Who knows what these bugs are? But they are doing what they were made to do. Glorious lust, but short-lived. Bugs mate when the opportunity arises. Humans sometimes have a little more choice about it. But we are still driven by many natural and social conditions to want to mate.
Never confuse the human condition for human nature. The first is real, the second mostly used as an excuse for personal failings, of self and others.
The human condition is a consequence of the evolution of consciousness. The pain associated with it results from conflicts between the necessity of providing for the body and the higher ethics we’ve developed to make life bearable. Modernity has brought with it ever greater conflicts due to our membership in complex, nested and overlapping sub-groups. These include family, neighbors, residents of our town, village, city, etc., fellow citizens and other residents of our nation, other nations around the world, professional societies, clubs, and more.
So-called “human nature” is a distorted epi-phenomenon arising from the sequence of difficulties that the powerful have created and manipulated for their own gain.
Humanity has not yet figured out exactly what real human nature is, but surely there is a strong component of co-operation and helpfulness.
Without that, we would not have thrived as much as we have.
All beginners once Some day we come to an end Recycling matter
There’s nothing like an heirloom beefsteak tomato, hot from the sun, sliced, and drizzled with a little bit of Ken’s Steakhouse Greek dressing! This dressing looks like it might be my own home made recipe.
Soon, come February, the Zip-locks of seed packets will be taken out of the freezer. Their temperature will be allowed to equilibrate with that of the living room prior to opening for the annual census. Tomatoes. Tomatoes first. I used to start one or two seedlings of each of 25 varieties. The last two years, I have increased the roma types, because of their convenient size for my juice packs. That has decreased the variety of heirloom beefsteaks. The salad tomatoes are holding steady. But I still like to try at least one completely new to me heirloom every year. I’d been growing Paul Robeson for years, a delicious blue salad tomato that my racist right leaning pal likes, before finding out that Paul Robeson was a famous African American socialist.
I have not shared this knowledge with my pal yet. Who am I to take away his enjoyment of a healthy pleasure? Besides, there’s some poetic justice in the situation….
So anyway, first, I take stock of the tomatoes, and figure out how many new packs to order. The peppers. Let’s not forget the peppers. I’m more open minded on the peppers. The individual variety packets don’t last as long, so there’s more opportunity for experimentation. Next, the lettuces, cabbages, broccoli, cukes, melons, etc. Then, the flowers. Gotta have zinnias and cosmos, and something new. The garden provides the chance to see a cycle of life in less than a year. From infant to crone, despite the infant mortality that comes with weeding, and the early maturity deaths due to bacterial wilt, etc., March to September is all it takes.
They say gardening is good for health. It provides opportunities for exercise, and the potential for nutritious food. Some also say it’s cheaper than hiring a shrink, but serves the same purpose. I say gardening is all of the above, and the most spiritual activity there is, linking us from beginning to end, from dust to dust.
All beginners once Some day we come to an end Recycling matter
