Morford: "How To Endure Disaster Fatigue"

[nofurylike]

How To Endure Disaster Fatigue
Too much death and catastrophe and war? Spirit overloaded? There is one thing you can try
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist

Friday, October 14, 2005

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2005/10/14/notes101405.DTL&nl=fix

You can take drugs. You can drink heavily. You can numb yourself with any number of whoopers and downers and zappers and nerve calmers, prescription and illegal and everything in between, thus rendering your psycho-emotional system moot and null and void and completely, happily unwilling to give much of a damn.

-snip-

Context. Perspective. Do you need some? Would it be at all helpful in the wake of all this death and tragedy and a world that seems to be increasingly strained and riotous and overheated? Because a fascinating dose of context arrived just this week, as astonished astronomers noted a stupendous new (well, old) development in deep, deep space, the discovery of a rather shocking distant galaxy that appears to be much more well formed and dense and ripe than any astronomer would have guessed it could be, given its proximity to, you know, the dawn of time.

In other words, humankind has found yet another phenomenon -- in this case, a massive, mature galaxy connected to a string of 300 galaxies so unimaginably vast it makes our little solar system, our entire Milky Way, seem like a grain of sand floating in a giant cosmic ocean (which, of course, is exactly what it is) -- they found another astounding and potentially world-changing wonder they cannot fully explain, one which, simply put, could alter our entire perception of how and when it was all created in the first place.

-snip-

Personally, I suggest balance, a little bit of everything. Stay informed, read like mad, feel the world deeply, but shop and play and take your happy inebriants and have as much sex as possible. Study the news intently and donate money to charities and volunteer when you can and, if nothing else, quite literally hunker down and pray your ass off to whatever potent divine energy you believe in, even if it's just yourself, your own breath. Offer up healing and hope from your heart to the world, as pure energy, raw light, if at all possible.

-snip-

continued...

***

it's really all too good to snip...


peace

[Cassius23]

1. I wish that that could be comforting...

but the idea that the universe isn't supposed to make sense is quite possibly more horrifying than anything I read in the news to date. It is definitely as scary.

[hwmnbn]

2. welcome to DU, Cassius23....

:hi:

[nofurylike]

4. understandable, Cassius23. i found most comfort in his profound grasp

of our anguish, and this particular passage:

"Offer up healing and hope from your heart to the world, as pure energy, raw light, if at all possible."

that is the very best we can do now.

i think the part about the universe is a powerful reminder that we should not let ourselves be limited by humans' narrow knowledge of our material 'reality.'

just pour out light and love upon our critically wounded world


peace!

[Briar]

10. To be honest

I find that easier to live with than the notion that the entire universe and everything that happens in it was concocted solely to produce the human race and a harvest of souls for heaven!

[nofurylike]

15. well said, Briar! if was for that, would be such a failure!

one of the comforts of this piece, for me, was the reminder that all that will survive our shared destructive madness.

even if our children don't
:cry:


peace!

[unhappycamper]

3. 99% of Morford articles are too good to snip, but

thanks for doing so.

:hi:

[nofurylike]

5. absolutely agree! thank you, unhappycamper! eom

[nofurylike]

16. btw

:hi:

:)

peace!

[silverweb]

6. You beat me to it, nofurylike!

:D

I just read this column in my e-mail and raced here to share it... a tiny bit too late.

This quote, "One of the standard problems with the universe is that it's large enough that unlikely things happen pretty often," is a breathtaking, mind-boggling reminder that we all need to meditiate on often.

Above all, I do love Mark's prescription for balance!!

[nofurylike]

11. :D i was the same, silverweb, racing here to share it.

outstanding morford!

that really is a "mind-boggling reminder," whew!!
expand us.

and i love it too. that is balance
mmmh...


peace!

[Puglover]

7. Kick

What a great article and so true.

[nofurylike]

12. thanks Puglover! mark morford got a way wit "true" ah? eom

[bloom]

8. Check out his, "What God Really Told Bush "

If you missed it.

I read that one after the one you posted - it's great, too.

"Psst! George! God here, taking a break from supervising the well-being of eight billion troubled souls along with infinite galaxies of unimaginable vastness to speak with you directly one more time because, well, you're special, aren't you, George? Yes you are! Yes you are! OK, stop giggling. I have more commands. Get off the damn hobbyhorse, George, and get a pen and a notepad. No, not a crayon. I don't care if blue is your favori-- George! Get a pen! OK? Good. Here we go:

"As you know, I'm not quite what everyone thinks. I am not all benevolence and love and light. In fact, I have a downright dark side, mean and nasty and cunning, and I want you, George, to continue to be my special right-hand man. My special little guy. In fact, you shall help enact my wrath, Dubya. Doesn't that sound fun?"

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/gate/archive/2005/10/12/notes101205.DTL

[nofurylike]

13. that one was amazing! i highly recommend it with you, bloom!

just one bit kept me from posting that one the other day:

when it's She it's Goddess

:)


peace!

[applegrove]

9. "Personally, I suggest balance, a little bit of everything" - how true!

[nofurylike]

14. yes, just gets it! again and again, too. thanks, applegrove! eom