Control

Control has become a national obsession after the child massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Making schools armed camps has been one solution offered by the idiots who love their guns more than human life. It does not occur to them that inuring children to the presence of guns in schools from an early age just propagates the problem of gun violence. They would do well to read more about civilian life in war zones. Bosnia, for example. 

The only control I have as a human being is control over my own mind and my own body. And that control is not very impressive when I truthfully assess my proficiency at it. This realization is my impetus for my own personal practice. I know I am aging. I know I will eventually die. I know that the way to death through old age entails losing more proficiency at controlling my own mind and body. If I knowingly walk the path without an attempt to maintain my optimum functionality, then I am an idiot.

A society which embraces conformity cannot cope well when individuals who are dysfunctional or consciously rebellious refuse to follow the script. Individuals who cannot control themselves with socially appropriate behaviors due to mental illness frighten those who rely on superficial conformity for a sense of security. Fear in the face of the unpredictable is an unfortunate part of the human condition. Learning to accept that life is unpredictable while doing what I can do to control my own thoughts and behaviors is a theme of what I call practice.