We only have so much time on this planet, and yet so much of it is squandered. We replay the events of the day in our minds and build them into something they are not, which is, anything other than a fleeting moment in time. How many opportunities to be present, to experience joy, are…… Continue reading Our Only Resource
Category: Reflections
4) The action of turning (back) or fixing the thoughts on some subject; meditation; serious consideration
5) A though occurring to or occupying the mind; a thought expressed in words; a remark made after reflecting on a subject.
Face the Music
There comes a time in all of our lives when we are forced to face the music. To not only hear, but feel, experience, that which we have been dreading. It can come in many different shapes and forms. A lie exposed, a mistake uncovered, even an honest effort that missed it’s mark, it doesn’t…… Continue reading Face the Music
The Trial
*Note: Based on the Breon Mitchell translation. Includes spoilers. This book felt like a David Lynch film. A vague premise, unclear consequences, and transient characters that exist only to move the strange, disjointed narrative forward. It is as if Kafka threw all he wanted to address at a wall and left it for the reader…… Continue reading The Trial
Crime and Punishment
*Note: Based on the Penguin Classics, David McDuff translation. Includes spoilers. “No one suffers like a Russian” My cousin recommended that I read Crime and Punishment, amongst other Russian literature, with the tagline, “No one suffers like a Russian.” I immediately recognized the statement to be true, I just hadn’t put such precise wording to…… Continue reading Crime and Punishment
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
21 Lessons for the 21st Century is an attempt to understand and deal with the ramifications of Homo sapiens’ greatest invention: fiction. Fiction “Humans were always far better at inventing tools than using them wisely.” – Yuval Noah Harari Fiction is a tool. Whether it is story about a fat man in a red suit…… Continue reading 21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Knowledge and Wisdom
“Do the knowledge son, before you do the wisdom” – RZA The above quote plays in my head anytime I try to talk myself out of reading a book. It confirms that if I am ever going to be wise, I must do the research. I must study what those before me already know. But…… Continue reading Knowledge and Wisdom
Growth
To fear anything is to fear life itself. We are here to experience this life and all that it brings us. We must grow and expand. And yet so many of us fear what change may do to our current state, which is why there is so much complacency in the world. We are inherently…… Continue reading Growth
Highs and Lows
“Life ain’t nothing but an EQ of highs and lows” – Big K.R.I.T. Life is based on balance. No matter who you are, there will always be good times and bad; highs and lows. I believe this is absolutely necessary to accept, despite it being extremely frustrating at times. Of course we all want the…… Continue reading Highs and Lows
Giving
You often say, “I would give, but only to the deserving.” The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in your pasture. They give that they may live, for to withhold is to perish. – Kahlil Gibran Philosophy is useless unless it is used. That statement is more for me than anyone…… Continue reading Giving
Work
“Soft living imposes on us the penalty of debility; we cease to be able to do the things we’ve long been grudging about doing.” – Seneca (Letters from a Stoic: Letter LV) What is it about retirement that draws our Western eye? Why do so many of us relish in the idea of laziness and…… Continue reading Work
scott ironmonger 