Dead wood

A system persists by insisting that what has happened before will never happen again. By promising security, it cocoons you from reality. And its deep, abiding insecurity. It does this in order not to hold and nurture you, but rather to cage, preserve, and use you. Its exploitation is amoral. It does it to survive.

And in doing so, it cages you.

These are strong words. They’re meant to be. These are strong actions. A caged you isn't a real you. A protected you is a dead you.

Dead?

Yes, dead. Because to be alive is to respond and react to the stimuli of life and reality as it is, uncovered and raw. Insecure in all its vast glory. To shield yourself from that raw edge is to protect yourself from the real power of life.

A plank is dead and dull precisely because, unlike the tree from which it was carved, it no longer is able to expand outwards and reach out, growing into a beautiful, expansive, ever-growing world. Guided by nothing other than its own groping in the dark.

To be shaped and moulded by hands other than your own is to be constrained, locked, and preserved.

It's a choice.