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There is some nonsense there too, but it is not bad.
It is not, strictly speaking, meditation, but it teaches you how to stop thinking.
| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:15:43.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Try:
The power of Now, by Eckart Tolle. There is some nonsense there too, but it is not bad. It is not, strictly speaking, meditation, but it teaches you how to stop thinking. |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:21:52.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hi, I practice Transcendental Meditation which was created in the 1950's for people who live in urban areas and don't want to sit on mountain tops. They want to keep their busy lives but need help releasing all the stress associated with it. It doesn't matter what religion you practice or don't practice. It's not 'spiritual path' per se. It can fit into that if you want it to, but it was designed with very specific scientific principals in mind. Or you can pick up a book at the Bodhi Tree called Sadhana - A Way to God by Anthony De Mello. It is a Christian-based meditation book with excercises in it to help the Western-minded person meditate. With TM you do need a teacher to guide you in the beginning. In fact, i have found that if one attempts to practice meditation a guide really is helpful. The process of letting go of thought can be quite ellusive at the beginning of a practice. If you are interested in TM please contact me and i can get you further info. Good luck. Namaste, jessica |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:23:03.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | check out
'bio-feedback' google it, it may be one word they hook electrodes up to your fingertips and you hear a little beep-beep-beep that slows down as you relax and clear your mind so that you have an actual, physical-world indication of how well and how thoroughly you are indeed meditating i was able to go from fast beeping to a stopped beep so fast the instructor was floored but then again, i was about 13 and pretty clear at the time anyway - just my two cents. i liked it. |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:29:32.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Here are some suggestions. Get yourself a string Mala Beads. You know the beads you can find in most yoga studios. Or they may have them at the Bodhi Tree Bookstore up oin Melrose. These beads usually have a tassle on them. Sit on a cushion anbd cross your legs. Next start at the tassle of the Mala Beads and move each bead through your fingers. With each bead inhale and exhale. Then move to the next bead. Remember your not trying to get done, and you don't need to count, just play with your breath and take your time. The idea is to breathe naturally, with as little effort as possible yet deeply. When you reach the tassle you have completed a session. You can keep going if you want. The idea also is to forget about time as we know it for awhile and let the mind empty. This will be difficult for you at first because a million things will be popping into your head. Things you will think you could be doing instead of sitting there breathing. When this happens be aware of those thought but don't get angry at yourself or try to forcefully control them. This cannot work. Trying to calm the mind by force is like trying to flatten out water in a pond with a board. The more we bash it about the more disturbance we create. The idea is to let yourself just be. As stray throughts arise just accept them and let them pass. Practice letting go of all you think that you are. Enjoy, Matthew |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:40:26.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hey yo... Meditation should be non-dogmatic... cause the pupose of meditation is to just not think... The simplest way to meditate (so I've been told) is to close your eyes... relax... and observe your thoughts... The metaphor my old yoga teacher would say is told observe your thoughts as clouds passing through your head. Don't attach yourself to any of the clouds, just obsserve each thought and let it go. The trick is when you notice yourself thinking about something while your meditating is to just let the thought go... Its all about detachment... Now the traditional way of doing this, meditaion, is to kneel on these horribly uncomfortable benching and not move for like an hour. Its horrible. The whole time I'm just pissed off and my body hurts from being in that uncomfortable position... but my teacher would that is good. The first step is awarenes... blah blah... So, for me, the way I meditate is to lye down, close my eyes, and put some droney ambient music on and let my mind drift or just literally stare at the clouds and whatch them float and just not think... Hopefully this is helpful... but probably not what your looking for... You might also want to look into yogic breathing patterns or hand mudras... Both are just ways to focus on a simple action so you won't think about anything. *G* |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:41:32.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Take a long
