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I am delighted that 23 people from Germany have read my blog today and over 40 this week. However, I would love if you would leave a comment. If its not working then please e-mail me. Thanks. John.....and keep reading!!!

A boy and a dictator

I remember many years ago in primary school seeing 'a big lad' beat up a timid yet older and bolder boy.  It was deserved many of us thought.  He was a little...... who could not be trusted, a thief who had a big mouth, big brothers, was a bully and 'a big lad' himself when surrounded by 'bigger' lads.

However, today he was on his own. No big brothers and no big mouth. In fact he was unable to speak as nervousness brought anxiety and saliva to his quivering, frightened mouth. Swollen from the relentless kicking to his delicate body and face prevented the verbal bravado to exist also. This 12 year old bully became a 5 year old kitten. Terrified, knowing he was about to be humiliated in front of all his peers walking back to school at lunch time.

I can't remember the kicks, punches and taunting by the growing crowd. Their physical reality I can see but their impact emotionally remain non- existent.  What haunts me though is the look in the boys face. I knew him personally and didn't like him. I always felt that if I was to see this day it would not cost me a thought- just deserts, you get what you deserve and all that. What struck me also that day was the look in the stronger boys face.  The wronged boy for what ever reason who was beating the bully senselessly was not enjoying it.  It appeared that the boy like me knew that although it may seem just, appear just and be just- it just wasn't just. It was offensive, ugly, dehumanising (for both of them) and humanly sad. 

On this day the realisation of three things occurred for me and maybe even the big boy: Our hearts surprise us even when we think a certain just action is deserved and that such a realisation may impact on us heavily after the event. The second is closely related to the first- be wary of reasoned morality, including our own.  Let us not be moral or be guided by the retributive moral judgements of others if we are not prepared to act on it ourselves e.g. don't talk about the death penalty unless you're prepared to inject, shoot, electrocute the person yourself. (Of course its easy knowing that a State employee is going to do it behind 18 ft walls and barbed wire). I know for a fact the big boy that day was inspired by the rational arguments of his peers and was egged on. Yet its on his boots and dreams when the bullies blood lies, not theirs. Thirdly, life constantly surprises us- our humanity and cries for eternal friendship and peace always remain prevalent and real.  Especially on occasions like these.

I know events like this both surprise us and remain with us.   I genuinely thought I'd forgotten this event and other similar experiences. Yet like most of us who had to endure the live beating and eventual killing of Colonel Gaddafi, the memory came flooding back.

I pray simply for the men who killed him.  Yes with reason and words they will tell us what happened was just.  They will convince themselves of this reality until the day they die.  They may even be hailed as heroes. The arguments for their actions may be valid and robust, after all Colonel Gaddafi did unimaginable horrible things. Yet I pray for them as somewhere between me, a twelve year old bully and a strong boy looking for justice was a real and genuine sense of inhumanity, spiritual demoralisation and a realisation that nobody would benefit from this depraved act. I can only imagine the aura between those after the killing of another human being. Just and all as it appears to be.

The addition of Justice

Another child died the other day. Apparently he was shot. They put him on a boat and threw him into the sea. The big boys said that he deserved it. This child they said, killed thousands of innocent people. Thousands of innocent loving people. It was justified.

Now it's thousands of loving people plus one.

My South Korean friends.

I am delighted to see so many people reading my blog in South Korea, especially today.  Thank You. Please post your comments and keep in touch.

Thanks Again,
John.

Comment on Comment

Apologies to those who may have tried to write a comment on my blog page.  As it transpired I had it disabled by accident.  It is now working so please feel free to comment on anything that I have wrote.
Thanks,
John.
7th March, 2011.

Simple Science.

Did you ever have a moment when you were suddenly struck by Life? Like a bolt of lightning.  Deeply sudden.  Deeply profound.  The idea that you as an entity on this planet and in this Universe exist right now in 'this time'. It is a moment of awe and wonder.  You exist as you. As no other.

One of the greatest challenges to science, as it has always been in philosophy is the idea of the self, or consciousness. After all when there are no mirrors around can you be sure that you are you? How do you know without such empirical evidence? Why should you be you? Why not somebody else?  The idea that we identify ourselves, know ourselves to be ourselves and not 'other' self's is awe inspiring, baffling and profound. Amazingly we still do not know why the self identifies itself with 'the self'.  It is a mystery, just like the Universe.

