Our lives aren't like a hard drive within a PC that's written over and over. Who we were and who we are and who we're becoming is a linear narrative. What's weird is that as an Christian, you'd think this grieving would actually never occur. Instead, shouldn't we be celebrating? Nevertheless, the reality is we have memories of who we were in the past coupled with how we once reacted / rationalized / understood the world around us.
But too (and to attempt to continue succinctly answering my first question), we're not necessarily individuals. Instead, we're part of humanity. Whatever that means (temperamental point of view / attitude towards fellow man) for each man at whatever point in time he happens to exist within. Nothing can completely separate us from life, moving forward, on Earth - side by side amongst our neighbors, co-workers, family, and so forth digitally or otherwise.
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The culture continues to degrade, decouple, diminish God's relevancy. It's happening all around us. And we cannot stop that from happening. I mean, we can pray for revival, but otherwise it's out of our control within this Fallen world. Yet, as believers, we are still no doubt part of that collective despite the fact that this remains no longer our true home.
Hence, we cannot (or at least we should not) extract ourselves from culture. Nothing in God's word lends credence to this approach. Otherwise, how would we witness? No story can be told sans an audience.
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When I was in college, I spent one summer living with my parents in a rental house here in Jackson. My best friend from high school was also home that same summer, and as a nice gesture, I decided to detail his car for him.
What I learned from this experience was how impossible it was to overlook the neglect he'd wrought onto his poor car, having now attempted to restore it to its once former showroom glory. Therefore, I never offered to do this again. Now, it didn't keep me from riding with him in the car, but I did not ever want to be tasked with being able to see the damage his car had endured and continued to endure day after day.
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We see so much about so many people these days thanks to the Internet. And, I'm not just referring to entertainment, but arguably the very reason the www exists is to provide us with access to an unlimited amount of data on lives lived and living. Too, you can step farther back and see the same relative to groupings of people, how they behave, what their moral standings are / are not. Many, many people use this to their monetary advantage online within this influencer age.
For an amateur sociologist like me, it's a fascinating tool / curse, this thing called the Internet. But, aren't we all becoming amateur sociologist as we search, scroll, post and click?
It's like you can detail every car or a certain portion of every car you see. Every. Single. Freaking. Car. Which is insane. And arguably, completely out of line in how we were meant to live out our lives.
Now, whether or not that online process results in a realistic (of course it does not) pursuit, nevertheless, the process is there for any and everyone who can run a browser to take part in. We are literally now slaves to the data.
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Everyone knows that detailing automobiles isn't normal human behavior because it's really hard work that takes an immense amount of scrutiny and patience to accomplish well. Washing a car on the other hand, is normal behavior. Especially if you have some help from your local automated car wash. It's an 8 to 10 minute job compared to a 3 or 4 hour job.
To circle back to my friend's car and that summer detailing job I did for him, the impact that reality made on me (his neglect) also reflected back on me from the standpoint that this was my best friend. Therefore, his neglect was categorized as "very personally recognizable", and therefore undeniable - in so many ways. Subsequently, I felt ashamed and disappointed. And not just at him, but at myself for not having been able to necessarily do more...either then or perhaps earlier on. [Keep in mind that at this time of my life, I was quite the car aficionado.]
Now on the flip side of that internal adjudication, staying within that same "very personally recognizable" realm, I also could have felt similarly ashamed and disappointed in myself, but for a whole different set of reasons. For instance, I may have then considered myself to have been none the smarter for actually "wasting my time" on keeping my own car in tiptop shape.
Do you see the undeniable influence there relative to both time / effort spent and who I'd dubbed "very personally recognizable"?
This influence points us back to what I wrote earlier on. Here it is again:
But too (and to attempt to continue succinctly answering my first question), we're not necessarily individuals. Instead, we're part of humanity. Whatever that means (temperamental point of view / attitude towards fellow man) for each man at whatever point in time he happens to exist within. Nothing can completely separate us from life, moving forward, on Earth - side by side amongst our neighbors, co-workers, family, and so forth digitally or otherwise.
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The Internet, for me at least, can serve as a massive junkyard, but it's one where categorically the cars are organized expertly (thanks to search engines) alongside seemingly unlimited toolsets. Toolsets which make for easy, almost instantaneous salvaging, study, and research. I love that.
The problem is exacerbated though for guys like me. Guys who simply can't get enough of cars.
But that's a sorry excuse. I've bought into the lie (in more ways than one) that there's no way to actually resurrect the dead or at least a portion of yourself that once was (for worse) living, breathing tissue. Therefore, I've thought for too long that playing it safe online doesn't really apply to me. How arrogant I've become!
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