I thought about the premature discharge of thoughts, about denying oneself an ample or sufficient gestation period of brain activity. It seemed to me that in most things a certain gestation or fermentation period usually improves matters. Balsamic vinegar aged in barrels for fifteen years, twenty year old bottles of French wine…
Many thoughts lead to other thoughts, but only if they are given time, time to bounce around in a brain, perhaps ricocheting against other thoughts, related or totally different. If I discharge that thought to early it might dissipate, evaporate, its energy vanished, its power removed.
A letter is different from an email. A letter takes more time to write or must be printed out. An envelope is addressed and then the letter is folded – one more chance to go over the content of to check whether the tone of the sentences expresses one’s feelings properly.
Later I wondered whether we first developed a culture that had to have everything at once, right away, (instant miso soup, instant film, instant oatmeal!) and where even the tallest buildings had to go up in record time, where we want everything delivered to us immediately and THEN we created web 2.0 and social media to mirror that culture? Or whether we first developed shortsightedness, which in turn created the culture I am describing? These thoughts gave me a fresh appreciation for the books of Neal Stephenson, who weaves long, time-consuming, labor-intensive stories. It was no surprise to find that he has a very simple homemade website, and that he doesn’t answer unsolicited email.
Official Neal Stephenson site by publisher Harper Collins.
Neal Stephenson’s personal website on MobileMe.
Maybe it is a matter of discovering what fits us best, whether we thrive on instant miso soup or whether we prefer to take the time to make it fresh. And maybe the instant soup will do fine in a pinch, although we might want to make it from scratch on another day.
A Neal Stephenson won’t want to take time to tweet, but somebody like author William Gibson seems to delight in trading small bits of information – he must average twenty tweets per day.
Positive thoughts shared are always embraced as nuturing energy but I always regret the negative thoughts that destroy when released into time’s space.
Thoughts shared in speech or folded letter impact time’s moment to build bridges or the intent to destroy the bridge.
We choose our thoughts.
Only had a glimpse of Neal Stephenson’s book, but am reading, “Anathem” at the moment. Please let’s talk about writing a letter and miso soup (I hate instant oatmeal…)!
Like what you wrote about a letter!
If a letter is handwritten…in addition to the contents, it tells a person so much in the time and care given.
If you know me, you know taht i make a million mistakez typing anythang.
Now, miso soup: I’ve never had instant. It might taste very good, I don’t know. If I have instant, I will miss out on the varieties, nutrition and flavor afforded by the misoshiru that made from scratch. If you buy a tub of actual miso it could lead you to making a salad dressing, a sauce and marinate…who knows? I don’t know where the instant can lead you…
You are correct. You do not glance over this book (“time-consuming, labor-intensive”). A plot summary made my head spin…
What I didn’t know is that Stephenson would pleasantly surprise me by his writing style. From scratch, it is fresh and very different.
There is something about viewing the pictures in the Photoblog format that is … I really don’t know how to say it but to say it this way.. I LIKE IT BETTER THEN VIEWING THEM Horizontally.. ;-)Just like the flow of the story.