This painting is inspired by primative art from India. It was created by the Warli, a tribe of Maharastra
Last night, I watched the interview with Kurt Vonnegut on the PBS show, Now. One of the things that has stayed with me from that interview is his comment about how to survive in the modern world.
He said the nuclear family leaves us too vulnerable, too isolated, feeling insignificant in the culture at large. He said that in order to survive, to find purpose and meaning in our lives, we need extended connections: we need to find our own tribe.
In terms of our own evolution as artists, finding our own tribe, it seems to me, is very necessary. Our family or community of origin may not be our spiritual tribe.
We can, and should, give gratitude to our families and friends who live near and far, but they may not nourish us in that special way we need. It's okay to look elsewhere for that. It's necessary, even.
I believe the world of blogging has opened up the possibility for us to discover our tribe.
Through our writing, we have a chance to connect with people who are like us, who have the same thoughts, the same longings. We can ask questions, share insights, or simply let off steam. We can get courage to keep on. We can help each other.
32 comments:
Thanks so much for the Vonnegut alert- will look for rerun- if available!
ggw07
Wow. Thank you...you have just epitomized exactly what we have all been wondering lately about the purpose of our journaling here. Joe needs to see this. He has brought this similar subject forward several times in the last couple months. Oh...nice to meet you by the way. ;) C. http://journals.aol.com/gdireneoe/thedailies
Oh you are so right, I have met people here who have encouraged me to do better to aim higher, to try harder. Even though I probably will never meet any of them I feel a bond that's very strong...a sense of community. Sandi http://journals.aol.com/sdoscher458/LifeIsFullOfSurprises
How True! Yes.
And for me it's also the excitement of sending something (our thought, poems ,art) sending these things out into the "void" and if something comes back it's wonderful to know someone is out there.
KAthy
Last night my son and I were watching "Band of Brothers" on DVD. We were discussing the American-English bombing of Dresden and neither of us was sure that this was the infamous "fire-bombing" of World War II. To be sure, I mentioned to him that we would have to Google "Slaughterhouse Five". So Kurt was with us also.
V
A friend sent me the link to this entry. I am so glad she did. This is my first time visiting your journal, but it will not be the last.
Hi, I'm Lahoma!
Courtney sent me your way!!! I am ashamed I hadn't found your journal earlier! I have struggled with my own demons of writing, and why I love journals..You have captured it in this entry!!!
As I sat here and read this, I found myself nodding and repeating "uh huh" a few times, enough to make my daughter inquire, "What mommy?". :o)
I have read through some previous entries, which deserve much more than a peruse. I shall retunr after I have completed my 'chores' of the day and give this the attention it deserves!!!
WOW! Very inspiring.
Peace
Jodi
"NICE, NICE. VERY NICE
ALL TOGETHER IN THE SAME DEVICE."
kurt vonnegut, 'cat's cradle'.
Hi Theresa :-)
Courtenay sent me your journal link..I read the first few sentences and I knew I had to follow.
I think it was a fate that I read this today.
Thank you for an insightful entry.
I'll be back :-)
http://journals.aol.com/libragem007/JournallyYours
Theresa, I believe that you really mailed this one. I am so glad that you are a member of my tribe. This is exactly the way I feel about J-Land.
Celeste
*nailed~ LOL
heyhowrya
that's J-land tribe talk for I am glad I found you.......
:)
I Knew I was home the first day.
very well said. thank you.
~ www.jerseygirljournal.com
Oh, it feels good to be home here.
Yes yes yes
Yes
Vicky
http://www.livejournal.com/users/vxv789/
aye but its exactly this that scares me ! the nuclear family?is that a sound bite or what? finding our tribe? even our immediate family may not be our tribe? blogging world is the answer? methinks thats why we have so much trouble ,too many tribes !what about the individual?
although i do agree that blog world helps but is it getting too big n too popular? when i was a poor wee lad in ireland i couldnt even afford a fountain pen, we had tae hae one tae get in the pen club,so i missed out on that.blog world has saved my life n given me new direction ( whispers ty courtenay) but change is only possible through the actions of a few, galvanised intae the many? so will we bloggers become the new elite?besides what kurt has done his masterpiece?way way back.maybe stephen hawkins has got it wrong wie his black hole theories maybe all this techno infusion is our black hole n we will be sucked intae it by the sheer mass of physics? ie all this energy going out n building up? my auld heed hurts slan frankie
I agree!