So as pseudo scientists, let's keep it simple.  We don't need to have all the answers to the meaning of, and the origins of the Universe. We don't need Phd's in astro- physics to know that there is as interesting a puzzle in relation to origins and meaning.  So what not start your study at a simple level first: Start with the mystery of YOU.

Sack the stylist

As you all may know there is an General election taking place in Ireland. Lots of rhetoric, apologies for past mistakes, and plenty of promises for the future. There are also plenty of parties around to make such promises and I'm such there will be plenty of mistakes in the future.

What intrigues me the most is the unabashed, unashamed admission about how important image and spin is, how advertising giants like Sacchi and Sacchi can create a positive look for a party to the populous and turn policies into poetry.

There was and still is a time when politicians had to decide whether to use the traditional European model of getting their message across by using facts about taxes and the economy and reason to justify their positions so as to sway the voter towards their principles.  More recently the American emotive model has been employed to move voters with stories of triumpt over poverty, rags to riches and how when they were little boys they wanted to change the world, while they wiped their eyes with tissues sponsored by Coca- Cola as they stared into the camera.

Personally, I have lost interest in both models of persuasion.  Blatantly using tax payers money to employ stylists and spin merchants is an admission that all is literally not as it appears. Politicians must learn now that all people want is the truth. You have nothing to fear ever if you have the truth. And the truth can always be told in rags.

Mr. Scapegoat

It may appear slightly surprising to mention the book of Leviticus in the same sentence as the former leader of Fianna Fail, Mr. Brian Cowen. However, it is in this famous Biblical  book from the Hebrew scriptures where one reads for the first time about the Scapegoat.  I think it is appropriate at this time to dwell on this term and then to draw ourselves towards Mr. Cowen's fate as Irish Leader.

During the build up to the Day Of Atonement (Yom Kippur as it is commonly known now), where the Jewish people prepared themselves for God's forgiveness, a goat would be released into the desert with all the sins of the people. It symbolised freedom from sin and an opportunity to turn to God and gain his favour. The poor goat as sacrifice, ambled about until he collapsed under the weight of the Jewish sun and the sins of the people. Without water it would perish.

The word 'scape' is an abbreviated version of the word 'escape'.  Our sins have escaped by and through the goat. We have no more responsibility for our wrongdoings and reconcile ourselves to Yahweh or Elohim.  The goat dies. We live.

I am not advocating any political point of view. It is apparent though  that Mr. Cowen has been told to look for water not only by the public, who in turn are fuelled by the media, but also by his own political buddies who wish now to throw their sins and misdemeanors on to our vulnerable sacrificial goat leader.

The former leader of FF may indeed be the author of his own misfortune. Like every body else he has limitations. However, there has been in recent weeks, if not months, a vile and aggressive arrogance by the media towards the leader of this country. Too long now has this apparent free press given up its noble principles regarding fair news journalism to instead replace it with personal attacks on Mr.Cowen .

 How Mr. Cowen looks or weighs is of no concern to me.  What he drinks or doesn't drink isn't of primary importance, nor is his personality or where he is from.  After all, most of us are overweight, drink too much and the rest and journalists aren't exactly noted for their sober lifestyles. Especially Irish ones. What's more troubling is we as a people have angrily bayed for his blood also. Yes, Mr. Cowen was the sinner who brought down Lehman Brothers, Spain and  Greece, brought in the IMF and every other European who wanted cash at very high rates of interest.  It was he alone who brought down the Western World.

All we did was drink Lattes on our decks whilst reading the property sections (Big earner for 'quality' papers I believe) knowing deep down inside that one day we would find our very own goat. Yes, as we stand in our ghost estates, knowing that even Green pastures would no longer be available for the unfortunate Billy, we should acknowledge, especially those in contact professionally or otherwise with Mr. Cowen, that sending out an animal to die is ugly, two- faced, inhuman and wrong.

Indeed, all of us need to recognise this, if we are to still value our beautiful nation and the people within it.  We also need to face up to our part in this debacle. Together we need to search for water to survive. Otherwise the burden of the past 13 years will destroy us all.   All we have to do now is follow the members of the Fianna Fail party to the well, somewhere in the intense heat.

The yet to be advantaged.

There are many educational psychologists today who, along with giving us a broader definition of what intelligence actually means, are trying to ascertain how we measure it.  Bottle it if you like.  Progress in this field has outlined for us that it is actually a broad area, a broad term, unlike our more traditional understanding of what it meant in the past i.e. rote learning etc.

