"Seven to eleven is a huge chunk of life, full of dulling and forgetting. It is fabled that we slowly lose the gift of speech with animals, that birds no longer visit our windowsills to converse. As our eyes grow accustomed to sight they armor themselves against wonder." - Leonard Cohen
The fact that a person has the ability to get accustomed to anything might be the largest reason the concepts of heaven and hell do not make much sense to me. This thought coming from a logical standpoint over a theological standpoint, since the two are often at odds.
I imagine a billowy cloud with everything I could want on it…endless cheese, peanut butter, weed, baseball games and scottie dogs. But eventually, I'd get used to it. I'd want more or less of what I have, it's simply human nature. And begrudgingly, I still have to be honest and check homo sapien on my census report.
Not to mention hell. Masochism, I figure…has to be a learned and nurtured trait in most humans. Because of this, eventually you might grow fond of the steady heat of fire and brimstone…and according to the film 'Little Nicky', pineapples up your asshole.
I've recently watched doctors and nurses work a lot, which brought up this thought in the first place. Though they can come off forbidding and cavalier on the prognosis of a human you love dearly, I can understand how they become accustomed. Eventually numb, maybe bored. They still need to come home after work and manage to compartmentalize what they saw all day. Not bringing that pain and agony you see back home with you.
I can relate in a similar sort of way. I have a job that's incredible and unique. What I get to do is special and rare and fueled by drastic physical and emotional responses on each side of the stage. But, through the years, I've eventually grown accustomed to it. I can't lie and say that at times, my mind hasn't wandered. I'm usually tied to every note in a very cathartic way. But...maybe once or twice, on the 486th show during Great Expectations, I thought about the standings of the NBA Eastern Conference…or, will Ian eat all the pizza before I'm done showering later?
In a former reality I used to beg people to book and enjoy my bands. I was ecstatic if someone who wasn't my friend bought a demo or a t-shirt. Trying to accrue fans one by one by one. Now it's possible to walk into an undersold House of Blues somewhere and manage to muster up a feeling of regrettable disappointment. How that happened? I don't know…but it happened. A particular example of how a human can view themselves in dangerous ways without the appropriate checks and balances in their life.
Life is funny like that. Humans are some adaptable motherfuckers. One of the reasons I still have hope in my species is our ability to adapt and grow accustomed and move on. But, if there is a heaven or hell…I imagine it HAS to be something so far beyond human perception, because anything inside of the human paradox can get old.
I was raised w. a very strong sense of faith that remains w. me to this day. However, at the same time, I also believe that faith & science/logic are not mutually exclusive & can co-exist. After losing one part. person who was esp. important to me(I quoted Gaslight in the eulogy), I began researching stories of those that 'survived death' (Dying to Be Me-Moorjan; On Life after Death-Kuber-Ross), which not only furthered my belief in Heaven/Hell but were also, at the v. least, a comfort to me at the time & dissolved my unrelenting fear of death.
ReplyDeleteIn regard to your post, I do agree that it is human nature to become complacent & bored with aspects of life, job, marriage, etc even if we love that something/someone. But believe that's ok b.c per my faith, there is a higher goal for our lives that only matters in the end- very simply how you impacted those around you. Hope I don't come off preachy as not my intent, just opinion.
Anyway, caught you all last night in Detroit (show #12) & were phenomenal! & will be hitting Chicago (#13)
thought you might like- http://society6.com/secretlyswedish/heisenberg-goes-to-college_t-shirt#11=49&4=133&5=19
Haha l was at that Detroit show.
DeleteTotally ponder this sort of thing often. I also relate it to movies like "Little Nicky" and "Dogma", so we're on the same page. I'm a waitress, (but I think this will post from my husbands account, if at all- I am not a good computer-er), anyway, waitin' tables I study human nature alot. It cracks me up, and gets me through the next shift. Lately though, I've gone into auto pilot because I have gotten so used to it (15 years). What gets me though, is the pure chaos (restaurant 7pm Saturday nite) that I've grown used functioning in. Most people would freak out and have waitress nightmares, but my mind is in a whole 'nother world while helping to feed 600 people on a Saturday. This is where I have to tell myself to stay present. The world philosopher in me says pay attention. When I think about what happens when we are done with this life one thing comes to mind. You get all the answers. So, I throw a bunch of questions into the universe. What better way than human interaction. Every person that I encounter has something to teach me, or I have something to teach them. When I find out, who knows, but I just keep throwin' them questions. And some day I will find out all the answers. Then I apply that to everyday life and every person, situation, circumstance becomes a lesson for me to find. As above, so below. It helps me "keep the pilot light lit" as Eddie Vedder says. I just feel like people can tell when you've lost the spark, and it can change people if they see that you have it. Don't really know if any of this resonates, but it helps me deal with the nature of humans,and from getting bored. Anywho, sorry for ramblin' like Neal Cassady, just got me thinkin'. Oh, and not sure if ya saw it or not, but my sister and I made y'all a cool poster a while back. It was a "Thank You" present and her name is Matilda. Hope she's doing good. And hope you're doing good too. Y'all sound awesome. Nice work. Stay cool. -Kelly B.
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