~Tanya
powerful entry and so true. People here became a lifeline as my family of origin fell away....... and you creative ones in the bunch are always the people I can bounce things off of and count on you to inspire me. YOU inspired Cynthia today!!!
I loved this post.
judi
Ah good ol Kurt, leave it to him to get us all riled up and thinkin bout family, tribes, and soul. His work has always left me pondering and wanting more... well the ones I read. Good too see you again... I had lost my way and at last contact you were venturing out on a canoe trip. See how easy it tis to get dis-connected from the tribe.... and the reconnected (hopefully)? Perhaps I need a Medicine Man and a trip to the sweat lodge. Though I'm a sweatin aplenty now over this dissertation thingy.
Take care and know I'm thinkin boutcha though I bee seeped in silence.
Michael
I remember when I first ran across Kurt Vonnegut, back in 1966 (Cat's Cradle). I devoured everything I could find, frequently buying the books as soon as they came out. He STILL has interesting things to say, and I can only hope to be able to communicate as clearly as he did, in that interview, at what? 83? An amazing writer, always with a unique perspective. I still recommend Welcome to the Monkey House to friends and new readers! I think we are different tribes, some crooks and some thieves, some a weird, unspeakable form of animal (what an insult to the animal kingdom!), some meek and some bold, some inventive and some merely consumers. We gravitate to others of outr sort, and here in j-land we have some divisions along those lines, but we are a community of communicators, and that is special in itself! I enjoyed your piece for prodding me to think about the subject in a new way. I watched KV, and was merely enthralled with watching one of my heroes make fiddlesticks of the Republican/Libertarian apologist! Thank you for reminding me of why I respected him to begin with, that wry sense of reality that runs like a subwoofer to the modern world's blaring speakers! (pun intended!) Bruce
Let me join the others who have just recently found your journal, thanks to some great links via other readers, and say I love your writing and look forward to reading your archives and your future posts. I love this analogy to Jland.
Donna
You're words are encouraging. I have found few who are like me. Once I typed my personality. I was 14% of society. lol But rather than seeing myself as mostly "alone" in the world, I realized I am very unique. :) Thank you for sharing. Lovely journal. And good luck with your new book. ~V
P.S. I post motivational quotes set to my photography but recently a poem.
You're wonderful at somehow saying every thing I'm thinking.
~Lily
I'm so happy to be a member of your/our tribe, dear. You rock!!
xo,
Russ
great entry and sounds true, thanks
-Kristina
journals.aol.com/skunkyrip/NewBeginnings/
succulent tribal wisdom Theresa!
http://journals.aol.com/floralilia/SucculentWisdom-juicynessfromj-l/entries/1063
Pertinent.
Steven
http://journals.aol.com/stevendenlinger/DevelopingDreams/
Just when I think I have found my tribe, by reading what you have to say and feeling at home, I have the feeling that I am not good enough to belong to it. Oh the deep dark night, this edge that won't cut. Last night I could not sleep or work and did not drop off till 5 a.m., almost giving in to the urge to bang my head against the wall...
PS: Hurricanes should arrive in my mailbox any day........
(Thought you'd like to know that.)
This exactly how I feel about the journaling community. They are a part of me. You get your family through biological Russian roulette. You have no control over it. Often you just never fit and after years of frustration you realize that there are others out there who you can relate to. People who can and will validate your thoughts. It's a wonderful revelation. I'm so glad my husband found your journal and sent me the link. I plan to refer to it in my next entry. Nelle
Ditto.
:)
Judi
Kurt said "tribe"? He didn't say "karass"? I don't get to be Wampeter?
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