There is, as any teacher will tell you, room for rote learning. Plenty of room in fact. The basics are paramount to building foundations.  However, what has changed is the recognition that these foundations can hold weighty forms of various types of intelligences, not just numerical or written forms: Artistic and emotional intelligences, to name but two, are now considered as truly valuable intelligences in a multitude of disciplines.

 A simple example of how invaluable such measurements and recognition of such intelligences are is in our new testing procedures for potential medical students.  Before you just needed to be a professional 'roter' and wealthy enough to obtain as many grinds as possible while you sat the Leaving Cert. (Irish Final Secondary School Exams) 2 or 3 times. Matriculation exams also.  The question of whether you were a compassionate person, a discerning person, a people person was never even asked. How you would feel telling a mother that their child had died was not the concern of the medical establishment after all.  Men and women of stone was the requirement of the day.  It was apparently a good thing to leave your emotions at home.  It was professional!

People are wiser now in every sense of the word. Thankfully through the work of psychology we no longer, or at least should no longer tolerate dispassionate, clinical, pompous fools. It should be an honour to heal the sick. It should never be the other way round where people feel obliged to worship them, the medical profession, thankful that they have 'been seen' at the altar of their intelligences.

The reality is, we should never worship intelligence. It is a subtle form of idolatry; by giving your power away to this false god you run the risk of believing that you are inferior to others. On the other hand you may believe mistakenly that it is the only thing that is of value in your life- so in other words, people's perceptions of you still matter! We should never envy intelligence also.  People who have worked and strive hard to discover methods to improve their intelligence (s) should be credited and rewarded. As the various types of intelligences in all their glory lead to one path in my opinion: God.

People who believe this in some shape or form (possibly without even knowing it) also change lives. Or put simply, people who use their gifts and talents for the benefit and joy of others and who are not arrogant have the potential to change things, people, and even society.  I'll give you an example:

When in 1st or 2nd year at school I came home one day to notice the poet Brendan Kenneally on Live at 3 with Thelma Mansfield. (Remember that?)  I had no idea who he was and had no idea who I was for that matter.  Ironically, I teach his poetry now. At the time I quietly liked poetry at school and secretly fancied the idea of maybe being a teacher or a writer. However, that was just for intelligent people!  As there wasn't a strong tradition to go to college, let alone finish out school at home, I saw intelligence as other worldly.  I felt comfortable believing it was a genetic thing although I hadn't even heard of Darwin, evolution or genes at this stage. I obviously had experienced or even subjected myself to social Darwinism before I even knew him or it. (Social Darwinism in a nutshell being the exploitation and manipulation of Darwin's theory so as to dis empower others for ones own intellectual, political but mainly financial interests over the vulnerable in society and our world.).

When asked what his favourite past time was, Kenneally answered that it was looking up the meaning of words in a dictionary.  Bang.  My world changed. Here was professor Kenneally, lecturer of English Literature at Trinity College, regular on Ireland's famous chat show The Late Late Show, and he needed a BLOODY DICTIONARY. Of course he did! How in God's name was he going to learn the meaning of new words otherwise. Were birds going to drop them into his ears while he was asleep with the hope that the meaning or reference would in some way penetrate his sub- conscious while he snored? It sounds so obvious now, stupid in fact, but I believed intelligent people were...............Intelligent. Always. As opposed to learners. However, this eureka moment was to leave a lasting impression on me. I realised that for too long I had observed intelligence socially and made the inaccurate inference that genes preferred the rich and powerful. I now know that sperm and ovum's don't really know what street they're on. 

While it is true that a persons background will have a dramatic impact on their education due to the attitude and effort given by the child's parents and community along with other socio/ economic restraints, educators and psychologists should never forget that the potential and gifts a child has is assured. In other words, one or two or three of those seven recognised and established intelligences are in there somewhere.The child just has to believe it. But more importantly educators along with society has to believe it and recognise it too. They as adults can help the child find these gifts.  And make no mistake about it intelligence is a gift.

Like all gifts they may be used or neglected, abused or shared.  However, it must be a given that true fulfillment stems from discovering and embracing the intellectual genetic make-up of who you truly are. We are all genetic types, personality types etc. emerging as we do from thousands of years of evolution in a complex yet inclusive beauty. It is not good enough therefore, in my opinion, for educators or society to talk about children or communities as the 'disavantaged'.

