Insidious Adaptation

A squirrel runs up a tree, a scattering of tiny claws on bark. Another one closely follows. Ah, a chase is what is happening here. The mind makes a little story, there must be mating involved, maybe a fight. Maybe, that squirrel is a child and there is play. Do squirrels play?  The edges of the mouth, their familiar patters, the lips stretch across the front, curl up at the ends. Cheeks seem to have less room now, and in combination with eye muscles tightening, they are both lifted and pushed out. The face of innocence, for the mind allowed itself to wander to a dimension of childlike wonder. We could turn this into a nature lesson, gain understanding about how squires work, after all my phone is in my pocket and google is pretty efficient. However, no, this moment will stay just like this. Plus, I don’t care that much. “Uh, I can’t do it, it’s broken.” Screams a child doing in her mind what she was told. “Sweetheart, just push down,” As dad lifts his own foot and pushes on th...

Is it not respectable to just “be” anymore? Must we continue to, “put ourselves out there,” or is that my competitive perspective of the environment kicking in again? Am I enough without the likes and reposts of another? Maybe not. Maybe I am being held down by the digital code I place all my value in, as though it means love, when it is barely recognition. Maybe I could be like an eagle, soaring high, a spirituality untouched, advanced by deeper understanding unexplainable in word form. Maybe I am supposed to be greater than the social media likes and the internet memes I cling too for attention. Maybe, just maybe, this is the devil’s way of reinforcing shame inside of me, and his way of keeping me worldly. After all, spending time on social media is considered worldly, even if you are just looking at Christian posts, you might not be able to skip past all the “booty” pictures, “cleavage shots” and other sexual innuendos that I too become guilty of repeating, laughing, or secretly ...