speed of light

Day 7

most people understand that without air sound waves cant propagate or travel. if a tree falls in the space it cannot make a sound. Another basic tenant of physics is the closer a body gets to light speed the slower the progression of time.

Is it possible to get so close to light speed that time stops? Yes! It seems axiomatic that light travels at light speed. So what is light made of? Photons. a particle representing a quantum of light or other electromagnetic radiation.

When a photon is created, it instantly arrives at its destination with no time elapsing.

Timeless as photons,

stretching throughout eternity

is light what comes next?

- s m alexander

an original koan

DAY 6

A master and a student are studying late into a cloudless night. The master dismisses the student so that he may travel back home.

The student appears hesitant and fearful to leave. The master ask the student what is wrong. The student answers that he is afraid of the dark.

The master thinks for a moment and with a smile replies that if the student is afraid of the dark, there is one thing the student must do. With great interest the young student inquires what must be done.

The old master responds gleefully, you must close your eyes!

Fear of the darkness

waits always to be conquered

behind closed eyes.

- s m alexander

A grocery list

Day 5

im having a rough day.

so i was going to cheat and see how many words i could find in my bulk barn grocery list. Which im still planning on doing, but the first line made me realize, i rarely ever say im having a rough day.

Coco nut milk powder

deepfry batter

arrowroot powder

ginger powder

oddly enough, word count says im over half way! Its slightly terrifying that i dont yet have an answer for why i never mention any day is difficult for me. Even here, i fail to see the merit in divulging a bad day.

A grocery list can,

on a bad day, reveal fears

sartrean nausea!

-s m alexander

with both feet

left foot, right foot. While not technically a sentence, the period belongs there because it is a mantra. Left foot right foot is a contemporized version of chop wood carry water.

The original phrase comes from a koan. Simply put the koan states, what to do before enlightenment? Chop wood carry water. what to do AFTER enlightenment? Chop wood carry water.

The original koan is not meant to be explained, in the same way that jokes are funny because of a sudden unexpected surprise. Koans are understood in the same fashion as a flash of insight. This made life clearer:

Why left foot, right foot?

In moments of confusion,

a simple answer!

-s m alexander

notice the beautiful

Day 3

everyone knows gratitude leads to satisfaction. It is why making a gratitude journal is useful and rewarding. why are so many people ungrateful and unsatisfied in their lives. There are many contributing explanations. One that seems likely is evolutionary psychology.

we did not EVOLVE spoiled and unable to appreciate things. In general our brains are conditioned to asses threats, all day. Better threat analysis ensures the species continuation.

If it is a beautiful day, and your body is pain free, your brain may not bother to notice. Noticing homeostasis isn't a survival asset.

Make surviving worth it, notice the beautiful.

--

sad, broken tea cup.
honey jar is hollow, but!
i have clean water.
-s m alexander

the positive heckle

Positive heckling looks like this, picture a crowded event, and someone screams to the performer, “i love you!” a simple message, very direct. Here's where i'm lucky, i will describe a situation that has occurred more than once. I am making my way down a sidewalk, and a friend of mine leans out their car window and shouts “i love you!”

EVERYONE deserves that! Everyone deserves a positive heckle. In modern, emotionally awkward society “i love you” can often be an inappropriate phrase. How can we deliver reassurance to people in a concise, uplifting way? “it's going to be o.k!”

--

it is a small deed

to remind a passerby

it will be O K!

- s m alexander

100 words a day: i don't know

day 1

--

Have you ever asked a person the motivation behind their actions, and they respond was a flat somewhat befuddled “i don't know.” This seems disingenuous. i suggest here they do know.

They may be unaware of the process that lead to the eventual action. Being unaware of the factors that influence their decision making starts to look a lot like “i don't know.”

They all have reasons. At the most fundamental level, it's the SAME reason everyone has, which is to move towards pleasure and away from pain.

Here is the trick:
Everyone chooses a different path to get there.

--

When you can answer

who you are, you will then know

why you chose to act.

by s m alexander