Today is Safeway discount day and my first trip is already behind me to the tune of 51$ for eleven (11) items! My second trip I plan for this aft, when the sun is out I hope. The first frozen patches on my walk over, already made their appearance and that is the part of winter that I can do without at my age.

Yesterday I searched the smart phone scene some more, using a few new links sent by John. I have looked at these devices before, but found them superfluous until now, just extra cost items. But the times at which I think such a phone would come in handy are becoming more frequent. I’m also becoming more curious about the capability of them, such as my wish to share the photos that I take and use them as well for my daily entries. So, the search goes on and could result in a purchase.

Typing the word mental in this context I realise that this particular use of that word has ceased and has been replaced by the word ‘spiritual

Jack and I had our long coffee talk yesterday, which centered on politics, religious convictions and their possible mental affect on society in general. Typing the word mental in this context I realise that this particular use of that word has ceased and has been replaced by the word ‘spiritual’. Mental today is usually found in association with ‘mental illness’, while ‘spiritual’ in the past often had the connotation of ‘flightiness’ and ‘instability‘.

Yesterday afternoon I concentrated on formulating a sense of mission for myself, as based on my life experience. In 2006 I realised the sense that ‘bringing to consciousness’ was of primary importance to me. This connected to a very old sense I held since my youth. That was and is that we need to ‘objectify things’ in the since that they so become available for discourse and examination. Now I could say ‘put it out there’! This in the meaning that your held conviction can then be talked about, instead of being held in seclusion or private.

Yesterday, this sense of making conscious had not disappeared, but the question had arisen just what it was that I had to add as an intent for my life. I asked what it was that had to be made conscious! That afternoon this became an urge for me to seek out within, because the ‘making conscious’ missed the content of what we had to be made conscious of!

That content emerged slowly as I worked on this as ’intent’ at first. What was the intent I brought with me when entering this life of mine? Here the intent meant belief or conviction, as a motivating and driving force. The notion of making conscious was laudable to me, but it held no driving conviction for me. Intent had to be added, but intent of what?

I knew it would have to do with religious beliefs as this is something that has always a motivating interest in my life and is still. This interest is coming to a culmination with my upcoming talk titled ‘Humanity’s Threshold.’ What are we to do with all these differing beliefs that were supposed to become secularised, but intensified instead!

Slowly but surely, the notion ‘clarity’ emerged into my sense of awareness and ‘clarity of humanity’s beliefs’ following soon after it.

Slowly but surely, the notion ‘clarity’ emerged into my sense of awareness and ‘clarity of humanity’s beliefs’ following soon after it. After sometime of working with this - inner work as Hillman called that - I came up with: ‘My intent is to bring clarity to human beliefs‘. And of that, I and we humans, have to become conscious! In German there is the word ‘Auf-klerung’ and in Dutch ‘op-heldering’, both of which transliterate as ‘up-clearing’.

In other words, we need to accept the presence of beliefs in its full variety, but we also need to gain a clear understanding of the nature and function of these beliefs in our human society. This implies that the dysfunctional aspects must be addressed through understanding and accommodation, pre-empting attempts of reduction and dismissal, which has never worked.

“Achieving conscious clarity of humanity’s held beliefs and traditions is an objective that is worthwhile and essential in our world of today.” And that sums up the insight I gained from my contemplation yesterday afternoon, defining a way forward for action.
>9:57am~