Preface, Presumption, Consideration

Preface: I care about the future of our species. I make the effort to share because I still have hope. If we learn little things and pass them on, then there exists an opportunity for the next generation to be better, better than our predecessors were, better than we are, better at being human beings.

I offer the ideas herein to inspire thought in you, not to see my thoughts replicated. In other words, my declarative statements, made in a range of confidence, not certainty, are intended to make you ask questions. It is not my responsibility to change your mind. I cannot change your mind. Only you have that power. May you find something useful and beneficial.

You will encounter many topics in this book from politics to religion to basic humans issues. The range of topics is so broad that the chapters may seem random. Indeed many are randomly placed, but the book has layers. It has layers like a fancy cake, lasagna, baklava, or something else that’s really tasty. I like onions, but damn. Here are a few layers in no particular order.

One, I am an artist and a morning person, an enigma to some and oversimplified by others. I’ve struggled without direction. My mind is often noisiest in the hours before dawn when the world is quiet. I see things differently than some. I may be able to help the squiggly line and the square understand each other a bit better.

Two, there are things I wish I knew when I was younger, things written in this book. I haven’t yet figured out how to share these things with my younger self. I have figured out how to make them available to a younger someone else.

Three, I attempt to translate some woo-woo into pew-pew. Ironically, psychology hasn’t figured out how to appeal to a broader base of people, especially men. Or maybe they have and want to hoard all the advanced mind knowledge and important life skills for themselves. Tough guys can have tough problems so they need to know things and have skills too. Here and there I translate some touchy-feely into something that dudes who like fast cars and power tools can understand.

There are more layers to discover like finding purpose and dealing with a cascade failure of core beliefs, but uniting them all is a main point. This main point is cumulative. Unlikely will you recognize it until arriving at the particular chapter which makes the idea explicit.

I’ve not hidden the main topic. It is simply getting, I think by necessity, a long introduction. Let it be a pleasant surprise for those who put up with me that long. No, it’s not the last chapter. Not everything about the ordering of chapters is random. Maybe I am hiding it a little bit.

Presumption:

• I presume that our species needs help.

• I presume that I have something to contribute, that I know something you don’t, see something in a way that you do not, or can simply remind you of something forgotten.

• I presume that real life, where people offer criticism for free, can often be as enlightening as therapy, if we’re prepared to be honest with ourselves.

• I presume that therapy is like paying to have someone relieve your tension, except that 1) it’ll likely take more than one session to reach climax, 2) no matter how much you pay you’re still going to have to do most of the work yourself, and 3) the satisfaction will last much longer than the other thing you’re thinking about.

Consideration: I am not a therapist and I am not your therapist. I am not an excellent-elite-tactical operator of any particular special-force-recon-pathfinder-ninja clan as seen on TV. I am not an expert in any of the topics discussed herein. What I am is an observer with a pen, a wanderer outside the crowd, an explorer of the abyss, inviting you to take a look at something.

If you’ve read this far but are still wondering if you want to read further, then at least check out the introduction before you go. There’s a gift there, and you don’t have to read to the end of the short introduction to get it.