Good Morning!
Global citizenship is a concept that has been pondered by philosophers throughout the ages. That fact alone indicates that they recognized that it was important...but everyone missed its true significance and their insight and wisdom fell short of capturing the real role that it has...especially in terms of the impact that it has in relationship to an individual and a meaningful existence...
In other words...What most missed...is the role that one's global responsibility has in their personal meaning, purpose and their true success...
Perhaps I should be placing these thoughts in the "21st Century Philosopher"...but because it is more focused on one's personal success...I have placed it here...This concept parallels my braoder philosophy of "Quantum Obligation." I will explain more...but this is the philosophy that the 21st century NEEDS!
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In the BIG scheme of things you are nothing and yet everything...
Do you realize that your very existence is evidence of the universe's (specifically the earth's) investment in its future?
When I say earth...it is more than the physical entity...it is that plus the life function that it represents...
It is like a giant cultured petri dish...
It some sense it is a life source with a purpose...
From this arises the question...
Are you a contributor to the earth's future?
...or...
Are you a liability?
Are you providing a Return on the earth's investment in you?
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(REVISION: 04/16/2011) Yesterday an VERY good friend and I made contact after more than 30 years! I was an awesome experience! He began reading the updates yesterday and gave me a suggestion...I explained that I used the term "earth" so as not to be offensive to any of the readers...I assumed that the term "higher being" would subconsciously be inserted in its place...while you are reading this...please do not take offense...but feel free to put the correct word in place of the earth!
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My first sobering thought...
The earth (in that previous context) and your individual genetics that has allowed you to exist for some unknown reason....the only thing that I know with some semblance of certainty is that if you were a mistake...you would not be here! Mother earth has a unique way of ensuring that! (More on this later...I hope)
It is that condition (your existence) that shows it has invested (at minimum)...oxygen...water...food...in you...that could have been directed to another life form...
Please allow me to restate one of the original questions for literary emphasis...Are you providing a return to the earth...on that investment or are you a drain on its resources?
The earth (by its very "nature") functions on a trial and error basis...
Will you count among the multitude of the earth's "trial and error" mistakes?
...or are you among the rare successes?
Is your contribution to the earth's survival...worth more than the air that you are breathing?
or the food you are eating?
or the water that you are drinking?
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More sobering thoughts!
Let's ignore the spiritual portion of the discussion and simply focus strictly on the physical...
You are here for some purpose within the earth's process!
Why?
The nature of the earth is to be a survivor!
It refuses to die and constantly adjusts to its current conditions...
To the best of our scientific knowledge, it has recovered from at least 6 huge (global) catastrophes...and despite global changes...life re-emerged...and continues to survive!
Oxygen levels have significantly decreased and so too has average climatic temperatures...
Interestingly...despite those significant climatic changes...each time the earth has recovered, and its life re-emerged...it changed! Some scientists incorrectly believe that they has improved...I do not believe so...I think that it has simply adapted and is trying to do the best that it can with what it has to do it with...
We (humans) are a part of the latest life form...and an adaptation to the current environment...
We are the best that it can do with what it has to work with...
Genetics has it that each individual that exists is a proverbial experiment...unique...from every life form around it...(and as I stated in previous exposes...ever existed or ever will exist)...
This makes us an attempt at making something different and better...time will tell if that is true...
Our genetics shape us and what we do...
That means...
(focusing on what we do...)
Our individual role (purpose or function) is also an experiment...
Our existence is an attempt to see if the traits and characteristics that we uniquely possess will set the stage for future survival...of our species...and the earth on a whole...
or perhaps...(the worse case scenario) that we are a mistake and a drain on life...which the earth deals with accordingly...because it lacks any emotion...
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Thoughts on relative and individual existence...
Time is of no importance to the earth...
It intends to survive!
AND will survive!
The earth is patient...
It knows that regardless of our short-sided attempts at intervention...only the best survive...
The weak and non-conforming will die out!
The actions of "the self-serving" will be rewarded appropriately...
Extinctions in the recent past show that...
If you play to your intended role...you will flourish...
If you drain from the whole...it will haunt you!
You can not outlast the earth! It will assess your performance and decide!
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How this relates to personal success...
I am not going to belabor the point...I could write a book on this concept...and lay out the entire logic behind it...it is not flawed...
I provided the "cliff notes" so that you can see the context...and get a sense of the reasoning...
As a result...
What we do...plays significantly in what we get...
The earth will support those who support it...
Those that don't...will starve...or be written off as a "trial and error" mistake...never to be repeated...
This takes us to how this plays in one's personal success...
We must ask ourselves...at every moment...
Are we fulfilling our earthly intended role?
Are we a contributor or are we a drain?
Are we fulfilling our role...or intentionally or unintentionally sucking undeserved resources from the natural plan?
At every moment...are we leaving the world a better place for our having been there?
Personal success will be driven by your ability to provide a return on investment at every moment...
From this...
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My advice...
If you borrow it...return it at least in the condition that you received it...
If you take it out...put it away...
If you open it...close it...
If you drop it...pick it up...
If you see that it could be better...improve it...
Never leave anything the worse for your having been there...
If you make a mess...clean it up...
If you see a mess...don't walk away from it...
There is a difference between being "done" with something and "finished" with it...
"Done" simply means that you got out of it what you wanted...
"Finished" means that at minimum there is no negative impact for you having been there...
Don't ever be done...be finished!
Make every moment a positive experience and the earth will reward you...
The opposite will draw the appropriate consequences...
Many people cry out, "Why does it seem like the world itself is against me?"
The fact of the matter is...they are their own worst enemy...
They are reaping...the outcomes from their very nature...and nature itself!
We have been given a gift...a chance to show that we are not a mistake!
Much of life has no choice but to be exactly what genetics has programmed it to be...
The gift that we are given is the ability to make personal and informed decisions...
That is one of the earth's riskiest experiments...
Personal success hinges upon our ability to make the right decisions...CONSISTENTLY...
...moment by moment...
Those decisions must be made within the context of the global drama...
My advice...
Leave every moment better for your having been there and you'll be successful...
Enough Said!
Pura Vida!
Breaking the Chains of Paradigms that keep us from Success and Authentic Happiness...
