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| HIKING BUFFALO POUND, SASKATCHEWAN |
TO LIVE IS TO SUFFER, begat in the 5th Century BC
teachings of an Indian religious teacher, Siddhartha Gautama. TO LIVE
IS TO SUFFER was reiterated by the English playwright, William Shakespeare,
who wrote, “Count no mortal fortunate till he has departed from this life free
from pain.” TO LIVE IS TO SUFFER surfaced yet again in the “1800s”
with German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer, who wrote that “All life is
suffering,” and with another 1800s German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche,
who wrote verbatim, “To live is to suffer; to survive is to find some meaning
in the suffering.”
TO
LIVE IS TO SUFFER is the skinny of Zen. If we are
breathing, we are to some degree, suffering. From the time of our birthdates, the
very essentials of our existence are fraught with sorrows from disease and
despair, old age, and death.
Yes, indeed. The nature of human beings is finite and always on the way to death, and yet we labor endlessly to make our lives last as long we can! Why is this so?!
I am guessing we are never quite ready to die, or at least, not ready to die ugly. The
anti-aging market has consumers collectively spending trillions each
year on facial products and skincare, but staying young is much more than simply buying sunscreen. Big dollar spending also includes the anti-aging
regimens in the physical and mental exercise markets.
And yes. I am one of those consumers.
Nowadays,
for little old and delusional me, to stay young and look good demands a personal accountability
in all things physical, mental, and even metaphysical.
Moonlighting as a vampire has become my official vocation. For years I have taken my physical and
mental health seriously, but as of late, I am taking my heart and mind very
seriously too. Is it because I have achieved septuagenarian status, making sense of
my existential dread sufferings? Maybe. Or maybe I have finally bumped my head
to the realization that my personal health, is beneficial, not only to myself, but also to those others
who feel they are close to me. Whatever the reason, I know my being here counts, and
I do not want to suffer the rest of my days counting my days.
But moonlighting
as a vampire takes it toll (pun intended) with considerable effort. Daily, I continually and vigorously
attempt to do the right things in almost every regard to stay among the living.
For my
physical health I am a man for all seasons. In summertime I spend considerable days
guitar busking and free-diving or swimming. In autumn I spend the weekends
hiking and the weekdays playing disc-golf. Ski, ski, ski is my wintertime
mantra, and in springtime I hit the gym hard in anticipation for my beach body
summer.
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| CANADIAN PRAIRIE AUTUMN |
To enhance my mental and metaphysical health, I am a four-season inkhorn. This blog and my latest novel are always on my mind and my thoughts accordingly are extended through my writings. Because I am an avid libertine reader of anything philosophic and Zen-to-go, it is precisely from these readings that I am prompted to offer these precis: TO LIVE IS TO SUFFER and NIETZSCHE IS PIETZSCHE, BUT SARTRE IS SMARTRE.
All these behaviors that I exercise (pun intended again) are internally agonistic. Attempts to extend my life strongly suggests that I AM AFRAID TO DIE. And yet in the meanwhile, ironically, I am ever ready to pack up and hike or play anywhere at anytime, suggesting that I AM NOT AFRAID TO LIVE! 'Tis quite the demarcation, I know!
Yep. To
live is to suffer, and I WANT TO LIVE AND SUFFER FOREVER.
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| VAMPIRES |
And, as for appearances and for the record, I would rather moonlight as vampire than as a zombie!
Hmmm.
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| ZOMBIE WALK IN WASCANA PARK |
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