Don's Blog Magic Trails I 12-20-23

After retiring one of my joys has been to create and care for a set of trails in the wooded hills

behind our house. As part of the 'fun' of simplifying the house I have recently added treasures to the trails. Some are 

very obvious and some not so much. You are invited to walk these Magic Trails and enjoy finding the surprises.

The start of the trail immediately behind the house is guarded by a gnome. Don't worry about him - he has his eyes closed.

Many of the objects on the trail at times have adorned the walls of our back porch. How they got into

the charity box is a mystery.

There are multiple flowers on the trail that bloom all year long. They are from an end of year 

sale at a local store. I have had my eye on them for years.

This treasure is from one of Jan's art projects.

This regal lady loves her view of the trail.

And Jan has joined in the fun.

And there is more to come.

Don's Blog Christmas Collage V 12-18-23

The Art of Jan Sessions

Christmas Collage V  Collage on  Acrylic painted canvass board.

It is the sacred aspect of Christmas that touches more than our humanity.

Incarnatus est.

Don's Blog Christmas Collage III 12-15-23

The Art of Jan Sessions

Christmas Collage  III 

Collage on acrylic painted canvas board.

Angel painting angel.

Don's Blog A Phone Call 12-13-23

Here is my Missouri Medicine editorial for May of 1989. On this topic I automatically think, "Don't tread on me".

I don't know if that is valuable but the issue is complex and I don't have the answer.

Don's Blog Christmas Collage II 12-11-23

The Art of Jan Sessions

Christmas Collage  II  Collage on acrylic painted canvass board.

How long does it take to be a 'Wise  Man'?

Don's Blog Christmas Collage I 11-8-23

I am blessed to have two artists in my family. My wife is an extraordinary multimedia artist. My youngest son is an amazing photographer. I will be sharing some of their work this winter.

The Art of Jan Sessions

'Christmas Collage I' - Collage on canvass board.

Vibrant color for a sacred season.

Don's Blog 'Rationing' 12-6-23

Here is my Missouri Medicine editorial from April,1989. Not much has changed.

Don's Blog 'Rationing' 12-6-23

Don's Blog Surprise 12-4-23

This morning as I am fixing breakfast I look out the kitchen widow and there is a big

teenage white tail buck walking slowly across my front yard. He is gone before I can find a camera. I go

out to the side of the house with my phone and there he is. He is safe in my yard even though deer season is still on.

Don's Blog The News 11-30-23

Those who have followed my blog for any period of time know that I never suggest that you 'DO"

anything. I like to think it is more about observing nature and sometimes your life as a way to notice where you are on the trail. 

This once I will let you know what I read. This is from a blog that I follow which I find very entertaining. It is from

"Unchartered Territories with Tomas Pueyo"

Don't Read the News

In How to Consume the News, I asked you to stop going to news portals, because they don't inform you. Arthur Schopenhauer agreed:

The art of not reading is a very important one. It consists in not taking an interest in whatever may be engaging the attention of the general public at any particular time. When some political or ecclesiastical pamphlet, or novel, or poem, is making a great commotion, you should remember that he who writes for fools always finds a large public. 

Also:

A precondition for reading good books is not reading bad ones: for life is short.

Let me add a couple of thoughts.

1. How many books are you going to read in your life? Assuming you read about 1 book a month, between ages 12 and 85, that's 12 books per year for 73 years, or 876. Let's round up to 1,000. You have only 1,000 books to read. Choose wisely.
2. When we start a book, we feel like we have to finish it. Otherwise, we didn't read it. That's false. The goal is not to finish books. The goal is to extract as much of their knowledge as possible, as fast as possible. A dumb page read in a bad book is an intelligent page you didn't read in another one. For example, I just stopped reading Seeing Like a State. It has one super huge insight.³ But after five examples I got the gist of it. The book is full of worthless detail and repetition. I'm better off reading something else.
   
   
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