Smiling; and Joy.
Posted on | June 3, 2010 | No Comments
Leafing through my copy of Janson’s ‘History of Art’ I noticed, again, that in about 530 BC statues appeared in Greece, all of which were smiling enigmatically. These statues are called kouros and kore, and are thought of as being ‘archaic’ forms. This means that they aren’t that good by ‘our’ standards.
Later statues rarely have smiles. They have extremely life-like looks of horror and so on, but no smiles.
So why don’t statues smile? If I walk along and someone smiles at me it brightens my day, and I doubt that anyone would disagree with that sentiment. Why, therefore, have smiles disappeared from statuary? Is it because we no longer celebrate delight?
Actually, we do. People smile for photos, and love doing it. But this lack of joy in public art might have been a symptom of things to come. Perhaps we, as a race, think we have be gloomy or sad so we can feel alive, and this idea has perpetuated itself. Perhaps we don’t respect joy.
No wonder one in four Americans will use anti-depressants at some point….
Writing Short - the new way forward?
Posted on | June 2, 2010 | No Comments
I’ve noticed that many books are now rather, um, brief. I just read a delightful book of 150 pages, of which about 40 pages were pictures, or one sentence quotations taking up one page, and other such things.
The book itself was excellent - but short. In this case it made its points well, but the larger question is…. are we becoming a culture that simply can’t deal with long books — unless they are about vampires?
The Huffington Post asks for 200 words or less. Twitter allows only 140 characters. So - is there a future for in-depth investigative journalism, any more (to give just one example)?
For some time now….
Posted on | May 31, 2010 | No Comments
For a number of years I’ve been wondering about creating a learning center - one in which the emphasis is on growing human beings as thoughtful, creative, expressive individuals, while at the same time nurturing critical thinking skills.
Often ‘critical thinking’ is a buzz word that implies heartless analysis and the rejection of all that is not strictly ‘rational’. This is a pity. There is plenty in the world that we don’t yet understand, but to reject intuitions because they cannot be proven is about as limiting as anything one could imagine. What we need, instead, is to think carefully and critically about our own self-limiting beliefs, and to imagine possible ways forward that we can then consider with care. Perhaps this should be re-labeled as ‘careful thinking’? It might be transformative.
Most of the world’s problems seem to stem from thinking in pre-conceived patterns. Just today news came that the Israelis boarded a convoy of ships carrying aid to Palestinians. At least 10 people were killed. Outrage in many countries. Yet - who was the person who felt that lowering armed troops from helicopters onto ships loaded with volunteers was a good idea? What sort of idiot notion was that? There were many other options and of them all this was probably the very worst. Someone wasn’t thinking.
I don’t think one side is right or wrong. Perhaps both are wrong, or both right. Who is to judge? I just think that those people didn’t need to be killed.
We need more ‘Careful Thinking’. Obviously.
That time of year again
Posted on | May 26, 2010 | No Comments
Yes it is. In every corner you can see them, gathering, clustering, lurking. At first you just think it’s a coincidence, but then, as you notice more and more of them you’re left asking, what’s going on? Is this a conspiracy?
I’m talking about TV sets and computer monitors, clustered around the sides of buildings, around phone poles, everywhere. Old, ratty TVs, cast aside by the digital wave. Clunky computer monitors, abandoned by owners who won’t take them to the recycling centers or pay for correct disposal. On my short street there are seven of these orphans, and elsewhere I’ve seen similar concentrations.
This is ‘high grade’ trash. But it’s still full of toxic elements. That’s why the garbage people won’t scoop them up. It’s a tide every bit as ugly (if less extreme) than the gulf oil Gush.
What can we do about this?
The descent into the self
Posted on | May 24, 2010 | No Comments
I’ve been researching this idea, from a Jungian perspective, where it is a key element for reaching the core of being. Now, does anyone have any information on such things as the Eleusian Mysteries or the way the Delphic Oracle was set up? I suspect that the same psychic imagery was written large in those ceremonials….
The Shocking Truth! All Is Revealed!!
