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There is not another thought in my mind which is not contained in the archives of humanity’s collective.

No wish, no dream, no hurt or desire I can conjure up that another has not before felt. Billions of souls have thought and felt a hundred trillion separate ideas. These are my brothers and sisters; together, in the experiential dance that sums up humanity; what I call The Invisible Bond.

What is so wonderfully exciting about this thought is not the fact that commonalities exist, but that each commonality we share as humans become shaded by the particular and individually-tailored...

Slowly, over much time and thought, I believe I'm coming to a conclusion about my existence - and by association, what I believe to be the nature of all our existence. This isn't profound, nor earth-shattering or keenly insightful. It doesn't say anything that hasn't been said before, is there any original thought left?

The connection between what we are (animals with self-awareness), what we do, what we want, how we think, how we interact with our world, how that world was formed and has grown thus far, the realization of these connections, is finally coming into view. It's a good...

At this particular moment, I'm 45.

Not terribly old I think, thought sometimes I feel much older. I can't much complain; my health is relatively good, I've got two sons out traipsing around the country discovering things, having adventures, meeting people, living and loving as they should, and I've got a loving wife. I'm retired - kind of - having taking a deep plunge into what I most wanted (a simple, less indulgent, more reflective life). So all in all I feel good and am doing ok. It struck me, the other day, some of the changes I've gone through - their sheer poignancy and the...

(The following is a draft of an unfinished compilation I started a while back. Although it's an Introduction, I thought I'd share it as a general statement of the way 'things are'. I hope the reader finds it of worth)

There is a schism in contemporary American Society. We are a people who’ve become saturated – indeed expectant of – gratification on an instantaneous level. Through our innovation and vibrant free-market economy we are bombarded by exhortations for satisfaction that’s free, fast, easy and cheap at every conceivable level of life [1]. More than any country on this planet...

I sicken at some of the attributes we hold in esteem. Logic, reason and conformity, to be sure, have their proper place in the life of a human. But we have lost, perhaps, the highest measure of our distinctiveness when we belittle others', or supress our own emotional reactions.

Emotion: that part of ourselves which smiles within, so much so that the face has no choice but to follow.
Its the swell within us, whose’ base stems from the events like the first smile playing on our baby’s face, the sight and sound of wind through trees (who are oblivious to the passage of our time...

I feel an intense need to learn, to understand. I’m not quite sure from whence this comes, but it’s quite real. It pings at me, pinching my brain to ask questions and read; searching for hours for my answers. As I’ve grown, I’ve found this hunger a most persistent companion and it was this companion that pushed me into philosophy.

I am no expert, I hold no standing and make no claims to authority, quite the contrary; I believe that almost no one, anywhere, can or does have an ‘original thought’ not already held and expressed by thousands before. We’re so alike, so unlikely...

For a long time now, I've been compiling a list of those things I've found, through my own stumbling experience, have the most trust - a list of lessons and insights that I wanted to pass on. Now... I somehow doubt my sons are interested (somewhere in their early 20's they grew minds of their own!), but since this kinda stuff is what blogs are for, I thought I'd share 'em. - Thanks

Never presume to know more than you do

In almost everything you believe with absolute certainty, from the most mundane to the most profound, there are aspects of which you aren't aware. The simple act of keeping

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Violent Agreement: That condition which which exists when two or more people engage in a decidedly disagreeing debate yet - apparently unbeknwonst to them - their actual messages/positions aren't really in conflict.

What you Know and What you Believe

No meaningful philosophical debate or examination can occur if we don’t have a clear understanding of these two terms. Especially in the area of theology, the differentiation between belief and knowledge is extremely important and can make the difference between understanding and misunderstanding. If you hope to get anything...

In my bed awake and just under 10 years old, I would lie and listen, to the sounds of the television, dishes and my mother and father talking. It was a soothing sound, when they weren't arguing. It made me feel comfort and security. Back then, I felt so abused and overburdened that it was often difficult to find sleep. But those sounds felt good. They stilled the voices of panic and fear that the dark brought, and I fell asleep many a night feeling loved and secure to them. To me, at the time, it felt as if those sounds were for me. When they weren't there, the world was treating me wrongly,...