Those last two paragraphs...oof! I can only hope you are wrong about that particular future dystopia, although something tells me your guesstimation is partially correct. Regardless, your expositional meanderings here are, as always, a joy to read. Thank you for that.
"...and they were whispering anxiously about filing their income taxes." -this line filled my with so much horror and dread for some reason. :-/
This is the sort of piece I want to read twice: once to understand at an intellectual level, and once again to feel it, to float along its stream face up, letting the language carry me through the beautiful and the terrible.
Thank you for bringing this kind of writing into the world. There are so few people who write who are good at it, and you are among the best I've read.
I feel constrained to point out that the aching void in humanity, the missing piece, is God. Man was designed to be in communion with God and our estrangement from Him is the void we have.
Just needed to put that out. Thank you again for your clear, beautiful and well-thought-out writings.
What's your definition of God? Do you mean organized religion? Or are you intending "God" to be some kind of stand-in for "meaning," an answer to the "why are we here?" question? I'd probably agree that some sense of meaning, a sense of things having their place, and that we have a place within it is missing. I'd dispute that that is "god" unless your definition of god is far more amorphous than how it is typically interpreted in western culture.
I'm a conservative Christian; I mean God the definite, personal, transcendent creator of all that is. (Organized religion is the bits and pieces of how man thinks about this person.) But even God as a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging, is the hole in most people today. As a Christian I think only the God I know can fill that hole.
I am saddened, and pray that you will yet encounter Him. Jesus said 'I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except by me'; He also said 'Whoever comes to me I will not cast away'. Blessings on you.
Many humans, even most first world humans, have a device that they can hold in the palm of their hand. Humans can use that device, on a 24/7 basis, available pretty much anywhere that humans are likely to be found, to access just about all of the information that has ever been recorded by humans and cats. Art, literature, music, data, artifacts, just about everything that you would want to look at is there. There are still some gaps, sometimes YouTube doesn't have a musical selection and it's always better to see a Ming vase in the flesh, but those gaps are closing fast.
Humans use this device primarily to argue with strangers and look at funny cat videos.
This reads like Freddie's version of Ligotti's 'Conspiracy Against the Human Race'! "THERE IS NOTHING INNATELY IMPRESSIVE ABOUT THE UNIVERSE OR ANYTHING IN IT" etc. More lively and maximalist than Ligotti though! Fun!
'Everyone worked in HR.'
This was how I was sure that we'd been transported to Hell.
I can't believe they figured out the bedsheets :)
Seriously, I liked it a lot. This reminded me of "The Tempest", especially the throwing the pen into the stream part.
Those last two paragraphs...oof! I can only hope you are wrong about that particular future dystopia, although something tells me your guesstimation is partially correct. Regardless, your expositional meanderings here are, as always, a joy to read. Thank you for that.
"...and they were whispering anxiously about filing their income taxes." -this line filled my with so much horror and dread for some reason. :-/
This is the sort of piece I want to read twice: once to understand at an intellectual level, and once again to feel it, to float along its stream face up, letting the language carry me through the beautiful and the terrible.
Thank you for bringing this kind of writing into the world. There are so few people who write who are good at it, and you are among the best I've read.
I feel constrained to point out that the aching void in humanity, the missing piece, is God. Man was designed to be in communion with God and our estrangement from Him is the void we have.
Just needed to put that out. Thank you again for your clear, beautiful and well-thought-out writings.
What's your definition of God? Do you mean organized religion? Or are you intending "God" to be some kind of stand-in for "meaning," an answer to the "why are we here?" question? I'd probably agree that some sense of meaning, a sense of things having their place, and that we have a place within it is missing. I'd dispute that that is "god" unless your definition of god is far more amorphous than how it is typically interpreted in western culture.
I'm a conservative Christian; I mean God the definite, personal, transcendent creator of all that is. (Organized religion is the bits and pieces of how man thinks about this person.) But even God as a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging, is the hole in most people today. As a Christian I think only the God I know can fill that hole.
I have tried to know this God, your God. I have failed. I am happy he’s alive for you.
I am saddened, and pray that you will yet encounter Him. Jesus said 'I am the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except by me'; He also said 'Whoever comes to me I will not cast away'. Blessings on you.
♥️
Honestly, I'd rather V.I.K.I. or SkyNet get us than your vision. But I'm guessing that's your whole point.
Wonderful read. Thank you for the admonition. And the style comes through (so rare these days).
It was only missing the disclaimer "TRUE STORY", of course. ;-)
Many humans, even most first world humans, have a device that they can hold in the palm of their hand. Humans can use that device, on a 24/7 basis, available pretty much anywhere that humans are likely to be found, to access just about all of the information that has ever been recorded by humans and cats. Art, literature, music, data, artifacts, just about everything that you would want to look at is there. There are still some gaps, sometimes YouTube doesn't have a musical selection and it's always better to see a Ming vase in the flesh, but those gaps are closing fast.
Humans use this device primarily to argue with strangers and look at funny cat videos.
Thank you, cats, for distracting us from the endless, circular tedium of human strife.
icanhascheezburger?
“My body left this tired age behind, the leaflet fell in silence”
Into a trash can I ASSUME
Stirring. I am always grateful when you share this essence.
Thank you.
It made me think about how boring the indifferent universe is. It is only made interesting by attention being applied to it.
This reads like Freddie's version of Ligotti's 'Conspiracy Against the Human Race'! "THERE IS NOTHING INNATELY IMPRESSIVE ABOUT THE UNIVERSE OR ANYTHING IN IT" etc. More lively and maximalist than Ligotti though! Fun!
Outstanding, didn’t know you had this in you.
I would ask for more, but it would be foolish to expect something this good daily, weekly, monthly or even yearly.. Made my reading day.
Excellent.
Dear Freddie, you continue to amaze with how you write from and to the soul…❣️
'...along time's arrow...'
Martin Amis reference?
A little wink as a tribute, yeah