Posted on | May 22, 2010 | 6 Comments
To those who regularly follow my blog (thanks, Marnie! And thanks Garima. Oh, and Uncle Bill, too.) have sometimes asked the me a very personal question, the answer to which has been concealed until now: What’s the link between your two loves, writing and restoring motorcycles?
I’ll reveal all, now. When I restore motorcycle, the older the better, I take something that is not complete, not running, and perhaps in very bad shape. I give it love and attention. I free what is stuck, I replace corroded parts, and I remake parts that cannot be found. The result is a machine that works again, with all its personal character intact.
When I work with writers I do almost the exact same thing. I free up the parts of the mind that are stuck, I give guidance to replace negative, corrosive, messages with positive ones, and where certain skills are missing I encourage the writer to develop and grow them. I do this not to make the writer write and think like everyone else, but so that the writer can use words to think through the things that are essentially unique to that person, and to discover truths the lie deep within.
Every writer has different needs; every restoration presents different problems. In each case that which had been considered (by some) as past recall is given a new and wonderful chance at life.
Make sense now? No, I thought not…..
BP - need I say more?
Posted on | May 21, 2010 | No Comments
The BP oil spill - not so much a ’spill’ as a ceaseless cascade of noxious filth, poisoning everything in its ever-increasing path - has evoked very little real public outcry or response. I suggested on Facebook that it was time to boycott BP, and the response was good, but not loud or outraged. I was disappointed.
Then I went to my spam filter and deleted dozens of items that were also annoying and filthy, as well as toxic, and it struck me - we’re constantly being subjected to this sort of assault. It seems that from every corner toxic items arrive, daily. BP is just the most recent of a long series of insults to our overall environment.
Oh dear. It looks like we’re accustomed to all this.
Are we beyond help?
TV and Nature
Posted on | May 13, 2010 | No Comments
The other evening I caught an ad for garden equipment. You may have seen it. The scene was a perfect dewy lawn; the voice-over said “It looks like dew - but really it’s a cold sweat”. Then there was the sound and images of power tools starting up. The message was simple, this lawn was terrified and was now going to be worked over by professionals.
When did we get so aggressive about our gardens? When did the rhetoric of terrifying something become acceptable? And since when have we been at war with nature?
This last question is perhaps disingenuous. Any society that allows crude oil to spew into the Gulf of Mexico, and uses highly toxic chemicals to ‘clean it up’ and kill any surviving wildlife at all, is not a society that has emerged much above the slash-and-burn tactics of the stone age. But this rhetoric of war is beginning to get to me. A war on drugs. If you must… A war on terrorism. I suppose. A war on nature….. No thanks. I love my planet. I do not wish to kill it. A war on TV though… that has some real appeal, at times.
Improvements to the site
Posted on | May 8, 2010 | No Comments
At first glance you may not see any. But rest assured they are there. The small ‘amazon’ buttons under the book pictures, to your right, will connect you to Amazon’s page. There you’ll find all sorts of Amazon-type stuff. Reviews, detailed descriptions, reduced prices, the first 30 pages… All that good stuff. It also makes it easier to buy the books.
So now you have no excuses…..
News
Posted on | May 6, 2010 | No Comments
If you want to check out my new book, Princes, Frogs, and Ugly Sisters, go to Findhorn Press.
I’m also posting on New Consciousness Review. Check it out!
Stay tuned for more posts here!
Princes, Frogs & Ugly Sisters:
The Healing Power of the Grimm Brothers' Tales
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Write Your Memoir:
The Soul Work of Telling Your Story
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The Six Archetypes of Love: From Innocent to Magician
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Stories We Need to Know: Reading Your Life Path in Literature
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Life Passages: Writing Exercises for Your Life Journey
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Hi—I’m Allan Hunter, author of The Six Archetypes of Love and Stories We Need to Know as well as two books on writing for self-exploration, Life Passages and The Sanity Manual. If you’re looking to live your best life I hope you’ll find lots of inspiration here.
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and also on Intent.com
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