It Could be Scary

I chose the title from things I have heard people say over time. I won't supply the context in which it was passed to me, because I want to use it as a key in understanding changes in life.

When the Old Testament folks got a bit too complacent in their prosperity, indulgences, neglect, or pride of life, they would realise in due time that a curve ball was being pitched to wake them up.

In this thing we call life, some attributes of its character can compared to a ball game. Let's assume any major sporting event as a microcosm of human life only with specific rules for the players and observers.

And, anywhere within the domain of the event, there will be action and reaction. The event as a complete thought is also subsetted by smaller or shorter events. Man kicks ball, crowd moans. Man bats ball out of park, crowd goes wild. You may have seen these kind of headlines on the sports page of a newspaper.

Of course, the best and the worst have their chance to perform. The rest is in between. So, how does this example demonstrate some fact of life? The pattern of it is a recurrent abstract phenomenon with minor variations.


Look at this webpage for another example:

cyberspace security

From the edu domain in the address you can see this is an educational website. The rest of the address is a locus of the page on the system server where the page resides on a computer memory, somewhere in internet web cyberspace.

The gist of the comments are a recap of the title of this blog in that the conveniences of life have a dark side. A man builds a house part by part. He clears the land. He makes preparation for a foundation. He starts with the foundation. Then the walls, doors, rooms, windows, maybe another story, a roof, some extended accomodation to the adjacent environment, water, waste, power, heat, cooling, storage, furniture, appliances, etc. The list goes on.

Over time the house gets old and needs maintenance. Consumables have to be replenished. Consumed has to be managed for displacement. And so on, over time the system becomes more complex. With the complexity comes the increase in probability of error. Error in any form is defined as the undesireable onset of variation of expected value in event process.

The weather may turn stormy and the rain find a way into the inside. A leak, a neglected heat source, a break, are only a few examples where error starts to show up. The degree of damage that error does is proportional to the loss of value it changes. It can be all, or some.

Thus where one may think of nonconsumable items as being of a fixed value, the variation of the value is itself a variable. When the wisdom of the past tries to hand the keys of a life of good value to new beings, how those keys are used determine the effects of having keys.

There's a story of a man living in the first development project for housing workers in New Jersey. Most of them working in more than one state, but needing similar accomodations. The houses look very similar, strung together on look alike streets, and all having different door locks.

A worker stays out late one night, has a few spirits to ease his fatigue, and makes his way home. He gets disoriented, tries his door key in several doors before he realises he is on the street.

How emabarrasing for him when his neighbors turn cold thinking him to be a burglar. Today he would be confronted by the police if they see him or are called. The point is simply that he ran into trouble with the best of intents. Tarrytown, NJ is still there.

So, the point of the potential of fear and error is a wake up call for the compulsive perfectionist

19:127:001 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that
build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh
but in vain.

How serious was vigilance in the days of old?

26:033:006 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the
trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and
take any person from among them, he is taken away in his
iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

28:009:008 The watchman of Ephraim was with my God: but the prophet is a
snare of a fowler in all his ways, and hatred in the house of
his God.

Oh, it got worse...

33:007:004 The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper
than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation
cometh; now shall be their perplexity.



And why?
24:051:012 Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, make the watch
strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the
LORD hath both devised and done that which he spake against
the inhabitants of Babylon.

25:004:017 As for us, our eyes as yet failed for our vain help: in our
watching we have watched for a nation that could not save us.

Ok, so what is the purpose of the Son of Man?

26:003:017 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of
Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them
warning from me.


26:033:001 Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

26:033:002 Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto
them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the
land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their
watchman:

27:004:013 I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a
watcher and an holy one came down from heaven;

Nebuchadnezzar's dream...

27:004:017 This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand
by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living
may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and
giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the
basest of men.

35:002:002 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make
it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.

35:002:003 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it
shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it;
because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

35:002:004 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but
the just shall live by his faith.

Now to the New Testament...

40:014:021 And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside
women and children.

40:014:022 And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a
ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent
the multitudes away.

40:014:023 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a
mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was
there alone.

40:014:024 But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with
waves: for the wind was contrary.

40:014:025 And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them,
walking on the sea.

Here's watching again in terms of the Son of Man...

40:024:035 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass
away.

40:024:036 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of
heaven, but my Father only.

40:024:037 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the
Son of man be.

40:024:038 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating
and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day
that Noe entered into the ark,

40:024:039 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so
shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

40:024:040 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and
the other left.

40:024:041 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be
taken, and the other left.

40:024:042 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth
come.

40:024:043 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in
what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and
would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

40:024:044 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think
not the Son of man cometh.

40:024:045 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath
made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due
season?

40:024:046 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall
find so doing.