As creations of God we are never disadvantaged. Life may bring poverty, abuse, and discrimination and yes these are stumbling blocks for growth.  But using labels to define a persons life, a label with a permanent edge to it is the greatest of all obstacles as it puts up walls which both block people out and keeps people into a world of hopelessness. No, there is no disadvantaged when we believe that God truly does give us unique and special talents and the potential for growth whether that means looking up a dictionary or discovering a new attitude. Either way the only disadvantaged are those who don't believe this. Theirs is a world bleak, narrow and judgemental.  For the rest of us, with patience and faith our advantage will come.

The Prodigal Son's Brother

For those of you that do not know, The Prodigal Son, was a parable told by Jesus.  A parable is a method of story telling that helps to explain an idea or a concept, and in this case the parable is set out to explain what God is like. Or at least that is the traditional view held in relation to this story.  However, I believe that while the story does indeed provide us with a picture of a loving and caring father, it was mainly Jesus' objective to concentrate our minds on the prodigal son's brother's reaction. After all, there was no need whatsoever to include him in the story.  None.

The story as a metaphor goes like this: There is a farmer who has two sons. The farmer symbolises God.  The youngest wishes to have his inheritance, whereby, as a young man he leaves his father's house and spends the money on drink and loose women (Jesus words, not mine!). Alas, after a short while he goes broke and has to eat pig food. After a while he decides that he'll go back with his tail between his legs and ask his father for a job as a servant.  Before he even arrives at the house, his father sees him and orders that a calf be killed and a feast be prepared for his son.  He embraces his son and without question welcomes him back to his home, not as a servant but as a loved son.

The Prodigal son's brother is furious.  After all, he has remained loyal to his father and has not lived immorally and there has never been a party prepared for him.  The apparent injustice of it all. And there the story ends but where discussion should begin.

Anytime I teach this parable my students are usually up in arms.  'It is so unfair'; their empathy for the other brother is overwhelming. How can God be so stupid?  So unfair? The reaction of my students is healthy, expected and DESIGNED.  The great parable maker struck gold with this story, using the brothers reaction to touch on his central message.
The message and truth in this parable is both obvious and concealed; concealed not because Jesus wants to be purposely cryptic but because people still chose to look objectively at the obvious (in this case that God is loving, non-judgemental- note how he makes no comment on the behaviour of his son- and forgiving) while failing to look subjectively at themselves which appears to be never obvious. In this case if the brother had the same attributes as God we would not be having this discussion, but like us and my students we only want the nice comforting characteristics of Gods presence, yet we don't want to be nice and comforting, or at least we do not want to acknowledge that we are not.

This story, therefore, is not about God choosing one son over the other but is instead an acknowledgement of how goodness lies not in what we do or don't do but in our desire for people to be comforted by love and goodness. In other words, we should always be delighted when somebody arrives home irrespective of what they have done.  The fathers silence and lack of judgement speaks volumes about the younger sons behaviour.  He doesn't have to give him a lecture because he knows that if the son was truly fulfilled by the empty path that he chose, he would never have returned to the hands of a loving parent in the first place. Hedonism as his father knows often creates more problems than it solves and is obviously aware that it doesn't lead to enlightenment.  Only authentic love can do that. The son, by acknowledging that the lifestyle he chose for a while lead to nothing but misery is evidence that he has searched subjectively and has owned up to his authentic needs and limitations.

The other son, however, often like the rest of us, has put God in his box.  God in his box is the same as anything we put into boxes to make our lives easier to manage and explain. It unwittingly makes claims about the people, or God for that matter, that exist in these boxes that have been created in our minds. The box or stereotype and the one we like about God is that He is loving and forgiving. Although true from a Christian perspective we often just leave it at that. In His box.

The biggest problem for us and the brother regarding this perception of God is that implies that love and forgiveness have to be earned. It's a functional approach to God.  If I do x,y, and z and if I don't do a, b, and c, all will be well. It is a scorecard approach to God.  However, it is not an accurate portrayal as laid down by Jesus disputes with the Pharisees and Jews over the Torah or Jewish laws.  Jesus desires that we not measure our life's on what we do or fail to do.

