Into The Void

Vacuum:  A region of space that contains no matter.

Nature abhors a vacuum.

I've been learning a lot of good stuff about prayer in Vacation City.  I've not been a big fan of prayer historically for a variety of reasons, mostly because I suck at it.  I spend way too much time praying for help in getting the things that I want or in avoiding the things that I find objectionable.  I'm also big on praying that other people, places, and things help me get the things that I want or avoid objectionable things.

This is crappy praying.  I've found that god has a technique for people like me.  God provides the things that I ask for; however, god is quite literal and pretty creative in answering my self-serving prayers.  If I pray for a better relationship with my boss I get fired, that kind of stuff.  It's funny as long as it's happening to someone else.

People here are not as overtly religious as some of the other places I've lived.  This, in a general sense, is not good or bad but it does fit well into my world view.  I was told exactly how to pray when I was growing up - the exact words that I should use - and I don't do anything anybody tells me, often to my detriment.  Here the praying is more along the lines of the loose garment theory.  One old-timer tells me that the nature of prayer is not to change the world but the person doing the praying.

Meditation is a little trickier.  When I try to sit quietly I find that my mind fills up with a lot of noise post-haste.  It sucks in more voices and general cacophony than one person has the ability to endure.  It has gotten better over the years but it's still a low-grade riot in there most sessions.

I feel better when I do it.  I don't understand why, exactly, but I end up calmer.  I feel better even when I have a session where the voices have stormed the ramparts and sacked the castle.  It seems that the effort is the thing.  I'd love to hear god talk directly to me in a lovely baritone with a hint of an Irish lilt but I'm good when the Mongol horde is in control, too.

Void:  An empty space; a vacuum.

My favorite Black Sabbath song is "Into The Void."

Rocket engines burning fuel so fast,
Up into the night sky they blast,
Through the universe the engines whine,
Could it be the end of man and time?

This is probably symptomatic of my trouble with meditation.  I'm just sayin'.