Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, Maine
And it’s a disquieting thought that not even the past is done with, even that continues to change, as if in reality there is only one time, for everything, one time for every purpose under heaven. One single second, one single landscape, in which what happens activates and deactivates what has already happened in endless chain reactions, like the processes that take place in the brain, perhaps, where cells suddenly bloom and die away, all according to the way the winds of consciousness are blowing.
~ Karl Ove Knausgård
(A Time for Everything)
My father was very interested in the theory of dimensions. As he explained it to me, in theory there could be another cast of people, or multiple casts, in many other time zones, living out their lives from day to day, just as we are here, we not realising they exist, nor them knowing of us. “There is only one time” reminded me of this. Thank you for another thought provoking post, Barbara. 🙂
You’re welcome, Joanne. 🙂 How fortunate you were to have a father who enjoyed talking with you and sharing his ideas and theories.
In 1980 my father was captivated by a TV documentary series hosted by Carl Sagan called “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage.” And here I am in 2014, 34 years later, about the age he was then, enjoying a follow-up series, “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey.” This time hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. I’m spellbound when he speaks of multiple possible universes, or parallel universes, or the multiverse.
I have a feeling both of our dads would have enjoyed watching and discussing the ideas presented in this documentary!
I haven’t had any luck in tracking down either a DVD of this documentary, or even when it has, or will be shown on Australian television, but I’ve had more success in tracking down the book (I read through your comments and tracked it down on an Australian website called “Fishpond”,) so it’s on its way to me. My father would have loved these documentaries, and I wonder if he too watched the original in 1980. But I’ll never know.
Interestingly, I also discovered on “Fishpond” that I can buy the fourth season of Downton Abbey, which we are watching now on TV, and a book by Shirley MacLean, which is currently out of stock so on my wishlist, called “Camino”. I love how one new discovery leads to another. 🙂
I didn’t realize there was a book – I’ll have to get myself a copy! Hope you enjoy it, too. I never saw the original “Cosmos” as I was too busy with small children at the time, and the DVR had not been invented yet to record it. But I remember my dad talking about it with much enthusiasm. It’s amazing to think how when I was a child we still had to get up off the couch in order to change the channel on the TV…
Barbara – You always dish up delicious food for thought!
Joanne – Your father and I think very much alike.
It’s always a pleasure to stand in winds of consciousness with you, Laurie!
Read it twice. Say what ? 🙂
🙂 The part that caught my eye at first glance is that “not even the past is done with, even that continues to change.” Every time I look back at my past my perception of it changes. It’s as if I keep getting new glasses and then my take on it changes.
Ahhh.. finally that phrase makes some sense to me.. not that the past changed, but that our perceptions have changed.. so to us the past changed.
And not only does the past change for us as we go along, the past is also experienced a little differently by each person. There is no solid ground from which to get an “accurate” view of it.
I ponder this sometimes…unbalancing, a bit, isn’t it?
Me, too, Melissa, ever since I had the words to think about this. But for the most part words fail – sometimes this fills me with wonder, and at other times it is disquieting…
Been catching up, Barbara – thank you, as always, for offering so much to inspire and reflect on! XO ♥
You’re welcome, Diane, and thank you for stopping by when you get the chance – I, too, have been playing catch-up for quite some time now. *hugs* 🙂
Whoa. Mind blowing thought. I often wonder about choices, and if there are different lives of me out there, who made different choices.
Me, too, Robin. The older I get the more I can see how much unity there is in diversity. When I read and stumble across someone else’s description of this mystery it fills me with flashes of recognition, if that makes any sense.
Somehow this makes me think about the Ecclesiastics versions about there being a time for everything,and a season for every activity under the heavens.
Perhaps you would enjoy the book this quote was from, Sheryl: “A Time for Everything” by Karl Ove Knausgård.
The story “reimagines pivotal encounters between humans and angels: the glow of the cherubim watching over Eden; the profound love between Cain and Abel despite their differences; Lot’s shame in Sodom; Noah’s isolation before the flood; Ezekiel tied to his bed, prophesying ferociously; the death of Christ; and the emergence of sensual, mischievous cherubs in the seventeenth century.”
It was riveting, I felt transported to other lives, as if I was experiencing Bible events first hand.
Incredible to think about, isn’t it? Thanks so much for broadening my perspective today, Barbara. Sorry to be so late getting here. We just got back from the beach. I’m trying to sneak in a visit before my workshop gets going.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
It is so incredible to think about, and I’m one of those people who can never stop thinking about stuff like this. 🙂
Lucky you, Kathy, having a day at the beach! Some mornings it is still below freezing here, although today we’ve finally got one window open. *hugs*