crap. Always works for me. Eat a lot of oatmeal a few days before. Try it. |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:56:20.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hey, The core of basic meditation as I learned it is: - Sit with your back straight - Keep your eyes open but not focused on anything in particular - Folow your breath - When thoughts come up label them thinking and come back to following your breath. The idea is basicly to get to the point where you are just in the present and not caught up in your thoughts. Hope that helps. |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 20:14:51.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | hey! good
idea, just ask the tribes... i hear ya, and agree. you don't have to have some belief system that is non-forming to your own. most of the old school stuff has been altered quite a bit anyhow and we don't live in those times, imo. i don't know of any books off hand, but i know of some great tools that helped me to organize my filing cabinets, mentally. the main thing, in wherever you are pointed is simple discipline. how i began (and it turns out im no yoga master, but yet, i am, all yoga means is union with the self. in other words, the ability to silence your mind in order for it to naturally sort out without the dialogue that clutters the mind) what i did/do is this: (for beginnings) find a time during the day, preferrably early enough to have not gathered the junk of the day that clutters the mind. pick a time frame. stick to it as much as possible. to begin, sit still in a comfortable place. take a few deep breaths in and out. on the in breath, think" good air in. on the out breath, think, bad air out, (along that line anyway). do this for a few minutes, keeping your posture as straight as possible, but still relaxed. *thinking this simple thought makes it difficult for other thoughts to appear, but if they do, no biggie, just keep at it. when you have done that everyday for a week solid, for say about 5 minutes, you are in the beginning stages of clearing space in your mind. this is totally non-religious, non-secular and simple to do. also, it is best to work slowly at this and gradually work your way into further exercises. after about a week of this exercise, then you can go to the next one. at this point is where a lot of it gets harder as we as people are impatient! but thats what you';re trying to do ultimately, harmonize your thoughts to a meditative state. now, when you are ready, find your comfort spot and do the deep breath exercise. then use a timer or a clock and set it for 3 minutes. close your eyes and do nothing but breathe. i already know that this is where your thoughts try damn hard to not allow you to relax and go into deeper states. it took me about a month of the 3 minutes of silence to actually attain any sort of silence worthy of being called that! what i do when the dialogue starts is notice it first. i found that often i had this chatter going on and didn't even realize it and then my 3 minutes would be over! but its cool, try try again. i also found that if i could place an image to focus on it made it easier. there are these things, these symbols that are simple and ancient you can image in your mind. the most easy one to remember is just a black oval. i don't know why that works but it did for me. when a thought comes into your mind and you can notice it, just say in your mind, "clear" and clear it away. sometimes another bugger thought will come in right behind, just clear it again. after a few weeks, you'll find you are doing this less often and the medatative state will begin to transform into your medetation and often into the dreamtime. this means that there is a certain harmony and union working its way. when i started noticing it, i was amazed, its working! after a month or so, i started bumping up the time to 5 minutes, then 10, then i got to 20 and am satisfied with that. i do it less often nowadays, but i can do it at will pretty much now. things in life become more clear and balanced, noticeably. i don't know. maybe some one will have a better draft for ya, but thats whats worked for me. much luck to ya! |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 20:18:48.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hey you... Have you been to yoga? I go to a kundalini yoga class that involves yoga + meditation...it's pretty awesome. Definite way to clear your head and center yourself. It's a very individual kind of spiritual thing... -Lisa |
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| From | |
| Date | 2005-02-13 20:28:20.0 |
| Subject | Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation |
| Message | Hello
Christian, I have a friend who may be able to assist you in this quest. Her name is Ellen Hope. I encourage you to contact her via tribe - look her up on my friends page and send her a msg. She travels quite a bit, but she will definitely answer msgs sent to her and she has some wonderful resources and referrals. Best Wishes to You! -Vern |
| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 20:41:18.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | hi christian
! this is the best i know... little practical book, cant fail ya. practicing the power of now essential teachings, metitations, and exercises from the power of now by eckhart tolle |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 21:23:48.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | I
liked