Instead, Jesus throughout this parable, reminds us about God's Universal love and forgiveness 'always' and that we are all his children. (Both brothers in this case) He does not Judge us harshly, if at all, as He knows that only true joy can be ascertained by returning to Him. It is darkness otherwise.

God then, like any father, does not want his child in darkness. We, therefore, with this knowledge should rejoice when somebody changes their life for the better and returns home.  Unfortunately, the brother does not and what makes this story all the more tragic is that the brother was always at Home with his father, or in this case with God.  He was actually at  Home with all the comfort and love that a person could receive. Yet it wasn't enough because his father was going to share this love with another.  It wasn't enough because he thought he had God all to himself and had him sussed - In his box.

If only he wasn't so judgemental he could have joined in and enjoyed the party too, safe in the knowledge that he doesn't have to try and please God by his actions and deeds.  As good actions and deeds are joyful in themselves, which is why God recommends this way of life. If only he realised that it was in fact him, the person, him as God's son, that pleased God the most.

Excuse...ism

We live in a world were we fashion out titles for ourselves and then polish them with our ideologies.  Socialist, Communist, Capitalist, Feminist, Humanist - the list is endless.  Lovely to sound and feel important, isn't it? And to think you don't need to pass any exams to warrant such a noble standing or title.  No, one just has to self Knight themselves. I am a  .........ist. Happy Days. Good for you.

Starving children really care what  ........ist you are, I'm sure.
Maybe it would be good for us all to just try and make peoples lifes better first.  We can worry, or in my case, not worry what   ........ist you are later, instead of us making excuses by hiding behind labels and ideologies for not helping our suffering friends.

The first psychologist.

I know what you're thinking?

We never truly know the thoughts of man. The human machine is just that, a complex, functional, emotional, mortal thinking machine which is always in a state of flux and being.  Hence, the human 'being' is in a state of 'Being' as Heidegger put it, alluding to ones existence. A state of existence that is unknowing yet real, living and dying simultaneously and cognitively and emotionally unique to oneself. Paradoxically, our unique emotional and cognitive state of existence is that which makes us to some degree at least, the same as everybody else. We live because we feel and think and we know that other human beings are doing the same; Feeling and thinking. Therefore, 'we' are human beings.

However, it is this universality of being human that makes us both original and the same.  That is why we believe that we can help one another.  When we see a child crying we want to hug it because we know that we wanted a hug in the same situation yet we are all different, coming as we do from different backgrounds.  We also share a common thread morally as human beings and nobody knew this better that the one they called Jesus. Whatever your belief about Joshua Ben Joseph he definitely understood the human condition and realised that morality wasn't about rules or the breaking of them in a logical, legalistic fashion. Instead, Jesus was interested in us as emotional, psychological beings.  It was our hearts and the hearts of others that he was interested in protecting; it was our hearts that he desired for us not to break.  Hearts he realised were only broken by the actions of others and through the actions or in actions of ourselves.

Never was this more obvious or evident in his 'let he who has not sinned cast the first stone' statement.  This is not so much a statement about sin or redemption. Instead, it is a shrewd statement regarding the human being and how a human being 'is' and without a doubt helps lay the foundations for Maslow, Jung and Freud. Jesus isn't so much trying to expose the hypocrisy of the Jewish people who wanted to stone to death the woman who commit adultery and has therefore apparently offended the Jewish Torah or law. Yes, it is true that Jesus does allow the opportunity to acknowledge the hypocrisy in throwing stones at people while yet the persecutors may have acted the same way themselves. However, it is not until the reader of the gospels reads other stories and parables that we get to see that there is something greater at work- an understanding that the psychological make up of human beings is capable of doing great good or evil depending on many variables. (Mainly psychological- nurture etc.)

  More importantly then because this has been established the main tenet from the teachings of Jesus, especially in this story, is that we should never ever judge another human being. Any trained psychologist worth their salt will tell you this today. Freud, although eccentric and probably one dimensional knew it. No story, fantasy, obsession or experience was too bad for Freud or many of the others. These great minds did not judge their subjects.  Instead, they choose to understand them and by doing so laid the foundations for helping many individuals who would have otherwise have been thrown to the wolves or in Jesus time, the Pharisees.

Jesus knew, when these JUDGES had stone in hand, that he must reach deep into their psyches for change to take place. Instead of just making them realise that many there were in fact hypocrites he really wants to ask the following: How do you know you wont ever commit adultery? Murder? Rape? Why not you? How can you stand there and not only be Judge and jury today but be judge and jury for all time.  By condemning that person today you are in fact making the statement that you will remain faultless of such actions yourself for all time. Otherwise you wouldn't dream of doing it.

