April 28, 2025

I am Conscious, Therefore I Am

Posted by in Member Writing & Art, Writing
I am Conscious, Therefore I Am

Thoughts On Why We Are Conscious, by Steve Sangapore *Featured image courtesy of geralt on pixabay.com* What is consciousness? How did life originate? Are we alone in the universe? What is the solution to the marriage of general relativity and quantum mechanics? These are, among many others, some of the deepest wonders the human mind grapples with. Some are fairly recent to our catalog of existential mysteries while others have been with us since our ancient ancestors first gazed up at the heavens. In our modern time, these great questions have been left at the foot of the scientific enterprise as we patiently await new progress and developments that bring us closer to resolving these mysteries. One of them, however, is not like the others.  Consciousness and conscious experience are understood as the subjective, intrinsic qualities…

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May 15, 2024

“First Impressions of India” by Jon Meyer

Posted by in Member Writing & Art, Writing
“First Impressions of India” by Jon Meyer

*Featured Image courtesy of Naveed Ahmed on Unsplash* Travelling can always lead to some memorable experiences, and Jon Meyer certainly made some memories in his visit to India. Read a snippet of Jon’s trip in his nonfiction piece, “First Impressions of India.” First Impressions of India It was 1973, and I had been a follower of Meher Baba for three years. The white light from Lord Meher through Darwin was powerful, and was still sustaining me even though the constant bliss was somewhat diminished.  I spent a year at the Orrefors Glass School in Sweden and came home to be offered a job at Steuben Glass in Corning, NY. This work was quite varied, which I enjoyed. It entailed being in charge of the new apprentice program in addition to my other duties. Since the…

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June 3, 2021

“Bicycling with Butterflies,” A New Book by Sara Dykman

Posted by in Writing
“Bicycling with Butterflies,” A New Book by Sara Dykman

Editor’s note: Most of us are likely curious about the person who writes a book — in particular, one who rode her bicycle 10,201 miles to follow the monarch butterfly migration from Mexico across the United States to Canada and back again. So we’re introducing a new feature to our book excerpts: a Zoom interview with the author. If you like what you’re about to listen to, watch, read, please leave a note in the Comments—and treat yourself to a copy of Sara’s book. This is the best book about adventure cycling I’ve ever read, and it’s available on Amazon in hardcover, Kindle and Audible. ~ Jack Bicycling with Butterflies excerpt: “A Million-Winged Sendoff” DAYS 1 AND 2 / MARCH 12 AND 13 MILES 1–118 The sun’s warmth began to pour steadily through the branches,…

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December 6, 2020

“Brevity,” A Flash Nonfiction Anthology Book Review

Posted by in Book Reviews
“Brevity,” A Flash Nonfiction Anthology Book Review

When Rose Metal Press asked if I would consider writing a review of a forthcoming book entitled The Best of Brevity, I thought, Why not? I favor brevity. After all, that famous line, “Forgive me for writing you such a long letter, for I didn’t have the time to write a short one,” is one of my favorite [mis]quotations, even if we’re not exactly sure who first wrote it. Was it Montaigne? Cicero? Machiavelli? Pascal? Wilde? Twain? Mencken? Does it matter? So the book arrived and I noted the cover read, “Twenty groundbreaking years of flash nonfiction.” I was intrigued; having written flash fiction for years and years, I was embarrassed to admit I knew little about this genre. But flash nonfiction? Now I wondered, Hmmm, this might be boring. Then I began flipping pages,…

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