Journey of Awakening : A Meditator's Guidebook by Ram Dass Since my name is the same as yours you should now ignore the rest of the responses in favor of mine. I am right, and only I am right. All the rest are just punk sucka's. ... *ahem* *cough cough* |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 22:00:18.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | HI Christian, If you are serious about a quiet meditation that focuses only on the reality of your own head, you may be interested in trying Vipassana meditation. There are no chakras, no chanting, no imagination, no halos, only you and your brain. It is non-sectarian and certainly no-nonsense. You can find information at www.mahavana.dhamma.org/ You learn the technique at a 10 day silent meditation course. If you are interested and have any questions, I'd would certainly be happy to answer them. Good wishes in your search! Kim |
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| From | about emptying your head |
| Date | 2005-02-13 22:30:33.0 |
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation |
| Message | lay on the
floor and breath from your stomach you have alot of extra air in there that needs to be breathed out it can be a little toxic breath in through your nose/from your stomach expand your tummy it's ok and exhale through your mouth you can do this sitting as well but if you really want to open your head do it this way you don't need religion you don't need a book just meditate on your breath and focus on relaxing think of something positive that you want to manifest and breath this is what i do. |
| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 22:30:59.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | try Wherever You Go There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn. its non-denominational, though you will never find a book on meditation that does not deal with spirituality... it's not a step by step guide but the authors pushes your mind in the right direction while encouraging you to take it from there. happy clear mind! |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 22:44:27.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | hey
christian, here is your answer. meditation is not a complicated thing. count to ten. count to ten again. count to ten again, etc. if you don't like "ten," count to seven or nine or four or whatever. alternatively, make up a meaningless, one sylable word that begins with a soft consonant and ends with a long vowel. it really does't matter how you do it. the idea is to use a sound that takes you away from your busy mind. however, remember that condemning your thoughts is not helpful. if you seek enlightenment, that is another story. enlightenment is an experience not a belief. so, you don't need to believe in anything to get there. everyone is your teacher. life is your teacher. however, as with someone who wants to learn any skill, a teacher who knows the path can be helpful--if and when you decide that you are ready. if you still feel you need instruction on meditation, you might take a trip to the bodhi tree bookstore on melrose in west hollywood. there you should be able to find a secular book on meditation. www.bodhitree.com/ good luck patrick |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 22:48:03.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Well
Christian... I suppose I could write one for you. Let me know if
you're interested because I'd actually like to share what I've learned.
It's REALLY very simple as I'm sure you intuit... All that dogma is
just sooooo... yuck... Except having to rub lemons all over your body while singing La Cocoracha backwards sixty time... Because come on, everybody knows that is the key to meditation... hehh... Let me know, would love to share... Timothy |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 22:51:57.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Christian, I hear ya man! I think this is a very difficult thing you're looking for. I've been looking for a great non-guru, non-cult, drug free, membership fee free, place to meditate without robes or having to recite funny chants place for years! I do actually live in the world of airy fairy types as I am a bodyworker by trade HOWEVER, what works best for me is to carry no judgement on anyones path. Especially my own. I find my yoga practice to be the most attuned, although my yoga community can border on cult-ish, I try to keep it within my own boundaries. The most personal and rewarding form of meditation is my swimming practice. There I find my breath, my action and my thoughts to be almost guided by a higher...something or whatever. Since most forms of meditation have some type of breathing technique I find swimming to be a bit more natural for me to digest. All I can offer with any certainty is my support and encouragement to keep on looking for what's best for you. C |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 01:09:39.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | shit dude... here it is. go somewhere quiet. sit straight. or lie down. then breathe slowly. focus on lengthening and deepening your breath in a relaxed way. when thoughts come to your mind, do not attach to them, simply acknowlege them and let them slip by like sand in an hourglass. like water over a dam. instead remember your breathing and try to feel where the air is causing you sensation. breathe only through your nose. unless you have a cold ;-) that's it. work up in time. try doing it at the same time each day. like when you wake up. or before sleeping (but you might fall asleep and though that is healthy it's not meditation.) the more you do it the better at it you'll get. like almost everything. and don't trip about the people that attach their dogma to it. that's their trip. you can still meditate with them. just don't attach to their trip. - petey |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 01:18:25.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | I
