Doom Cycle
I am on a ship, a steady place with warmth, food, entertainment, and more food.
When you step out in the bow of the ship, you may witness dolphins keeping pace, sometimes cutting across the bow, leaping, zig zagging for miles. If you are focused you may also see something curious.
In the front of the ship, on the distant horizon, you can see an island rising from the sea. The closer that the ship comes, the more it rises. The proof is that if you reverse it sinks again. If you turned 90 degrees to the left or right it stops sinking, but it does not rise.
Only if you move directly towards it, will it rise from the depth.
When you arrive at the island, you have a decision, ‘Do I get off?’, and if I get off, what happens if I stay? Does the ship leave?
Let’s witness each case independently. If you get off you will notice something immediately. Everything seems normal. The island should still be drenched, it rose from the sea just a few hours ago!
There is water here and there, but much less than expected. The good news is that there is shelter, warmth, and food similar to the ship, but in a different style.
As long as you stay on the island, and the ship stays, things are in balance and life goes on as expected.
If the ship plans to leave temporarily, and then come back for you, you face another more serious dilemma. As you watch the ship leave, it slowly sinks, taking your former safety, comfort, shelter and tremendous amounts of food with it.
Your island is now safe and stable, but something has transferred to the ship, and now it sinks. This appears consistent.
Here is further proof. If you land, it appears to be dry. You walk about, get back on the ship and sail away. If you go to the stern you can look out and witness the island sinking again, the farther you sail, the more it sinks, until it completely returns to the depth of the ocean. And this too, is continuous.
Here is the deeper question, and it refers back to the old adage, ‘A tree falls in the forest, you are not there to hear it or see the fall. Did it make a sound?’
Does the ship sink and rise, does the island sink and rise, without you?
If it continues, that points to one thing.
If it doesn’t… what does that mean about the universe we witness?
The world is filled with these examples. But it is less consistent than our thoughts. The rainbow is witnessed, but disappears upon approach. The tree disappears when we approach to see the leaves. The forest disappears when we approach the tree.
All of this can be a case of ‘incomplete witnessing’ but it is still suspicious to me.
About johndiestler
Retired community college professor of graphic design, multimedia and photography, and chair of the fine arts and media department.
A Work Progressing 
Doom Cycle
Doom Cycle
I am on a ship, a steady place with warmth, food, entertainment, and more food.
When you step out in the bow of the ship, you may witness dolphins keeping pace, sometimes cutting across the bow, leaping, zig zagging for miles. If you are focused you may also see something curious.
In the front of the ship, on the distant horizon, you can see an island rising from the sea. The closer that the ship comes, the more it rises. The proof is that if you reverse it sinks again. If you turned 90 degrees to the left or right it stops sinking, but it does not rise.
Only if you move directly towards it, will it rise from the depth.
When you arrive at the island, you have a decision, ‘Do I get off?’, and if I get off, what happens if I stay? Does the ship leave?
Let’s witness each case independently. If you get off you will notice something immediately. Everything seems normal. The island should still be drenched, it rose from the sea just a few hours ago!
There is water here and there, but much less than expected. The good news is that there is shelter, warmth, and food similar to the ship, but in a different style.
As long as you stay on the island, and the ship stays, things are in balance and life goes on as expected.
If the ship plans to leave temporarily, and then come back for you, you face another more serious dilemma. As you watch the ship leave, it slowly sinks, taking your former safety, comfort, shelter and tremendous amounts of food with it.
Your island is now safe and stable, but something has transferred to the ship, and now it sinks. This appears consistent.
Here is further proof. If you land, it appears to be dry. You walk about, get back on the ship and sail away. If you go to the stern you can look out and witness the island sinking again, the farther you sail, the more it sinks, until it completely returns to the depth of the ocean. And this too, is continuous.
Here is the deeper question, and it refers back to the old adage, ‘A tree falls in the forest, you are not there to hear it or see the fall. Did it make a sound?’
Does the ship sink and rise, does the island sink and rise, without you?
If it continues, that points to one thing.
If it doesn’t… what does that mean about the universe we witness?
The world is filled with these examples. But it is less consistent than our thoughts. The rainbow is witnessed, but disappears upon approach. The tree disappears when we approach to see the leaves. The forest disappears when we approach the tree.
All of this can be a case of ‘incomplete witnessing’ but it is still suspicious to me.
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About johndiestler
Retired community college professor of graphic design, multimedia and photography, and chair of the fine arts and media department.