IMAGINE

My story begins by drawing upon the wisdom of some of our greatest philosopher’s ideals, beginning with Plato, to help demonstrate that there appears to be no difference between his world and our own, proving the old adage, 

“The more things change the more they stay the same.”

It seems life has gotten noisy, crowded, and much too busy, although I don’t believe any more is actually being accomplished. In fact, I think all we’re really doing is filling up what I call empty space. From the moment we open our eyes to the new day our senses are bombarded by too many voices, determined to drown out our own. Before we realize it, our thoughts have become tangled in a web of confusion, swarming with the demands of the outside world. But, why? Is it because we’ve forgotten how to manage our inner world? Trust me, no matter who you are, no one can stand in front of the mirror and deny the view for long. On the other hand, go ahead and try. Stand there for as long as you can. From deep inside something will speak to you. If you’re listening, really listening, you will hear that small voice asking you to trust, to believe, and to consider what it has to say. It has important things to share with you, including the many distorted perceptions you hold onto about yourself.

The story within the pages of IMAGINE may be my own, but it could very well belong to each one of us. As unlikely as this may sound my story begins with a little boy, utterly engrossed with an orange lollipop. And so, I offer you IMAGINE, the first in a three-part series which begins as a primer, an introspection, and an invitation to examine what we both consciously and subconsciously permit into our world. IMAGINE is also my way of saying thank you, to that little boy, for the unexpected gift of courage to author this book.

The mechanics behind many of our conversations don’t have to be thought of as being an overly complicated process. In fact, most of the time we hardly give it a second thought. However, our conversations do require a certain degree of sincerity. In order to understand this better, think about the ways most of us communicate today. In our ever-advancing technological world our ability to communicate with others, not to mention the frequency most of us would be guilty of, occurs without hesitation; that is unless you’ve forgotten to charge your batteries. There’s no doubt many of us believe those hundreds if not thousands of text messages we send or receive, or our constant posting, checking, and rechecking our status updates demand, are not only an effective means of alerting the masses, they’re also an extremely convenient way of staying connected. Once upon a time we felt the same way about the telegram. Still, like the telegram, text messages and status updates lack a certain nuance. And, more often than not, it’s the nuance – the message beneath the actual words, that lingers, and without our knowing it, it changes us. It changes us whenever we find ourselves asking questions, such as, “Who am I? What do I stand for? What do I believe in? What sort of future awaits my arrival? What is it I’m working towards, and why?” What are the motivating forces behind our actions - inactions? Are they grounded merely by our desire to survive, or do they arise from our freewill? Are they based along the lines of our resources, our culture, and society? What is the difference between responsibility and compulsion? Can we say we are moved subjectively or objectively? Is there a dominating force that supersedes even our own will? What is our greatest asset? Is it our cognitive ability to reason or our spiritual essence? Science might say it is the first, while religion would declare the latter; proclaiming it retains the highest authority that serves to save our soul, reminding us repeatedly, no one escapes death. Then again, science would say it has to do with the mind’s ability to reason, thus providing us with the necessary means of increasing, not only, our degree of survival, but also our degree of comfort. Nevertheless, in today’s state-of-the-art world have we really become better equipped than our ancestors have, or have we simply found better ways of ignoring the questions?

In order to better understand our dilemma, IMAGINE delves into the problem by examining the origin of our disparity, the forgotten essence of language. What I mean by this is that instead of placing value on words we automatically assess as being either/or, we began to understand their polar opposites, or what I like to call the universal link of opposites, created in order for us to fully comprehend the perfect balance found in every state of being. Now, for the coup de grâce! Here, IMAGINE begins by asking such questions as, What if there truly is no such thing as good or bad, right or wrong. After all, what if the proverbial box we’ve locked ourselves away in is actually a tomb we lay buried in, with no chance of escape? Or the cave of shadows Plato imagines all human beings are forced to inhabit, held fast by the chains of ignorance. In fact, I believe we live our lives in the same manner as those prisoners trapped in Plato’s cave; a philosophical parable that to this day encourages us to think outside the box – to look beyond what we think we know and consider any number of possibilities. Especially those, which may at first, appear absurd. 

