Addicted to good conversation
I've hesitated to join this discussion group...for the mere reason that it could get addictive.
It also doesn't feel exactly good here, for some reason. Maybe because it's new. But I want to try it once in a while if that's ok.
Do you think it's true that who we are is what we think about in our free time?
It also doesn't feel exactly good here, for some reason. Maybe because it's new. But I want to try it once in a while if that's ok.
Do you think it's true that who we are is what we think about in our free time?
posted by Jason and Emily at 1:31 PM
4 Comments:
I agree that sometimes such discussions as these can be a bit awkward. Have you read Anna Karenina? One of the main characters makes a resolution at one point that real joy is just found through physical labor. It is so refreshing and positive. But in the end he realizes that his thinking (and at times, doubting) is a critical part of his identity. (Someone correct me if they have a better understanding of that book, it has been a while since I read it)
Anyways, I would also like to comment that the discussions can have real benefits, too. Yesterday I had a long discussion with a very close friend that told me for the first time that he was gay. I wasn't exactly a surprise, but my conversation with him was enriched by what we have discussed in this group.
wow Mike. Tell us more about how the conversation went. Is your friend LDS?
My friend has always been deeply spiritual. He has been an EFY instructor countless times and does not doubt the truth of the gospel. He has a kind of childlike faith that is almost strange to me.
One of the most interesting things that I got from the conversation was the idea that he simply could not stand to be alone. I love my friends and family, but I am somewhat of a loner at heart. I have definately learned to live without daily intimacy. He thinks it would be unfair to any woman to try and get married when he feels no attraction, and that it is unfeasible emotionally to live alone.
My friend is an incredible artist and photographer, and his life is governed much more by aesthetics and emotional needs than is mine. I was reminded of the book The "Picture of Dorian Gray" because I think that homosexuality is often related to this kind of aesthetic philosophy. You may recall that the author (oscar wilde) actually held views very similar to that of the anti-hero. But the point was that there is a very dark side to aesthetics if it comes to dominate our lives.
I don't think we can be truly happy unless we find some balance between aesthtics and objectivism, but any such balance is a personal and unstable one.
so what is your friend going to do now?
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