Captain's Phlog 2020.02.20 _____________________________________________________________ The parent entry [1] to this one was bloody depressing. I'll be the first to admit that. Never the less, it's what I believe to be true. I've held that perspective for months now. It was only very recently that I started fleshing out a rationalle that will let me move forward under those conditions. While my thoughts are usually less than perfectly formed, I will warn you dear reader that the ideas contained herein are even more of a jumble - but their flux is what I have to work with at the moment so here goes... Some important landmarks as I begin my journey: * H. Sapiens (meaning simply our genes) may survive the Greatest Dying in sufficient numbers to be viable, but we may not know this for sure until it's too late to matter. * We must recognize the myth of Nature. Even the word implies that we are somehow seperate from it and can observe it and manipulate it like it some distinct thing. It is not. The conceptualization of nature as 'the other' is false. * We must recognize our shared personhood. We must bravely face the things that arbitrarily devide us spiritually (Racism) and physically (Borders) and grind them into the dust. Both are born in Fear of the Other. Will we survive or do we walk into the night? It matters not. If we are to survive my duty is to Support & Nurture. If we are to perish my responsibility is to Aid & Comfort. These pairs of ideas run paralell. I've chosen different words for effect alone. Nurturing or Comforting is how we strengthen our souls and whether the earth becomes a canvas of new possibilities or a charnal house my duty is the same. I must learn to be a better listener and more empathic. These are the key skills of the greatest spiritualists, psychologists, bar tenders and whores. Their strength and their value lies in their ability to help others identify and harness their better natures and determination. I have to master this. While we're busy mastering the arts of Comfort in our hearts, our brains and hands will be busy Aiding and Supporting. These things are technichal skills. Identify, learn, and master a Core Function. Medicine, Cooking, Agriculture, Hunting, Smithing, etc. Make sure there's something in your portfolio that will make lives materially better. Learn to Work Without. A tool's post-appocalyptic reliability is inversely proportional to how many subsystems it is comprised of... A computer or car will be rendered useless long before a human powered lawn mower or hand turned sausage grinder and these long before a hammer or wheel barrow. Finally, Learn to Accept Your Suffering and Death. Even the most priviledged person alive today will die, likely suffering in the bargain. But today I am not suffering nor staring death in the face. I have things to learn and people to comfort. I'll say goodby then. [1] Humanity: The Last Chapter pt I