The Seduction of Safety

This phrase ‘the seduction of safety’ occurs in Mary Oliver’s poem The Journey and it suddenly struck me as identifying a significant problem for many of us. That problem is the belief that the world is a dangerous place, and it’s not safe to be here actually alive in a physical body. This belief informs the matrix of existence here on earth, almost universally. It gives rise to a culture of fear that supports notions of ‘security’ on an industrial scale. It might even be dangerous to read this article.

This Heartbreaking World

I like to do crossword puzzles, I always have. There’s something about manipulating words and extracting obscured meanings that fascinates me. And just as I was wondering what this article needed to be about I came across a crossword clue that gave me the answer. The clue was the title above: This heartbreaking world (5). And the solution, if you’re not there ahead of me, is EARTH, because if you take the word HEART, break it up and rearrange the letters they make the word EARTH. Few of us haven’t experienced heartbreak of one form or another. But heartbreak isn’t the real issue, it’s what you do with it that matters. It’s the interpretations you make and the significance you attach to these that inform [in-form] you, and condition the life you lead. There’s no denying the agony of heartbreak. It devastates your inner… Read moreThis Heartbreaking World