Comments on: Incredibly Shrinking Selves http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/ Live. Work. Thrive. Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:59:17 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9 hourly 1 By: by Mark http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1121 by Mark Sun, 22 Feb 2009 22:49:42 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1121 @ Darcy: Goodness, me. That is one glorious passage from Matthiessen. Serendipitous too, for his name has come to me from several directions of late. This means I must read him! Thanks so much. ~Mark @ Darcy: Goodness, me. That is one glorious passage from Matthiessen. Serendipitous too, for his name has come to me from several directions of late. This means I must read him! Thanks so much. ~Mark

]]> By: Darcy http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1120 Darcy Sun, 22 Feb 2009 19:48:13 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1120 "Soon the child's clear eye is clouded over by ideas and opinions, preconceptions and abstractions. Simple free being becomes encrusted with the burdensome armor of the ego. Not until years later does an instinct come that a vital sense of mystery has been withdrawn. The sun glints through the pines, and the heart is pierced in a moment of beauty and strange pain, like a memory of paradise. After that day.....we become seekers." -Peter Matthiessen “Soon the child’s clear eye is clouded over by ideas and opinions, preconceptions and abstractions. Simple free being becomes encrusted with the burdensome armor of the ego. Not until years later does an instinct come that a vital sense of mystery has been withdrawn. The sun glints through the pines, and the heart is pierced in a moment of beauty and strange pain, like a memory of paradise. After that day…..we become seekers.”
-Peter Matthiessen

]]> By: by Mark http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1116 by Mark Tue, 17 Feb 2009 18:05:35 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1116 @ Troy: Your insights are appreciated. Thanks! ~Mark @ Troy: Your insights are appreciated. Thanks! ~Mark

]]> By: Troy http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1115 Troy Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:57:59 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1115 My thinking on "possiblities" as we move through life (I am in my mid 40's)... I don't see them as narrowing, but expanding. I do see the romanticized (possibly childish) possiblities of being famous, rich, going to the moon, etc. as narrowing over time. In a culture that lives for these, getting older looks like a long, sad death sentence. We focus very little on meaning, and mostly on doing - so it's no surprise we are affected this way. What happens if you do reach your "life long" goal of going to the moon? Then what? You still have to get up the next morning and search for meaning. When I am dying (I am shooting for 40 years from now), I hope that I will not think about all my accomplishments, but that I will think about my relationships. As I get older, I see huge possiblities in this area opening up. I finally have something to offer, and just maybe I'm not quite so self oriented. The paradox is, if you focus on yourself, you end up with a little, bitter, crappy self. If you focus on other, you end up with a large, happy self. The older I get, the more opportunity I have to join in to the lives of others. My thinking on “possiblities” as we move through life (I am in my mid 40’s)…

I don’t see them as narrowing, but expanding. I do see the romanticized (possibly childish) possiblities of being famous, rich, going to the moon, etc. as narrowing over time. In a culture that lives for these, getting older looks like a long, sad death sentence. We focus very little on meaning, and mostly on doing – so it’s no surprise we are affected this way. What happens if you do reach your “life long” goal of going to the moon? Then what? You still have to get up the next morning and search for meaning.

When I am dying (I am shooting for 40 years from now), I hope that I will not think about all my accomplishments, but that I will think about my relationships. As I get older, I see huge possiblities in this area opening up. I finally have something to offer, and just maybe I’m not quite so self oriented.

The paradox is, if you focus on yourself, you end up with a little, bitter, crappy self. If you focus on other, you end up with a large, happy self. The older I get, the more opportunity I have to join in to the lives of others.

]]> By: Mark http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1113 Mark Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:29:36 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1113 I hear you Johnooo, and I really dig your concluding note here: "humbling, depressing, motivating, and comforting all at the same time." One lovely thing about getting older is the way it tends to maximize one's empathy. Empathy breaks down barriers. And with barriers down, one can better connect with, rely upon, help, and be helped by others. This has been, and continues to be, my own journey, for sure. Thanks for reading. ~Mark I hear you Johnooo, and I really dig your concluding note here: “humbling, depressing, motivating, and comforting all at the same time.” One lovely thing about getting older is the way it tends to maximize one’s empathy. Empathy breaks down barriers. And with barriers down, one can better connect with, rely upon, help, and be helped by others. This has been, and continues to be, my own journey, for sure. Thanks for reading. ~Mark

]]> By: Johnooo http://www.soulshelter.com/uncategorized/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/comment-page-1/#comment-1112 Johnooo Mon, 16 Feb 2009 04:54:44 +0000 http://www.soulshelter.com/2009/02/15/my-incredibly-shrinking-selves/#comment-1112 I might lose sleep because of this post. I am 27 and for the first time seeing things that seem to have passed me by. An unfortunate career bounce has left me unemployed in a new city. It has forced me to take stock of who I am, what I can do, what I have done, and what on my 'to do before I get old' list I'm actually getting around to doing. I'm starting to doubt, for the first time, that I'm any different from the thousands of schmucks I've seen throughout my life. It's humbling, depressing, motivating, and comforting all at the same time. I might lose sleep because of this post.
I am 27 and for the first time seeing things that seem to have passed me by. An unfortunate career bounce has left me unemployed in a new city. It has forced me to take stock of who I am, what I can do, what I have done, and what on my ‘to do before I get old’ list I’m actually getting around to doing. I’m starting to doubt, for the first time, that I’m any different from the thousands of schmucks I’ve seen throughout my life.
It’s humbling, depressing, motivating, and comforting all at the same time.

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