Maybe the Island is Trying to Tell Us Something

Like the island in the TV series "Lost", maybe this big island we call Earth is trying to talk to us.

My wife and I have recently become hooked on the TV series "Lost". We rented all the DVDs from seasons 1 and 2, and then watched this season's episodes on the internet.

If you know the series, you know that it's about a bunch of people marooned on a tropical island after a plane crash. And that the island has weird stuff going on, almost like it's alive.

After watching "An Inconvenient Truth" the other day (the Al Gore movie about global warming), I'm starting to wonder whether this big island we all share called Earth isn't trying to tell us something. Tsunamis, floods, droughts, heat waves, polar ice melting - like it's trying to send signals.

It reminded me of a concept album called "Consequences" done back in 1977 I think, by two guys from the English group 10cc - Lol Creme and Kevin Godley. It was a three-disc set with a story woven through the music and sound effects. The story was about how after centuries of abuse, the Earth was rising up and turning against mankind, resulting in earthquakes, tidal waves, hurricanes, and all other types of severe weather and geological phenomena.

The story's not specific about the nature of the abuse. And the solution that comes at the climax of the album (a carefully crafted and performed opus composed by the only character in the story who knows what's going on, which placates the Earth and restores tranquility) seems a trifle simplistic for the problems we face today.

Still, I'm struck by how visionary Godley and Creme were back then. If you want to learn more about the album, a former BBC producer named Giles Booth has an entire website dedicated to it here.

Attachment is the Root of All Suffering ... So What's Your Point?

I've been reflecting on the saying (I think it's Buddhist) that attachment is the root of all suffering. It seems like the implied lesson is to shed attachments to lessen suffering (and presumably become more content).

On the surface, I see a lot of wisdom there. Ultimately, attachment is futile, since we all eventually become detached from everything we've come across in life. So it's inevitable that we'll suffer feelings of loss as those things we become separated from those things to which we've formed attachments.

And attachment to that which we haven't yet attained seems equally prone to suffering - wanting what we may not get, being seduced to pursue something that may lead us astray or may not deliver the promise of its allure - not conducive to contentment, for sure.

And yet ... taken to its extreme, forsaking attachment leads to never falling in love, never experiencing longing and sweet expectations, never being able to revel in triumph after a long struggle. Sure, you avoid a lot of heartache, but what's life without it? In fact, what's life without suffering?

Is it possible to feel exhilaration, passion, unbounded joy, without being willing to be exposed to their opposites? Is a life of peaceful, centered, present, "now"-ness inherently better or more fulfilling than one that's more volatile?

Maybe the trick is having both. It's not like we have to choose between living a life of complete centeredness, or living one that's totally untethered. Maybe the best thing is being able to find a center, a presence, an unattached state, and also being able to "riff" off of that like a great jazz musician. To live the high notes and suffer the occasional clunker, knowing that you have the ability and the option to come back to a place of calm and balance when you want or feel the need to.

Of course, it's just a thought. And as the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu said, "As soon as you have made a thought, laugh at it." So - ha ha.