A Feel for the Human Condition Unsurpassed in World Literature

••• today's entry continues here below •••

The commentary I quoted does not say that Dostoevsky is the best at writing stories with a feel for the human condition. It simply says that » nobody does it better.

I have not read enough world literature to determine if indeed this statement is valid. I mean, I feel that Victor Hugo's Les Miserables would certainly be included in the running for stories that are written with a feel for the human condition.

I should probably note here that Shakespeare, Tolstoy and Kafka all place three titles on the Bokklubben list of the greatest books ever written in any language. But only Dostoevsky places four.

(In case you were wondering.)

"How does one go about acquiring himself a world-class feel for the human condition?" you might be wondering. (I know, I certainly was.)

Well, you are going to need a wide range of human experiences .. no? Human experiences from which you will undoubtedly derive your 'feel' for the human condition.

In order for your feel to be truly accurate and all-encompassing, then you will need a range of experiences that span the entire range of moral experience .. from the satanic to the divine.

Now, this is an impressive thing. For me, I mean. I do not know if others are also impressed. I can't see how anybody would not be impressed by such a thing.

But people prove me wrong all the time. Particularly when it comes to things like moral values.

This is not the place for me to delve more deeply into the topic of spanning the entire range of moral experience .. with one foot here and another over there.

(Why am I suddenly thinking about Ananias & Sapphira?)

But I will simply say here that my life-experiences have been such that spanning the entire range is a very difficult thing.

Anybody who even gets close has my admiration. Anybody who is even on that road, headed in that direction .. you know what I am talking about.

The more, and the more diverse, human experiences you manage to acquire .. by whatever means necessary .. the greater your feel for the human condition.

I feel like I am simply stating the obvious here.

There is an interesting conversation to be had down this road. (Ask me how I know.)

And these experiences, if you were simply mirroring the ratios found in real-life .. then there is going to be a lot more of the ugly side of life.

Because, for the vast majority of human beings alive here on planet earth .. life is not a very pretty thing, my friend.

Not much room for career advanced up the food-chain you might say. (I feel confident that Thomas Hobbes would back me up here.)

» First Entry Since Arriving at the New Digs

You know, dear reader, this entry that you are reading right now .. this is the first rad writing I have done since arriving here at the new digs. The new rad digs. 

I wonder what time it is right now. Hold on a sec. I'm-a go check. Be right back. Dont go anywhere.

Okay, looks like it's still pretty early in the morning. I'll have plenty of time to do what I need to do.

Here's an image from my log-in screen taken earlier today.

I cannot write just any ol' thing today. Not that I ever would write just any ol' thing .. at least, not any more.

When you are young-n-strong, and the hotties are banging down your backdoor every day and every night .. these are the days when you can write whatever.

But when you get old-n-tired, and life has kicked you in the teeth more than a few times .. then the writer needs to be a little more judicious with what he writes. With the things that he puts into words.

Because these things are going to mean more. These things are going to count more. Because these things cost more.

Rather, I want to use this entry as a way of expressing the sense of gratitude that I feel toward the Universe ..

.. for delivering me from the authority of darkness, and transferring me to a much better place. The genuine sense of gratitude that I feel.

Scripture teaches, doncha know, that the believer has already been delivered from the authority of darkness .. from the power of darkness. The rule of darkness.

Scripture also teaches that the believer is to 'give thanks' for this deliverance. For rescuing me out of that place where I felt rejected and even despised at times. For getting me out of a bad situation.

So I was doing what the scripture instructs the believer to do. To the best of my ability.

In the end, this is what it comes down to. At the end of the day. When all is said-n-done. When the cows come home.

Does your life resonate with the teachings of the scriptures? Does it reflect the principles contained there?

This deliverance ties in with what I was writing last fall on the topic of » Soul Capture (1 Oct 2020).

Soul Capture is not an easy topic to discuss .. for a number of reasons. I think that I was actually flirtling more with Elena ..

.. than I was addressing the topic of soul capture .. of soul liberation. Of the thing that scripture calls the "saving of the soul."

The preserving of the soul. The safekeeping.

The saving of the soul is a process. A life-long process. Which can get ugly, at times. Probably more times than you would care for.

That is really the deal right there .. the saving of the soul. This is a challenging thing, a difficult thing. Not far from impossible, in my humble opinion. Not far at all.

After the property manager let me into my penthouse suite here with the commanding views of the skyline, he placed the keys in my hand and left.

It was not the most ceremonious thing I have ever done, but I was suddenly feeling like a new man. Like it was a new day. Suen LEE knows what I'm talkin' 'bout.

I still hadnt moved my stuff in, but I had the keys in hand. I have paperwork in hand that says this place in mine.

I think it's a year lease, but I am not really sure because at this point .. I was just signing shit fast as Federico could slide those papers across the table to me .. both of us wearing our circa 2021 Covid face masks.

While pointing to different parts on the page, he would say stuff like, "Initial, initial, print, date sign."

I would watch and repeat what he said and did to verify that I was doing it right. I would say, "Initial, initial, print, date, sign."

He would nod and say, "Right."

This went on for some time, despite my best efforts to expedite the process.

"Why was I in such a big hurry to finish the signing party?" you ask?

Wouldnt you like to know? (You wouldnt believe it, anyway.)

You can bet your ass I was well-medicated that morning, my friend. If I had it, I took it.

I admit that I was floating along nicely, on my way to new environs. To new pastures.

To places more suited to me and my needs and my interests.

Remind me to tell you about the time I said to myself, "I like this place. I like this city. I like these people. I like the vibe. The laid-back vibe. The energy. I love the weather. The healthy lifestyle. I like this place. It feels like a natural fit for me."

I didnt even care what the terms of the lease were .. because I only really care about the keys. Because the keys get me things that I like.

"What kind of things?" you ask? (I might need some encouragement in order to proceed down this road.)

"Jingle, jingle" went the keys in my hand. I felt like I had died -n- gone-to-heaven.

Standing there in that empty place, I was unconsciously weighing the keys in my hand, tossing them up-n-down ever so slightly.

Here is where I felt like I had the authority of the universe in the palm of my hand.

I thought, "Yesterday I was blessed in the country. Today I am blessed in the city. Here I will be blessed both coming in and going out. Every thing I set my hand to do here will prosper."

After the property manager left (on April 1st) I slowly ran the tips of the fingers along the entire length of the walls. And I said a prayer. A little thank-you prayer.

I gave thanks for getting me out of that bad situation. Out of that tight spot I was in after the Judge died. When I instantly became persona non grata extraordinaire.

This theme continues in an entry titled » The Darkness Didnt Get It (19 June 2021).

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