IMAGINE explores the concepts of truth, action & reaction, and breaking down those barriers we’ve constructed as a means of self-defense by asking such questions as… 

‘Is it possible, even remotely so, to know for certain that nothing is certain? What is reality and what things, if any, would you choose to describe as being real? What is the nature of those things? Do some things exist independently of our perception, such as space or time? Is there an ultimate ‘ought’ or ‘should’? Is there a normative value or objective that takes the place of all others? In other words, what makes for good thinking, and when can I say for sure that something just doesn’t make sense?’ 

What I’ve discovered is that there is more to the truth than we currently perceive.

  For most of us, our journey begins when we take a closer look at our attitudes and our self-belief. Here we come face to face with what it is we believe offers us hope, as well as that which fuels our drive. What many of us soon discover is that our ability to grow or expand is impeded by nothing other than our own uncertainty. However, I believe this is where our hesitation ends; it ends the moment we find ourselves one-step closer to appreciating where we have come from, in order to comprehend where we are headed. The simple fact of the matter is Life does not uphold neutrality. It never has and it never will. If we are willing to tell ourselves the truth then, and only then, will we realize there is no middle ground. In other words, 

“It comes down to a simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying.”

Quoted by Andy Dufresne, in Stephen King’s movie, The Shawshank Redemption.

IMAGINE expresses the idea that by becoming willing participants, instead of hesitant observers; as we proceed on the road that leads us nearer to our destination called Self-fulfillment, we discover the opportunity to become more than we have permitted ourselves to be and less of whom we thought we were.

 The truth is most of us already know what it is we need to do, in order to create our own personal sense of fulfillment in our lives. Still, every so often even the very best of us forget. IMAGINE is a friendly reminder that there are those moments that exist, if for no other reason, that brings about our own well-being. When we do this for ourselves, and in the spirit of honesty, not only do we significantly change our lives, but we also touch the lives of everyone else. 

Collectively we are of the same species called humankind, sewn with kindred threads, woven into a fine fabric that scintillates through an intense, extensive, and infinite multi-dimensional universe.

A dimension that provides each of us with a unique reality that exists within the sphere of our own conceptual image. Let me put it another way – imagine yourself a pebble, dropped within the center of a pond. Notice how the rings reach for the shore, one after another. Now, imagine everyone else as a pebble, dropped into this same pond, each circle stretching out, touching ours, yet we continue to arrive upon the banks of the pond. This insight is the glue or connecting force that demonstrates the continuum of the Web of Life, maintained by the grace of our Being. It is Spirit within manifestation. Born of Unconditional Love, in which each of us shares the same signature of recognition, based upon the connection of our being one with all that is. I wanted to remind you that the box was always of our own making. It was never real, but rather a collection of illusions we’ve learned to master. 

If only I had stopped long enough to investigate what English poets were hoping to create in terms of writing Japanese forms of haiku, I may have understood better their explanation concerning the syntax, as well as their belief in the construction of a haiku itself. Instead, I indulged my belief by honoring the style that I held in my poets' mind, concerning the structure that is Japanese haiku, finding that what I had indulged was in fact my ignorance when it came to understanding the differences between Western poetry and Eastern poetry.

A moment of Gratitude...

I would like to offer my sincerest thanks to 

Jendi Reiter, Editor of WinningWriters.com for his patience, guidance, and permission to use the authors, Tracy Koretsky’s, 2010 article, in my write-up.

I would also like to express my gratitude to Dr. Christine Gehrett (Theno), Garth Fisher, Dr. Paul Landen, and Mr. Jed Anderson for their kind words, regarding my manuscript. 

I would like to add my warmest regards to Dmitriy Mirochnik, for the use of his photograph at the beginning of the title page,

 "Saucer full of secrets" which I fully intend to have as the cover of IMAGINE. We've waited a long time Dimitriy, haven't we.

I would also like to offer my heartfelt thanks to both Tom Angleton & Emily Ketchum for their generous contributions, in sharing their photography with me.