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David Macy wrote: In my mind it is
not the fact that we age and die that is striking. We all grow old and
die, big deal. What strikes me is that we live as long as we
do.
This reminds me of a Star Trek character in the fourth series
spin-off (the one after DS9, I can't remember the name of it at the moment. The
one with the lady Captain)... The character I'm referring to was a
species who only live for about a decade. I can't remember how she got on board
the ship-- I think she was a stowaway, but she was stuck being hopelessly
lost in that unexplored quadrant of the universe just like all the rest of
them and she was the only one of her kind. So, her entire life, which was about
a third over at the beginning, was going to be spent away from her culture, her
people, her chance at "a normal life" (whatever that means). I found it really
poignant that she was trying to comfort her newfound friends when they realized
she was only going to live another 5 or 6 years. The humans thought it was so
short it wasn't enough time and she shrugged and smiled at them and said; "It
makes us cherish each moment."
It's really true that, as Bonnie Raitt said in a song, "Time gets
mighty precious when there's less of it to waste."
Judith
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, August 22, 2005 3:31
PM
Subject: [ROSEN] An attempt to entail
youth and senescence
Hey guys,
Time for me to do some
ante. I don't overly concern myself with the metaphor that life is a
game, but if it is, then it's a game of strip poker in my view.
The fact that Robert (I don't know a more
appropriate name to call RR in this venue) concerned himself with senescence
is just more proof, in my opinion, that this was a man who concerned
himself with longstanding and profound problems and questions.
How long have we, mankind, been haunted by
thoughts of our own mortality? Apparently we haven't even been the only
intelligent species on Earth to have done so. I have heard that even the
Neanderthals buried their dead with flowers. Who wouldn't sip from the
fountain of youth were it made available to them?
In my mind it is not the fact that we age and die
that is striking. We all grow old and die, big deal. What strikes
me is that we live as long as we do. The explanation for our longevity
that has most appealed to me to date is recourse to maybe two or three
facts. We humans are to an unprecedented (locally) degree dependant upon
our ability to adapt for survival. Adaptability is our niche. We
have and extensive childhood and accompanying vulnerability. We are
social creatures.
The upshot of all this is that the old of today,
who once relied upon the old of their youth for guidance, are now depended
upon to guide the youth of today. The implicit and the explicit are
commingled.
Give me a little time and I try to put it in
If... Then... form.
David
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