Purpose

[Mimi]

i don't know how YOU do it myssanne! i barely have the energy, most days, to walk 2 blocks.
my wife is the real poet, i'm just a budding cynic (sorry mimi, heehee)-

i used to be schizophrenic...

but, we're fine, now.

 

Used to be??  Aha we know now!!  Aw shoot, shut up Mimi.

Love Ya LL,
Mimi

[okarol]

A serious, life-changing illness takes it's toll on you.

Chronic illness brings us face to face with the big questions. You suddenly have an opportunity within the challenge of illness to look again at what is really important to you.

Another one of those dreaded "growth opportunities." 

[LightLizard]

Oh yeah, I forgot. I guess you'll have to do laundry, run the vacumn and mop the floors. That stuff will toughen up those musician fingers back up after you are done with the dishes. See I'm looking out for you. Your wife doesn't have to thank me. It is my pleasure to give you advice. 

uhhh, thanks ramona, but i'll have
to leave those for the expert.
thanks for looking out for me so well!

i guess it's not so much that i don't have
a 'purpose' anymore.
it's more that the purpose i was serving
is now, pretty much impossible for me to pursue.

maybe my new, shiny purpose is
to bring awareness of the prison that
religion is and help others
obtain a sense of freedom and virtue
through the noble path of
the Cynic.

yeah, that's the ticket.

ALLLL ABOARRRRD!
 

[Romona]

Well I am questioning religion myself, I still believe in a higher power.
It is organization that I am not sure of.
"She" did a wonderful job of creating the Earth.
Who other than a woman could get that all done. 

And LightLizard, I was not granted a license to hear your music. So I couldn't hear it. 

[LightLizard]

that's weird, ramona. i think you just need to click on 'download liscence' to get one..
it should appear on your screen when you're on that page.

yes, i've dropped a lot of my old beliefs by the wayside since my kidneys failed, it seems.
i used to be a highly 'spiritual' person, not religious, but i too believed in some kind of 'higher power' that formed and shaped us.

after two NDE's, one 30 some-odd years ago, and another one just recently when i was hospitalised, i've come to realise just how powerful the human mind can be when it comes to convincing ourselves of something we need to believe in order to avoid the fear of death.

now, i do believe there is a 'force' of some kind that causes life to form, but i don't attribute any kind of consciousness to it. it's more like magnetism, or electricity, i think.

people have a hard time thinking this way, i know, especially after generations of religious dogma has been fed to them. it's hard to let go of that father-figure in the sky, even, perhaps especially, for adults. i believe that the purpose of life is simply to live and our purpose is dependant on what we choose to do with our lives.

i trust that all will be as it should be and i know i belong in this universe, otherwise, i wouldn't be here.

what more should i need?

if you want a useful perspective outside of religion, read joseph campbell's work. you won't be sorry!

love

LL

[LightLizard]

ok ramona, i made some changes to the files and you should be able to download them now...

cheers!

 

[Mimi]

Well, I'm sorry to tell you LL, I don't believe in religion either.  I believe in Jesus Christ.  There are numerous
riddles in life that remain a mystery....but when God leaves us with a mystery  that isn't solved shortly we panic
and struggle to believe he is a good God.
The Bible I read simply doesn't present that as the way life is.  Yet the world seems to expect that.  When will
we ever learn that cynics have no capacity to understand the profound and unfathomable ways of God.

Love U LL,
Mimi

[LightLizard]

thanks mimi. i understand where you're coming from and i'm sorry to tell you that jesus was a story that was told by a few other cultures, long before the bible was written, and long before the story of jesus was formed. the egyptians had a similar tale of a hero that was born of divine origin, could heal and perform miracles, and was killed for challenging the authoritarian leaders of that time. its an age-old mythological tale that lays out the path of the spiritual traveller who must challenge the status quo and sacrifice himself (the body and ego) to acheive awakening, and it is the story of all of us, really. that's what mythology is. a poetic fable designed to awaken certain truths within us.
jesus did not literally walk the earth, as the majority of christians believe today. he is not returning to save and judge us. not literally.. but i don't expect you to be open to this thinking at all. you have closed your mind to the possibilities of that story being anything other than actual historical fact.
that is the flaw of modern perception. we are unable to understand the ancient myths as they were intended to be understood. the coming of the age of 'reason'- the industrial era, and the growth of scientific thought has shifted human perception into the left part of our brains, the part of logic and literal thinking, where we are unable to grasp the finer points that the ancients were attempting to share so magically through the myths and legends.
add that to the desire to manipulate and control the masses with the image of a vengeful diety, and you have the miserable world we are now in.

i love you too.

LL

[kitkatz]

God has a crazy sense of humor!

[LightLizard]

an·thro·po·mor·phism [ ànthrəpə máwr fìzzəm ]


noun 
 
Definition:
 
attribution of human characteristics to nonhumans: the attribution of a human form, human characteristics, or human behavior to nonhuman things, e.g. deities in mythology and animals in children's stories

 

[Mimi]

jesus did not literally walk the earth, as the majority of christians believe today. he is not returning to save and judge us. not literally.

