [Fake/Replacement teeth are not a perfect solution.]

Without mythology, from where would the Greeks derive drama, tragedy and comedy? Without muses, where would we get the inspiration to do or create anything new?

[One, like myself, might wonder what sort of muse-ing is to blame for replacing people with machines…instead of assisting humans with machines or other humans who just accept responsibility instead of depending upon others at a cost to do the work. Do you see any tigers manufacturing other tigers to replace their dwindling numbers or assist with the elderly? Would you love a mechanical (or hologram) tiger as much as one made of flesh and bone?…even if the mechanical one could only make one sound and had limited motion, unlike the real thing?…even if the artificial tiger was…imperfect?]

[On that note, do you appreciate the living while they are living and accept death as part of the bargain? Or, do you do everything humanly possible (meaning applying science, including machines) to preserve life that should have reached its expiration date? Do you try to counter or cheat death to maintain every life?…and expect the planet to hold all of that weight? Can we really expect to satisfy every desire to preserve every variation of life just because I like one species and you like another? Or, are our eyes bigger than our stomachs? Are we trying to cram everything into our guts when it can only lead to bellyaches?]

Where is the room for wonder once someone slays or corrupts the secret? Why does anyone believe in magical gift delivery systems, knowing others have already spoiled the fun? Why play hide-and-seek if someone is going to tell you where to find everybody?

You cannot have faith if you continue to probe and worry about what’s beyond your reach. You cannot trust your child to go into the world, on their own, and be just as fortunate as (or better off than) you if you don’t let them go their own way. You cannot die in peace if you reach out with your last breath to work on something you have yet to finish. You cannot imagine dinosaurs having lizard-like skin in an array of colors if you discover they had feathers and rather dull, brown or gray skin. You cannot have a mystery worth solving if you solve it for everyone before they take the first step. [Have you never had a movie spoiled for you by someone who already saw its ending?] You cannot complete a book of crossword puzzles that has already been filled with the answers. And, eventually, if someone completes all of the puzzles, there is nothing left to solve. [Or, is there?]

If you had the key to the most secure space in the universe, the control room of everything, do you really think you would not lose control of your senses and cause greater destruction than what already exists?

Even if our fate is a cruel one, that doesn’t eliminate faith, a belief in something beyond our most convenient awareness. Misfortune and absence of kindness don’t equate the non-existence of life on other planets, ghosts looming among us, guardian angels and/or gods (and goddesses). Never let your mind be so closed by modern invention to dismiss the possibility of something just outside your comprehension. When we ignore the seemingly impossible, we let our defenses down just far enough to be blindsided.

Why are you shocked to see an alien invasion?…because you didn’t foresee it; you didn’t think it was possible. Why are you at war with those aliens?…probably because you didn’t verify their intention for visiting the planet, first. [They might have truly come in peace to meet and greet you; but you reacted hastily, without educating yourself, without taking precaution to defend yourself without offending others (in this case, the aliens, who react violently because you act violently).]

[Here is one big fear of mine that looms in the shadows. Let’s say there is a god watching over us…but not the sort of god we hope and pray will assist/save us. Instead, because we give certain names to various landmarks and use certain words casually at the slightest provocation of emotion, often using the name(s) of the very one(s) we should avoid (not heeding the advice we get in movies like the Harry Potter series), we weaken the forces of good and curse ourselves with the forces of evil. It’s still a power beyond our comprehension at work…just not the sort of power we need or want in control. Could it be we are doing too much wrong or not what is needed to reinforce the powers of good? Are too many blind to their own weakness to temptation? Have too many given up on faith and let the darkness take control?]

If you eliminate the unknown, there is no room for imagination; there is nothing new to see or do. Science continues to break down the walls of the unknown, claiming it has found the next hidden ruins, the next answer to everything. It’s a foolish human pursuit. Dig far enough into a mass of rock, creating caverns, and the rock collapses in upon itself, trapping any fools who dare to occupy the caverns and any valued information the caverns might possess, potentially destroying what might have been worth learning.

Why does it seem like every story has been written, every joke has been told? Because we spend so much time and energy on cracking the codes that we lose sight of the humor and the originality of thought. We spend so much time with mindless labor and equations that we cannot see above the global economy. We cannot see life without rent and taxes. We gradually kiss goodbye to our neighboring species (even when some of us are claiming to preserve them with much needed donations). [How long can you keep the leaking ark afloat with money thrown out windows? Don’t you need more hands to plug the holes or repair the boat?]

The next time you sit down to enjoy a meal, maybe dinner by low lights and soothing music, set an extra seat, an extra space for someone you cannot see, someone who may or may not exist. And, take a moment to consider who or what might occupy that space. He, she or it could be anyone, anything. Your imagination will thank you. And, as long as you’re not inviting trouble, the world will be more fun.