Thursday, September 3, 2015

August 20


Yesterday’s entry needs more context, or perhaps just more space here for me to complain. We are slowly reaching the end of the one season where people can comfortably be outside at leisure experiencing the wonder of all things in all sensations. June, July and August provide variety in excess to ourselves, and we can enact with the natural world in so many ways as our own investment.

Yet more often I witness people engaging not with the reality that these days afford but in every sense virtually or artificially. They move about with smartphones in hand, less a part of their surroundings and rather in some distraction, likely trivial, and certainly artificial.

Why bother going to see the cattails, when they can be instantly accessed via a device? Why learn the catbird’s cry, or witness the metamorphosis of a hornbeam? The stars can be seen at any time and at a finger’s touch, so what is the point of a nightly display?

I swear, in this age of wonder, when information can be accessed at a moment’s notice, when we can have satellites pinpoint our every step, when we have increasing difficulty in simply being alone, we have become impoverished.

No comments:

Post a Comment