Roger Housden’s Poems
Roger Housden’s Ten Poems to Last a Lifetime is an artful piece of life itself. From the book, one could sit and ponder about the depth and joy of human existence "or look out a window" for more than a few minutes, so that some days I think it must be everything and nothing at once” (Collins 26-29). This line from Collins’ My Life has given quite a remarkable impression for me. Humans were not placed on this earth through their choice, but the way humans live is a choice. Happiness and depression are both choices. Activity and passiveness are also choices.
Tolle’s A New Earth
In relation to Tolle’s A New Earth, choices are only one of the several factors that one has to deal with as a human being. Having to choose is pressure enough on the human mind since passiveness is always tempting. But choosing is part of human existence. We were made to have privileges, yet these privileges entail their own responsilities. Life is simple, yet the living of life is difficult if one does not appreciate everything.
To be everything and nothing at once is quite an irony. But there have been many instances in my own personal experiences that one can consider ironic. In loving, for example, people are always hurt. Hurting seems like a prerequisite of loving and the more you love, the more it is painful. It is ironic yet it makes sense. If you are not hurt by the actions of someone, then you do not really love them; you are not affected by them. In essence, you only love the idea of loving them.
Housden’s Book
Housden’s book, in comparison to Tolle’s, has been an artful mix of spirituality and humanity. Of course, as humans, it is impossible to think of spiritual things alone. I believe that the human person is both spirit and body, intangible and tangible, fact and figure. I cannot separate the two because separating it would lose its meaning. Out of all the myriad conflicts and problems of this world, the answer is a peaceful spirit and this can be shown through the physical body. Once we are able to combine spirit and body, the oneness becomes our strength. The oneness reminds us about our being and humanity.
