Along the now couple of years this blog has been finding its way
unto the unsuspecting cybernetic world at large, there has been an evolution of
sorts…
What started as a simple recounting of personal experiences
from the days of my departure from Cuba
Somewhere along the way, comments began to come in.
No, I cannot say it has been a steady downpour of commentary but, for none
expected, those that do come in are welcome for they have been surprisingly
insightful and friendly. Then, my oldest (there
I go again with that hated term!!) or, shall we say, my Firstborn Daughter
(now it sounds like and old, medieval Nordic
tale) who is very much interested in all that which sounds like family
history, began to read the blog faithfully (or
so she tells me!! ... yes, she does... ) and began to also request more and more “vignettes” of
those times spent as a child in a somewhat truncated, but loving family. A
family that, as it turned out to be, also had its internally perceived skeletons
in the form of, at least, one wayward member whom I was fortunate to meet and
whose shortened story was shared on these “cybernetic pages”. After all, he definitely sounded much more
interesting than several of the other members of the family, caught up in their
own images of self.
Then, and much to my surprise, the blog “reads”
began to increase steadily. No, I cannot really compete (nor has it been my intent to) with the very well known celebrities
who, supposedly, put out a blog and have thousands upon thousands hanging on
their every word … well, at least the words of a few ghost writers who earn a
well off –and deserved- income, writing
on their behalf.
People who I suppose got unto this page by mistake
(I can’t think of any other reason for
folks from Russia, Germany, India, etc… to be reading these entries), but
they have been returning and I welcome them with open arms… Later on, my son
started to read these entries. Much for the same reason my daughter had; he was
curious as to the “ancient” history (as
he sarcastically put it), from when I was a growing child in Cuba
No matter… on the last conversation we had, my son
told me he really was enjoying the blog entries. Actually, since he had been a
somewhat latecomer to the blog readers ranks, he mentioned that on one sitting,
he had gone through 40 entries … I have to admit, even I would be hard pressed
to do this. But his comment is the kind of pat in the back that would keep me
going. As has been mentioned elsewhere in these notes, reading was a true
passion for Eric; he was a true avid and discerning reader. If the subject
being read did not hold his interest (having
a fairly high IQ and a wandering mind, this was sometimes not an easy task)
even when written by a favorite author, it was put aside. So, when he told me
that these entries really caught him by surprise and held his interest
throughout, this was a beautiful comment of “congrats” to me.
So, now, this blog has become an extension of sorts
of my persona… Many issues which heretofore would not see the light of day are
being plastered here … and many comments based on my own thoughts (yes, they do exist…) are coming out as
commentaries being shared with you, who are patient enough to read the
diatribes, even when not in agreement.
Maybe, in order to be able to keep up with this
writing bit, I will subscribe to the continuing news feed from MIT, where
artificial intelligence received a boost just recently and perhaps some of this will "rub off" on me. It seems the scientists
there have been able to create an analog chip (don’t ask … I do not know!) which will allow the development of a
thinking computer, able to actually follow the same thought patterns we do as
humans … except, of course, many times faster. This is indeed frightening…
Remember the books we read as young’uns in High
School? The dreaded “required readings”? … especially those assigned for summer
reading? There was “A Brave New World”
(Huxley) among others, which espoused the idea of a future when machines would
do our bidding and would take over all tasks … until they became tired of this
and revolted against humans … for that matter, a recent Will Smith movie “I
Robot” dealt with the same issue. What was considered science fiction not
so long ago, is now being looked at as science reality. At times, it looks we (at least future generations) are headed
into realms where the use of our intellect and ability to face and resolve day
to day issues may be truly contaminated.
My insistence is in our passing on to our children
what we know and how we came into that bit of knowledge. Much like tribal or
family elders did in earlier times; in our case, this would be an added layer
of knowledge our children would have, besides what they learn in school. It is
important they understand that not everything in life will stare at them
through a 42 or 48 inch screen. Yesterday’s entry was all about this and
several comments were received already. It seems the concern is out there … all
I can say to you who are rearing children or grandchildren is: let them know
who you really are and how you came into this knowledge. I can tell you, from
my own experiences, that these bits of knowing about my provenance have
empowered me at times when my self was being truly embattled by circumstances.
After all, the only thing we can do for our progeny
is to prepare them as best as we can and this generational self understanding is certainly a
part of that preparation. We cannot and should not, even if we had the
opportunity, live their lives for them; this is their demesnes, their universe
to explore, develop and live.
As always … start with something in mind and then
end up going elsewhere with the flow… this was not in the contract!!!
Be Well … Be back!!
Final Notes:
- Pray for those who are fighting an illness which
may take them away from their loved ones… Every request is heard, and
counts!!
- Follow us on Twitter … @RJAsPandora
- Any comments please send to otherboxp@yahoo.com
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