Thalassa

Perhaps related to that is the idea of what to do with what you know. I tend to think as a teacher. I want to lay things out as clearly as possible and let people come to their own conclusions. The advantage for me is that I’m working for insight and clarity, but the advantage in the outside world is less clear. People have their own agendas. Most people have thick filters up and don’t hear what is said. They hear what their filter allows through. Just because something is presented truthfully, doesn’t mean it will be heard as neutral, far from it. After that, it’s anyone’s guess what happens to the information.

Bob (not his real name) tends to think as a kindly uncle. He wants a good outcome. What he says about a situation is whatever he deems will lead to that good outcome. The advantage for him is that he’s working to make things better, but the advantage in the outside world is less clear. Nobody can manipulate everybody at once, though over time, it’s fairly easy for a skilled person to learn how to manipulate someone close to them. If the attempts at a good outcome fail, then not only does Bob not have the outcome he wanted, but he also has to work on a different spin.

Perhaps there is some synthesis of these two approaches that would work better than either alone. Perhaps the solution lies in first, sticking to the truth, but second, presenting it with the outcome in mind. How this is to be learned is another question.

Communication is Important · 34 days ago by Julie

Sometime, it’s difficult to figure out what the other person is trying to say, though.

Lies and Destruction · 38 days ago by Julie

People might lie because
1. They’re mischevous and think it’s interesting.
2. They’re protecting themselves from the consequences of their actions.
3. They’re protecting somebody else.
4. They’re hoping to re-write reality to illustrate a cherished belief.
5. They’re hoping for power, financial gain, or social status.

I suspect that most lies include most of these elements.

However, the motivation going in is usually not the consequence that comes out.

If the lie is found out, one unwanted consequence is loss of face, both in the eyes of others and, more importantly, to one’s own well-being. Other consequences to social and relationship glue are obvious.

If the lie is not found out, there are unwanted consequences as well. Most liars aren’t fully able to “cover.” The people around them puzzle over discrepancies and either try to re-shape their own instinctive responses to things in order to accommodate this new “information,” or have to live with an unexplained sense of wrongness. The larger the lie, the more work people have to do in order to reconcile their perception with what the liar presents as true. In that case, if the lie is ever found out, the consequences to the liar are even less healthy.

Halleluia · 42 days ago by Julie

Handel’s Halleluia Chorus

Save the World, Please · 86 days ago by Julie

Mike Seymour’s blog, The Global Oneness Project, The Real News, Link TV, Z Communications, Wiser Earth.

Important Folding Skills · 93 days ago by Julie

How to fold a furoshiki.

How to tie a cravat.

How to fold a cat.

How to fold an army rack.

Help fold a protein.

Make sure you have fold equity.

With enough time, you can learn how to fold this.

And finally, folding rocks)

Life · 104 days ago by Julie

It was Bob’s 90th birthday today. Everybody came, in the honey-gold sunlight, and ate cake. My klezmer group played a few tunes, ending with the liturgical Avina Malcheinu, a real tear-jerker.

Afterwards, a woman who was only 81 held my hands. “Sometimes life feels so unfamiliar,” she told me.