Author: osboe986

(This is a screenshot of a 1923 film of the Laysan island in Hawaii and a now extinct native bird to it, the Laysan Rail, a flightless bird.)

Declared Extinct: 1944, (Note: on its native island of Laysan, it was declared extinct the same year the film was shot.)

Cause of death: When rabbits were introduced to the island, there was no means of controlling their eating and breeding patterns, resulting in a quick growth in population that ate the vegetation that originally belonged to the Rail, destroying their habitat and supply of food. It was moved to neighboring Midway island with only two being seen still on their native Laysan by the 1920s, both died when being moved to Midway. Then rats were introduced to Midway, doing the same damage as the rabbits did on Laysan resulting in the species going extinct.

The harsh realities of our own exploitation of the natural world via means of expanding and wanting more rings true to the dangers as a species we’ve put the globe under. Still continuing to thrive in the latest of a series of mass extinctions over the past millions to billions of years with the last one, (the K-Pg mass extinction) happening over 65 million years ago. It’s strange, but yet saddening ordeal because of the revelation these catastrophes could of been avoided such as with the Laysan Rail which pigeon holes all people under the umbrella term “humanity” responsible for the tampering of the natural climate.

I sit here writing this beautiful morning, tea in hand, looking outside beyond the garden and trees in the background contemplating this “idea” of pigeon holing humanity. Resulting in a somewhat coming to peace with the realism behind making a claim, while it is blunt and generalized to say all humanity is responsible. It’s difficult to repair such huge damages in a time where we’re getting sporadic summer-esque days hitting the 80 and 90 degree temperature marks, to then days later go back to standard spring temperatures. I like to think the book this whole time, that despite all methods in hand to help the natural world, it was also building up to an idea of making peace with these drastic times.

Judging not, lest ye be judged.

As my title states, “Where do we go from here?” “Do we continue on the way we always were, going about our daily business like nothing is happening?” or “Do we make a difference in the world?” As I said previously what I believed the book may be presenting with its final chapter. It’s a matter of obtaining a sense of inner peace, without sheltering yourself to the destruction surrounding us on a daily basis, not just in the environmental field, but politics, economics, etc. Every action has a consequence and you can either continue on with your daily routine or make a difference, without the judgement of others, because it is not our right to do so due to playing a part in this too and there’s no escape from it all.

As Jesus himself once said:

“For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:43-45, NKJV) (From my own personal Bible)

Lastly, I like to thank everyone for the time we have shared together and the fourth months of coming out of our shells with our own experiences and ideas accepted and discussed greatly. I wish everyone a great summer and good fortune for future endeavors.

With our discussion with Dogen, and the meditative nature of walking. It reminded me of this film from the Film Board of Canada, done by the late Quebec artist Ryan Larkin. This film uses many different forms of animation all for just walking and I find it very lucid with the background score and the many different ways he uses to illustrate walking, from crude to beautiful paintings. Thought I shared this for the blog.

Hello, everyone! I thought I’d add my experience with the Rubin Museum.

I visited the Rubin Museum last Friday with the main interest into the upper floor exhibitions regarding the Buddha. Titled, “The Second Buddha” I had heard about this exhibit from the advertisements found across the city and upon my visit and making my way to the floor it was being held I was overcome with a sense of relief. Relief found within meditative states, especially when ascending via stairs to the floor, mostly from how quiet the Museum was in particular. With little to no visitors in the vicinity, it felt like a soul searching journey and upon viewing the many depictions of the Buddha surrounding and looking at me. It was if I was making that first step to reaching an inner peace within my inner self, absolving all stress or pain in life. All carefully detailed in a mystic sense, contrasting the traditional Greek proper anatomical artwork found in Europe all of which from what I saw was capturing what the artist exhibited as their own Nirvana. Layered within their depictions of the Buddha, “the enlightened one”.

I thought it would be interesting to note upon a discovery I had made not a few days ago and this applies to our neighbors to the Great White North. I had visited Canada in 2012 for a weekend and enjoyed myself rather pleasantly and like any average person, would want to take back home a souvenir to remember this extraction. I had taken a 5 dollar Canadian bill which gave off the scent of maple syrup that is long gone and like average currency it was made of paper, that is until recently. A few years ago, the Bank of Canada issued new bank notes that are now made from plastic instead of paper, while the idea is to prevent counterfeiting it remains a wiser upside to the continued use of paper. Especially coinciding with Canada’s discontinuation of the penny in the same year I went, due to the penny’s lack of worth.