Wasp Nests

I had three separate wasp nests under the siding and soffits of our house. There was two types , the common yellow jacket and the mud dabber. They would build a huge nest before summer was finished . Something needed to be done.  I profess to love 'Life' and I do believe that in its very essence, all life is 'one'. But what is 'one', ( pun intended) to do when you know you have an infestation being built into your house exterior. I know a person who does not believe in killing mice ( he's a Buddhist wantabe) and his house is infested with these creatures. He has mouse dropping all through out his house and it doesn't seem to bother him. I don't share his love for mice.

Where is the balance??? I wish I could flick a switch and get rid of the wasps without killing one of them. But, the option to do nothing, and let the problem grow, from past experience, I concluded, was not the best choice. The best I could do is destroy the nest early, before they multiply, and by sealing off all holes in my house, I will prevent them from coming back.

To kill or not kill them was the choice.  I bought a can of hornet and wasp spray and got rid of them. I feel somewhat bad about it but relieved that I may have alleviated a greater hazard to human life.  It was the lesser of two evils in my thinking. Life decisions are not always black and white . There are gray areas of our human existence here on this planet, and getting rid of some creatures that produce a threat to our families is one of them.

Was it the right thing to do, destroying the wasp nests....maybe or maybe not?

There are a lot of issues in life that I say  'I don't know' about these days . I believe 'I don't know' is the best position to take on most of life's tough questions. To say 'I know'  closes us off from further truth. It is also somewhat arrogant.  So, if you ask me,  was it right to kill these wasps?...........my answer is .........I don't know for sure.


   

Solitude and social interaction...the balance.

 

Jim Carrey woke up to reality and he is influencing many people all over the world .Some thought he was losing his mind, when he moved past the thinking mind, toward his deeper sense of self, in reality he just woke up to understand the truth about life.

I was at a social gathering last night with about 30 people . Its great to see old friends again and learn about what has been happening in their lives. I talked to about half of these people, mostly the men, with good conversation . The problem is about 4:00 am, I woke thinking about these conversations and began rehashing them in my mind. I have learned to watch thoughts in meditation and get them under control. For a couple of hours I kept thinking about all that was said in these earlier conversations . Finally I drifted off to sleep again. I woke a few hours later not feeling very well rested, and very groggy.

I am beginning to believe that Solitude is very addictive as Jim Carrey mentions in the above quote. When you spend most of your time in the quiet, alone you do get addicted to the peace and calm. People all let off a field of energy. I could visualize each individual conversation I had earlier, as being like a small vortex of energy. Most of the talking was very positive but it is still energy in thought form. 

I read somewhere that monks who live in remote areas in total solitude have a problem processing all the extra info and energy when they occasionally venture into the busyness of a city. One monk said it takes him a week of meditation to get back to a settled state in his inner being, after being in the city.  

So, I understand why Carrey states that being around people drains your energy and I do understand the dangers of solitude.  But, what is a person to do ...solitude is a gateway into inner stillness. Inner stillness is the path to heaven on earth. The secret I believe, is balance. We need human contact in order to avoid insanity, and to experience and share love and compassion for others, but too much contact will also have its negative effects.  So my conclusion on this matter is we probably need to keep a balance of solitude and human interaction. Too much or too little of either is not healthy. 

The fear of slience

An ad by SiriusXM radio states:

Without SirusXM  by your side, driving doesn't feel the same. The streets are quieter, communities are duller and road trips aren't fun. The good news is,  you don't have to drive in silence any longer. ......

I grew up in the era of rock and roll in the 60's,70's and 80's, music was a big part of my life. I couldn't live without some music on, especially when driving in a car. But, as I got older I learned to prefer the quiet more and more.

Now, I can drive for hours without music. Road trips are still very enjoyable and the communities I pass are not dull. I love to drive in silence. Am I abnormal? , maybe or maybe not. Our house has become very quiet since the children moved out. I rarely watch TV or listen to music. I am content with silence. In fact, when I go out in public almost every store, and eating establishment has music blasting. I find it all disquieting and it tends to produce anxiety in  my inner core of being. Why is it that the modern human being has become so afraid of silence?  Are we addicted to noise? ....

We know that the thinking mind does not want to be still. People are controlled by thought, they are lost in thinking about past and future . Most are dwelling on the problem of the day rather then enjoying the mystery of "Now". The voice in their head is constantly chattering on... one thought after another.  Music and all multimedia continuously feed us more and more information and stimulus. It adds fuel to our thoughts. Its no wonder that our society is so stressed out?

The idea of becoming still in order to  know the inner reality of who we really are is foreign to most people. Yet, all deep spiritual teaching point to the fact that in order to realize inner truth of our true nature, we need to be still. To "be still and know" is a repeated phrase in spirituality.

So, am I abnormal in loving silence?......maybe  or maybe not ...Regardless I am OK with being abnormal.