Amerika

In Western Civilization right now we struggle with something that we could call “reach.” We are ruled by fears and needs, such as needing money, wanting to avoid living in a ghetto, getting that sale on mangos and light beer, but we are merely reacting to life as it is.

Our modern world resembles a grocery store where we race around trying to find the best products on the shelf while dodging criminals and parasitic law enforcement. We just try to keep our heads above water, pay our taxes, and not offend anyone.

This occludes from our minds the possibility of reach. What could we have, if we were not limited to options offered to us by stores or society? If we could look beyond what our social group consider to be “the” options, more might lie in store.

Creativity formed the basis of the West. We saw the potential in things and applied them, guided by a notion of aesthetic beauty and structural harmony in balance with each other and the natural laws around us. This allowed us to build not minimums, but ongoing maximums.

With minimums, you get defeated by time. You find the best option for now, but next year, the options are worse because people settled for “good enough” instead of “good.” With that process, every year civilization falls faster and farther.

Reach means looking toward something we desire to create. Even if it does not happen, the daydream pops our minds out of the little mental ghetto in which we find ourselves in these dark egalitarian times. Perfect for pipe smoking in this weather.

Tags: pipe, pipe tobacco, reach, smoking