love the way
you worded your posting and I'm really curious as to the
kind of responses that you might get and what they might say. All of
them...lol I'm in the same boat you are. Good luck. -Greg :-) |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 05:02:15.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Christian,
I
feel your pain. :) In the 2500 years or so since Buddhism
started, all kinds of traditions and stuff has been tacked on by
cultures, etc. Some I've enjoyed, it's a journey. I don't know if you will be able to find a book that doesn't mention Buddhism at all, but two that I know of that strip away all the extras are: 'Wherever You Go, There You Are' - by Jon Kabat-Zinn (Jon has tought stress management in prisons if I remember correctly) and I'm currently reading: 'Mindfulness In Plain English' - by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana My understanding at this point also is that it takes some time, patience, discipline, before you will notice changes. I've also learned that you won't be clearing your mind of those thoughts you are having as much as you will be coming to terms with the turbulance, becoming more aware, able to concentrate (even with all those thoughts running through your head), and go with the flow - and slowly not creating more unusable turbulance. ec |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 08:11:12.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Christian,
there is a great book entitled 'Zen meditation in plain
english' available from Amazon.com. I know you said that youre not
interested in Buddhism or religion, but Zen is about as far from
religion as you can get, and this book doesnt deal with any of the
philosophy of Zen, only the meditation part. I highly recommend it. Here is a link: www.amazon.com/exec/obido...IN/0861713168/qid=1108397425/sr=2-1/ref=pd_ka_b_2_1/104-4729971-7067109 Best, _+Daniel |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 11:01:50.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hey there
Christian, I just happen to be your one-stop-meditation-shop. I practice meditation as part of my daily spiritual discipline. There are actually a gazillion ways you could go about it, and I can understand your frustration. May I suggest the "Meditation Guidebook" by Ram Dass. Very easy introductory reading. There are many methods: chanting meditation, walking meditation, pebble meditation.... The most common goal is to just empty your "cluttered desk" thoughts. My basic method (which I practice anywhere... the bathroom, my car, my desk, conference room, etc...) is to close my eyes and focus on an imaginary center. I usually focus on a "white light" until one appears. It makes all the rest of the thoughts fade like matrix code. The most important part is building your spiritual discpline. Most people meditate for 20-30 minutes. You can start with 1-5 minutes. It helps to set aside the same time every day. Either the beginning or end is great. Just sit still and relax. You can set an alarm if you'd like. Alot of my friends do that. Meditation isn't supposed to be stressful. Chill my brother. I'm studying at the Agape Institute in Culver City and working towards my practitioners license. The Agape Institute is a "transdenominational" spiritual center and is a really groovy place for self-development. They have group meditation there every day, not to mention tons of workshops and classes on the topic. It's a neat community. By the way... .how is everything at Countrywide? Blessings of love and light, Laura LaBine |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 14:47:06.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | for
some
reason, since I was in 4th grade, and my teacher explained
meditation to me, I always thought the word "oil" was one of the best
words to use. here's the story: simply repeat a word over and over
until it has no meaning to you, anymore. that's all. tell me if it works for you. k |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 16:27:49.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hi there, (Don't worry, not trying to get you to join us Krishna's, lol) And not you are not an asshole, that's because I know you. About the religious, spiritual bit, well shit, that is where it stems from. You do not have to follow it, just honor the roots and get the jest. I recommend a physical activity. For instance, the purpose of yoga is not for a great ass, but really to physically be able to sit and meditate without thinking about hoe painfull it is to sit for so fucking long. So if you do something for the health of the physical body, you are able have more mental clarity, cliched I know. So get out and excercise, ideally early in the morning. Many studies shoe that children who have their PE classes in the beginning of the day, tend to perform better acedemically- The whole oxygen circulating bit. Getting into some sport can help you to not focus on the misdirection or whatever you feel you are experiencing. Don't take this as gospel, because I have my challenges for sure. It is just what helps for me. If I come across any books, I will pass them on. cheers, Kristin |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 18:40:34.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | I
recommend
that you run or ride a bike or something like that...