LL that is just NOT true.  Deep within the hearts of everyone, there is this little hidden clause that says 'There may be a God after all.'  One second after they die men and women who have rejected and resisted the Lord will step
into eternity.  One second .... and they will be totally at a loss to determine their future.  God's sovereignty
steps over their lives and sets forth His decree, "God is all in all."  LL I wish you would stop reading Greek Mythology
and try reading the Word of God.  He will help you realize the truth and set your mind free.  There are also many
good Christian books.  One I especially like is C. S. Lewis' "Mere Christianity."

Love U my friend,
Mimi

[LightLizard]

well, i beg to differ, mimi. i think if you listen closely to that little voice you'll hear that it's really saying 'gee, i sure hope there's a god and an afterlife cuz i'm scared to hell of dying' and the rest is all made up...
these beliefs were formed thousands of years ago, when people had no idea of what they were about, how they got here, where they were going, but through wishful thinking and the need to avoid fear, the fables grew into the illusions that people base their lives on now.
so much potenntial wasted becasuse people make themselves believe that they will 'get their reward in heaven' so why try to make the most of your life? why strive for something better?

anyway, i can see, as usual, that you are trapped in your prison of belief and really
have no way out, so let's not bother talking about this anymore, there is no need
to argue, and i have no burning need to be proven 'right'- you will never convince me of what you believe. i've been there and at 58 years old, i have no need for your god, your jesus, or any other false hope.

thanks anyway.

love

LL

[Joe Paul]

Read Matthew 7:6 I think it applies here. 

[LightLizard]

i have a right to believe what feels right for me. this bible-thumping makes me nauseous and i am sick and tired of being badgered by holier-than-thou robots.
i am a full-blown athiest and happy with that, leave me alone.

note that the information i have offered is not directed at any one individual, but is for those who are interested and open to ideas beyond the old, worn out fantasies of conventional faiths. i do not appreciate being targeted for conversion.

thanks

LL

[Joe Paul]

Read Matthew 7:6 I think it applies here. 

This was meant for Mimi LL 

[LightLizard]

thanks for clarifing that joe.

and i am sorry for being so defensive, those leg cramps seem to be
cramping more than my legs...

[okarol]

Just wanted to remind everyone that this thread started in the Dialysis: General Discussion section.
Here's the topic: How can you find a 'purpose' when you barely have the energy to live?

okarol/moderator

[Joe Paul]

thanks for clarifing that joe.

and i am sorry for being so defensive, those leg cramps seem to be
cramping more than my legs...

Never a problem LL 

[LightLizard]

Just wanted to remind everyone that this thread started in the Dialysis: General Discussion section.
Here's the topic: How can you find a 'purpose' when you barely have the energy to live?

okarol/moderator

perhaps, if at all possible (and it isn't for me, yet) one can attempt to live as gracefully as possible for the benefit of those around us, to inspire and let them see how regardless of the tribulations of renal failure, life can still have meaning...

love

LL

[Romona]

Everyone has a right to believe what they want to believe. There are probably very few people that haven't thought about "purpose" when faced with difficult obstacles that life throws at us. Some people use faith to pull them through, others may lose faith. I agree that trying to live gracefully as possible should be a goal. There aren't many days that I don't think why am I still here. Why was I spared only to face one more health scare after another. Just when I think things are settling down something else pops up!


LL,
I think you are displaying grace with handling this disease. If you are like most of us, you only show your true feelings to people that can relate. The people that post here can understand your feelings. I am guessing that among family and friends, they see you as someone of strength and determination. I would never dream of voicing my true feelings to those close to me. But here I feel comfortable doing just that.

Now let's talk another no-no, politics!

[Mimi]

Just wanted to remind everyone that this thread started in the Dialysis: General Discussion section.
Here's the topic: How can you find a 'purpose' when you barely have the energy to live?

okarol/moderator

perhaps, if at all possible (and it isn't for me, yet) one can attempt to live as gracefully as possible for the benefit of those around us, to inspire and let them see how regardless of the tribulations of renal failure, life can still have meaning...

love

LL

Oh boy... I totally agree with that LL.
A big Yea for living gracefully.

Love, Mimi

[LightLizard]

'POLITIC"?? please, not that!!

my take on politics;

'poli - (from the ancient greek) meaning; 'many'

and 'tics' - blood sucking insects


i'm not really that much into the greek history thing, but i do believe that
there is much that the greeks offered that could be useful in today's world, if we
paid attention.

for instance; did you know that the greeks were the first to
incorporate the principles of democracy into their society? (the spartans, really!)

[jbeany]

Now let's talk another no-no, politics!

Electile Dysfunction: the inability to become aroused over any of the choices for president put forth by either party in the 2008 election year.

[LightLizard]

Now let's talk another no-no, politics!

Electile Dysfunction: the inability to become aroused over any of the choices for president put forth by either party in the 2008 election year.

*whew* that's a relief. i thought it was just me!
 

[paris]