In celebration of surviving the “impending apocalypse”, I have decided to kick off this sparkly new era by returning to my blog! Hooray!
Actually, this is less of an old blog and more of a newly-remodeled blog. Over the past few years, I’ve written out my thoughts about various subjects through Blogger.com, MySpace (I know, I know), and now here on my WordPress blog. A few weeks ago I decided to gather all of my old ramblings, cut the ramblings that made the least sense, and compile the rest right here, on my current website. And…then I let things just sit here a while. I guess I didn’t think I had anything else to say. I still may not. Who knows?
Anyway, on the eve of the so-called Mayan apocalypse, I was talking with my best friend about the nature of the world and the universe, and our actual place in it all versus our perceived place. One of the things he mentioned through our conversation was the idea that we are all Not Really Here. I’m not really here, you’re not really here, and I’m certainly not typing out actual thoughts from my actual mind onto my actual computer. It’s just how our minds interpret our surroundings, at least for now. I think he was waiting to see if my head would explode. It didn’t. Obviously.
On an intellectual level, I can sort of absorb the idea that what we see as the physical world isn’t really…well, Real. In fact, I had just read an article the other day about how physicists were attempting to test their theory that what we understand as the physical world is actually some kind of computer simulation. You know, like The Sims or Second Life, or the Matrix, or Source Code. (PS: I blog about movies from time to time.) I’m reminded of the concept of two blind people trying to describe an elephant, where one is holding the tail and the other is holding the trunk. It’s just not a simple task. Why would interpreting the world be any different?
The thing is, I’m okay with this world not exactly being Real. It’s the world I know, for now, and it’s the world I usually understand. Sure, I look for connections that indication something greater, and I have no qualms labeling that something greater as “God”. But God is, after all, unknowable. Not that I don’t try, but I understand my limitations. And hopefully, reminding myself of those limitations–along with the relative impermanence of this world–will actually help me when daily life makes me neurotic.
I did pause a bit yesterday to reflect on my life. I mean, honestly, the concept of Armageddon has been talked about SO MUCH over the past few weeks, a bit of reflections was really unavoidable. I’ve decided that, all in all, I’ve had a very good life. I’m healthy, happy, blessed with wonderful people whom I love dearly, and connected to the world in ways I never could have imagined twenty years ago. I’ve had experiences on stage that weren’t quite rock-star status, but they were as unforgettable as I dreamed those would be. And more opportunities are out there, just in their own measure. Would I still love to travel the world someday? Sure! But I never would have guessed that I could at least experience some small measure of those travels through other people’s eyes, via this little box upon which I’m now typing. It’s enough, at least for now.
Speaking of traveling the world, I happened to stumble upon a video from none other than Stonehenge–a place I WILL visit someday–celebrating the winter solstice and the end of the 13th Mayan baktun. It seems most appropriate to end this post with a link to that video.
Have a great day tomorrow!