“The brutality of our daily thought, our disconnection from spirit, would be readily apparent to a medieval or ancient person. For our part, we hardly know what we have lost. Because of this we are imbibing anti-depressants at an astonishing rate. Despite our comparative wealth and comfort we are increasingly unhappy. We are, as one social scientists noted, “coming apart.”
On every side the most brutal slogans resound. We are now the creatures of an ideological age. As noted by Carl Jung, we have succumbed to
mass-mindedness.
“There are no longer any gods we can evoke to help us,” he wrote. We now lead “an ignominious existence among the relics of our past….”
―
On every side the most brutal slogans resound. We are now the creatures of an ideological age. As noted by Carl Jung, we have succumbed to
mass-mindedness.
“There are no longer any gods we can evoke to help us,” he wrote. We now lead “an ignominious existence among the relics of our past….”
―
“But if you think there’s any chance that I could make you happy, I wish you would let me try. Because it’s the only thing I really want to do with my life.”
― Beautiful World, Where Are You
― Beautiful World, Where Are You
“So the real question would be,' he said finally, 'if people were given the choice between democracy and whiteness, how many would choose whiteness?'
- Taylor Branch, as quoted by Isabel Wilkerson in Caste”
― Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
- Taylor Branch, as quoted by Isabel Wilkerson in Caste”
― Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
“When I try to picture for myself what a happy life might look like, the picture hasn't changed very much since I was a child - a house with flowers and trees around it, and a river nearby, and a room full of books, and someone there to love me, that's all. Just to make a home there, and to care for my parents when they grow older. Never to move, never to board a plane again, just to live quietly and then be buried in the earth.”
― Beautiful World, Where Are You
― Beautiful World, Where Are You
“Being customers in our society is dangerous. It alienates us from each other. People will prefer to spend long and lonely hours in front of the TV watching life but never really living. We must honestly ask ourselves this question: Why do we allow ourselves to become a society where neighbors or people in the same neighborhood will only find a reason to talk with each other when their dogs sniff each other by chance? Even then, the talk is just superficial and all about the weather or the pets! Why do we allow ourselves to live in a culture where many people believe that their pets are their best friends because they ‘don’t judge me’ or ‘they love me unconditionally,’ as many like to explain? If we live in a society where the only creature who can understand, love, or support us is our pet, then perhaps we have some serious problems to confront, with all respect to the dogs’ wonderful company and friendship (I have a pet also). Perhaps we need a serious change.”
―
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Celina’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Celina’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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