033: Man v. Nature

Has man transcended nature? Or has nature transcended man?

I don't know, I'm just the play by play announcer.Soon into the 1st quarter, nature's takes a quick lead with the creation of the universe, the formation of life on earth, and "Horseshoe Bend" in Arizona.

But wait! Early into the 2nd quarter, man invents the printing press. Not so cool now nature, huh? Man uses the printing press to circulate the Bible just before halftime. Through these words, I will share how to live correctly, man thinketh.

Man, walking to the locker room for halftime, passes a tree, and cannot contain his rage. "You got nothing on me mother fucker! I eat you for dinner! Hold me back!"

Fortunately, the tree did not escalate the situation, and both man and tree enter halftime unscathed.

Even so, man comes out of the gates in the 3rd quarter with a serious chip on his shoulder. And despite (or because of) this chip, the hot streak continues. Man goes back–to–back–to–back by inventing the microchip, airplanes, and Instagram.

With man's accelerating lead, the game now feels out of hand, and nature becomes demoralized. Carbon levels in the air rise quickly, but that's fine, man convinces himself. The storms get worse every year, but the scorekeeper doesn't track that.

Man is winning by a mile, says the score. And it continue to rise. The stock market, the GDP, the exports—everything is off the charts. And there's a lot of charts to look at.

But look at that! Just as we started to philosophize, more action on the court, as nature released a novel pandemic into the ecosphere.

Man's lead decreases. Man is humbled. Man cannot stand that nature has a will other than his own (or so it seems...)

*camera pans to nature*

Narrator: "would you look at that, Jerry. It seems nature is completely unaware that a game is being played. You really wonder, Jerry—is this some advanced intimidation technique by nature?"

*camera pans to this email*

Nope, not an intimidation tactic. Just the world at work.

We are so concerned with our inventions, our games, our schedules, ourselves—it's surprisingly easy to forget we're on a floating rock hurling through space in predictable circles.

I just went outside to pick up a bubble tea order. For a moment, I stepped into the sun and listened to the animal noises.

So many animal noises! Random insects, birds chirping, squirrels running up the trees.

The show is always happening, even if we rarely notice it. And the game is whatever you want it to be.


Interview Question I'm Pondering

What purchase of $100 or less has most positively impacted your life in the last six months (or in recent memory)?

"Without a shadow of a doubt, buying [Bose] noise-canceling earphones. These are the most religious objects I have ever come across, because I define faith as the ability to hear the music beneath the noise."

Tribe of Mentors

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