School of Hard Knocks

I’ve had a long, interesting (to me) life. Understanding of reality and my reality in particular have distilled out of my experience and long contemplations of it.

Yes, I’ve had the standard primary and secondary education (indoctrination) relevant to my place in space-time. Then, over another 20 years or so off and on, I worked through and paid for the next level to a BA degree. I’ve also liberally educated myself in the school of hard knocks, along with everyone else.

From my accumulated perspective, trying to acquire postgraduate degrees would be to just become one of the establishment’s sycophantic gatekeepers… based on the accepted social-political parameters of that particular space-time paradigm.

From witnessing those with that ‘higher education’, it appears to me that true critical thinking and the endeavor to create meaningful social improvement for humanity is largely missing. And even if it was there, the ‘established order’ would ensure that it is shut down.

From this acquired perspective, I’ve determined that everything, all perceptions of reality, morality, and spirituality are only ideas we’ve thought up based on our obviously flawed and fallible perceptions.

Think about it. There are only very small portions of the electromagnetic spectrum that are perceivable to us, that is, without electromechanical sensory aids. We have only a very rudimentary understanding of our relationship with the rest of the ecosphere, micro and macro.

What’s the significance of our relationships to each other and our environment? What is the main reason for relationships in the first place? In the broad scheme of things, it seems evident that survival is the first/primary goal.

What about personal relationships, friendships, romantic liaisons, soul mates? Again, it is probably survival first (helping each other along for community propagation and illusory stability). Then gratification through the flow of hormones, pheromones, and endorphins. This also gives the illusion of security and familiarity. And ‘soul mates’ is, in all probability, just another illusion, a rationalization to keep searching for something that will eventually make us ‘happy’ and ‘fulfilled’. And for those who claim to have found it? I suspect that it’s another rationalization to stay in a pleasantly familiar (if not necessarily secure) relationship, for all that it actually does or does not represent the intimate habits and proclivities of ‘humans’.

You may ask why I speak so often of illusions and rationalizations? This line of reasoning is based on the absolute knowledge that all of our ideas and reasoning are based on our malleable and flawed perception apparatus, common to all sentient beings (that we’re aware of).

So, all you romantics and you so-called realists out there, take everything you see, hear, and feel with a huge grain of salt. There’s a lot more than the eye can see, the ear can hear, the heart can feel, or the mind can understand… So, just keep on keepin’ on…

–LE – 9/4/24