I began this blog as the world unravelled.
In some ways bigger than any one of us: the rise of nationalism and extremism, the persistent violence and oppression of the powerful against the less powerful, rising economic inequality, twitterpated echo chambers on social media, economic and psychological upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic, global warming, and so much more. “Big History” scholars openly question whether we are at the end of an epoch in history, not unlike the end of the Bronze Age or even the end-Cretaceous. We may be answering the Fermi Paradox and encountering the Great Filter as we speak. But we’re still here, and it’s not too late to prove ourselves more capable.
On a more intimate an personal level, this is also a blog inspired by how things in my own life fell apart and came together differently: I stepped far outside my bubble, questioned old ways of being, and discovered new meaning in this marvelously beautiful and broken world. I worry for myself, and more importantly for my children. But I also find hope in that we are a resilient species, and capable of so much more.
What I write about here isn’t absolute truth. Nor will it be space in which I wish to amplify what is already being well amplified. Instead, it’s a space where I wish to share difficult observations, often uncomfortable observations, that I see falling in between the cracks of great debates, casting shadows of the elephants in the room that we all sense are there but have a hard time naming. When that flash of insight hits, there’s only going forward. We can’t go back.
Sometimes, I like to think I may be prescient and ahead of my time. Sometimes, what I say will be obvious to you but new to me or to someone else. Sometimes, I’ll get it wrong. We all have the capacity to learn and grow. I don’t write to pretend that I have all the answers or to tell you what to believe, but to invite you into the conversation.
Welcome.
Above: a recent favorite of mine, by the talented Tom Foolery. Thanks to my friend B for introducing it to me.
We Can't Go Back 