Running long distance can clear your mind... "they" who ever they are
say it has some effect giving you "runners high" it's great and it's
good for you... definetly my favorite medatation... |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-14 21:57:28.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Re: tribe.net listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | OK, I will
tell you what I know... Meditation is about You... Not about flying elephants and mastering uncomfortable positions... But that you have already figured out... Meditation is about connecting to yourself and that's pretty much it. Find a position that you find comfortable... Sitting cross legged with your back to a pillow against the wall is as good a place as any to start. Pay attention to your breath. Feel the inward breath as it moves through your nostrils and down your throat and into your lungs and belly. Allow your belly to relax and hang out. Place a hand there as you breathe and feel the rise and fall of the belly. Do this for a time that you feel comfortable with... a minute is good to start and then work up from there if you like. If your mind wanders than simply direct the focus back to your breathing. Find a time each day to practice this and with practice you will get better and better and staying connected to your breath and less and less in your head. And that is meditation. Enjoy! |
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| From | mireille..[deleted]....@sbcglobal.net |
| Date | 2005-02-15 16:06:12.0 |
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation |
| Message | i
think maybe
you should focus more on what you WANT to do and less on
what you DON"T WANT to do. If you want to clean it up so darn bad then
do it. |
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| Date | 2005-02-13 19:11:38.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | boo | |||||||||
| Message | if you find
an answer let me know. one way i try to meditate is by watching clouds move by.another way to stop thinking is to focus on your breathing and when thoughts start going through your head focus on your hands.thinking about your hands takes up alot of brain space for some reason.breathing should be "belly breathing." you know what, a therapist is the kind of person with these answers.that is where i learned about the hands bit. keem |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-16 00:55:16.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | Hi, I found such a thing a few years ago by accident. And it has changed my life. Basically the lady that teaches the course shows you a lot of meditation tools which once you have mastered one, you move on to the next. She is no guru, just someone with wonderful information to share. She was taught at the berkley pychic institute and I believe is about to start her next class soon. you can call her at +1 (323) 839-8213 Her name is Racquelle and Just Tell her that Ciaran told you to call her. I am open to answering any other questions you may have. I guarantee you it is not any weird thing, because if it was I would not and could not be in the middle of it. yours in music Ciaran www.ciaranhope.com |
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| From | Lo75...[deleted]...@yahoo.com |
| Date | 2005-02-17 13:17:50.0 |
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation |
| Message | You might
visit InsightLA ( www.insightla.org/
). Trudy Goodman teaches Vipassana meditation which mostly uses the
teachings of the Buddha as guides to unclutter your mind. There's a
minimum of "Religion" attached to Vipassana, and it's easily disposed
of if it doesn't interest or help you. Good luck! |
| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-18 13:01:08.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | meditation | |||||||||
| Message | hey
baby, per
your request for non religious meditation, i've recently
been studying tantra and learned a lot about meditation thru those
readings. I've found, that meditation is so individual, that i think the best approach is to read what you can, pick thru what you like and use only that. have you checked out Meditation for Dummies? so far, here's what i've figured out. unlike what i used to think ( that meditation was somehow a quieting of mind to the point where there is NO THOUGHT ), currently i'm working with the idea that meditation is mearly the practice of bringing your mind back to focus on your breathing. and by this i mean practice. it's a slow go. so, rather than seaking a quiet mind, where there are no thoughts, try instead beggining to develope the skill of bringing your focus away from whatever thought you are engaged in, back to your breathing. this focus is two fold, getting faster at catching yourself in a thought, and feeling more and more comfortable going back to your breathing. be gentle with yourself in this. knowing you the way you do, i could see you being hard on yourself 'fuck christian! you're thinking again!' instead of , wow, i'm getting better at noticing when i'm thinking thoughts! anyway, just some idea's i've been playing with. maybe they'll be ofhelp. love and a bigjighug (0)(0) n |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-02-19 01:25:47.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | hello um first id like to here your interpretaion of meditation and why you do it? | |||||||||