Jesus very shrewdly touches us by suggesting that we must forever remain humble. Yes we should strive to do our best but we should avoid the de-humanising action of baying for blood when somebody fails to be their best. Our turn will come when we don't measure up to the mark too. It will happen often.  Therefore, the next time you read the headlines about a person who hasn't measured up, no matter how serious their crimes, it might be helpful to remember the advice of the first psychologist; don't judge and be merciful. It might also be helpful to soak your hand in a nice lavender basin of hot water- stones and rocks after all, cause bruises and blisters. Avoid lifting unless building a house!

Less is more.

I always wondered why monks, whether Christian or Buddhist, wished to live meagre, ascetic lives.  The apparent hardship, the discipline and the giving up materialism type jargon sent a shiver down my narcissistic spine. How could they do it? Why would they do it?  Even contemplating such an idea was beyond my comprehension. Now, however, I think I have become enlightened and ironically this awakening came from following the opposite path to my learned and wise friends.

Big house. Big rooms to clean. Plenty of them. Big wardrobe, loads of ironing. Most things in life are either divided into whats big and whats small. 'He's got a big job. She's got a small car'. It's just too simple yet it becomes a 'big' problem for most people as it's how they define or seek definition for their life.

We celebrate people who have big plans, ideas and so on yet we often forget how enormous the small gesture is. Saying hello, smiling, giving deserved praise. After all, isn't that all we want. And to be loved. Walking into a mansion without any semblance of a hug, kind smile or acceptance of who you really are is the equivalent to walking into a cigarette factory with no matches, a bar with no glasses, or going on a nature walk where there are no trees.

A successful man is a busy man.  We are taught to admire the hard worker who has the big ambitions and works 16 hour days. 'Fair play to him' is what they say. However, I never have and never could.  Yes I too have and do work hard. Work is good for us all- it often allows talent to express itself and we, therefore, can all benefit from each other for each other. Or you can suck yourself into the mythical land called success where time is money and other people are always the enemy or have to be sucked up to. The wonderful you becomes the busy you- the false you.

 I'm all for success and successful people.  But a really successful person will not do it at all costs: his colleagues, his friends, his partner, his family, his community. You are no good to anybody if you do not strive to do good, and it is not good being gone to work 24/ 7. (You'll be the first to know it as your body and mind aches, but will you be the first to acknowledge it?) By all means pat yourself on the back but just remember you may be the only one patting with time.  Your paymaster is only laughing at your non- assertive self.  Yes, you'll have 10 houses, and 50 cars but when you lose your keys would you rather search a castle or a tee-pee?

Yes, I too have ambitions but 'big' for me is tedious and annoying. Dining or drinking with people who only talk about what they have drains me as I feel I have to fill their emptiness. That takes a lot out of a person. Promotions and work related achievements are good just as long as you remember you will work harder and longer. Yes Daddy and Mammy will be proud but at least they wont now have to pay for the Valium.

I realised the monks had it sussed this Christmas.  Presents.  What would I buy for my wife and children? Clothes? No, the place is cluttered with them. Toys?  We could set up a shop right now, TOYS OR THEM!  No, we have enough toys to film Toy Story 6. Jewellery? No. Perfume? No. All here. UMMMM?
While I thought about this I searched for the TV controls. However, finding the sitting room controls is not the same as finding the bedroom ones or the living room ones.......just too many TVs, too many cabinets, too many out of date tins of tomato puree and gluten free bread for those f... wheat days. Having too much is just frustrating. It adds weight and clutter to ones mind. Things break, get lost or forgotten about but one thing only can be cherished and cared for.  I don't need 4 bank accounts to distract my heavy head. I just need one. One fridge not 3.  I will still only eat the same. Having 500 Sky channels is not soul enhancing, it is infuriating and challenging.  The appreciation for TV, music etc. lessens.  In fact, it causes apathy. We forget to appreciate the one while searching always for the many.  Some people are like that too when it comes to relationships but you can work that out for yourself.

So give me my sandals and robes. Time to chill.  The monks were right. I may not chant just yet but I'm willing to give it a shot. Roll on my Thai Chi classes. Peace is definitely to be found in the less and not in the more.