| Message | kirlian
photography are you familiar with it when have you decided that you werent going to be such a visual person? it takes visualization to meditate or focusing on the void or emptiness. if you fast thats emptiness if you empit your room of material possesions you become an antidote to greed and you become spacial you want to not have a cluttered mind. peace your friend Mark |
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| From |
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| Date | 2005-03-01 18:04:54.0 | |||||||||
| Subject | Response to your listing: Seeking a non-religious, no-nonsense approach to meditation | |||||||||
| Message | hey christian, I hope the Meditation method below will help. "When the aspirant has practiced concentration for some time, focusing the mind upon some simple object, building a living thought form by means of the imaginative faculty, he will, by means of Meditation, learn all about the object thus created. Yet something that is uninteresting and does not of itself suggest anything marvelous, is better for practice. Try to find out all about--say, a match, or a common table. When the image of the table has been clearly formed in the mind, think what kind of wood it is and whence it came. Go back to the time when, as a tiny seed, the tree from which the wood was cut first fell into the forest soil. Watch it grow from year to year, covered by the snows of winter and warmed by the summer Sun, steadily growing upward--its roots meanwhile constantly spreading under the ground. First it is a tender sapling, swaying in the breeze; then, as a young tree, it gradually stretches higher and higher toward the air and the sunshine. As the years pass, its girth becomes greater and greater, until at last one day the logger comes, with his axe and saw gleaming as they reflect the rays of the winter Sun. Our tree is felled and shorn of its branches, leaving but the trunk; that is cut into logs, which are hauled over the frozen roads to the river bank, there to await the springtime when the melting snow swells the streams. A great raft of the logs is made, the pieces of our tree being among them. We know every little peculiarity about them and would recognize them instantly among thousand, so clearly have we marked them in our mind. We follow the raft down the stream, noting the passing landscape and become familiar with the men who have the care of the raft and who sleep upon little huts built upon their floating charge. At last we see it arrive at a sawmill and disbanded. One by one the logs are grasped by prongs on an endless chain and hauled out of the water. Here comes one of our logs, the widest part of which will be made into the top of our table. It is hauled out of the water to the log deck and rolled about by men with peavies. We hear the hungry whine of the great circular saws as they revolve so fast that they appear as mere blurs before our eyes. Our log is placed upon a carriage which is propelled toward one of them, and in a moment those teeth of steel are tearing their way through its body and dividing it into boards and planks. Some of the wood is selected to form part of a building, but the best of it is taken to a furniture factory and put into a kiln, where it is dried by steam so that it will not shrink after it has been made into furniture. Then it is taken out and put through a great planing machine with many sharp knives, which makes it smooth. Next it is sawn off into different lengths and glued together to form table-tops. The legs are turned from thicker pieces and set into the frame which supports the top; then the whole article is smoothed again with sandpaper, varnished and polished, thus completing the table in every respect. It is next sent out, with other furniture, to the store where we bought it, and we follow it as it is carted from that place to our home and left in our dining room. Thus, by meditation, we have become conversant with the various branches of industry necessary to convert a forest tree into a piece of furniture. We have seen all the machines and the men, and noted the peculiarities of the various places. We have even followed the life process whereby that tree has grown from a tiny seed, and have learned that back of seemingly very commonplace things there is a great and absorbingly interesting history. A pin; the match with which we light the gas; the gas itself; and the room in which that gas is burned--all have interesting histories, well worth learning. take good care, Fox |
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