The Education Thread...

[Darnn]

The forum's dead. Not really, but kinda like adventure games are dead. There's some action, but mostly nothing to write home about.

This, combined with the fact that I've wanted to share some things with you people for a while now (I recall one time on the old Mojo board, and the 'Classic Song Time' part of the bottum), is the reason for my starting this thread.

The point of this thread is to post something of educational value that you don't think the other people know, and might therefore benifit from. I was thinking mostly poetry, song lyrics (or, if you've got the webspace, actual songs), short stories... Maybe things like definitions of philosophical movements, Nihilism, whatever.

I'm sure you get the picture by now, and I'm also sure that all of you have, at one point or another wanted to share something with the denizens of this forum because you were really excited about it, but didn't know how. I know I have.

Anyway, seeing as I'm Israel's only representative on this board, I thought I'd start with some Israeli things. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have encoutered them otherwise.

 

 

I have approximately a gazillion things to post, but I'll start easy: A nice little poem or two by Yehuda Amichai. He is an Israeli poet who died last year, and there has been some controversy as to whether he's Israel's national poet or not.

 

 

You Carry The Weight Of Heavy Buttocks / Y. Amichai

 

You carry the weight of heavy buttocks,

but your eyes are clear.

Around your waist a wide belt that won't protect you.

 

You're made of the kind of materials that slow down

the process of joy

and its pain.

 

I've already taught my penis

to say your name

Like a trained parakeet.

 

And you're not even impressed. As if

you didn't hear.

What else should I have done for you?

 

All I have left now is your name,

completely independant,

like an animal:

 

It eats out of my hand

and lies down at night

curled up in my dark brain.

 

 

Late Wedding / Y. Amichai

 

I sit in the waiting room with young bridegrooms,

many years younger than me. Had I lived in ancient times,

I would have been a prophet. But now I'm waiting patiently

to register my name with the name ofmy beloved in the big ledger

of marriages and to answer questions I can still

answer. I filled my life with words,

I amassed in my body information that can feed

the intelligence agencies of several countries.

 

With heavy steps I bear light thoughts

as I bore in my childhood fate-laden thoughts

on light feet, almost dancing with so much future.

 

The pressure of my life brings together my birth day

and my death day, like history books,

where the pressures of history join those two numbers

at the name of a dead king,

just a hyphen seperating them.

 

I hold onto that hyphen as hard as I can,

as to a life raft. I live on it,

and on my lips the oath not to be alone;

The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride* and the voice

of children playing in the streets of Jerusalem

and in the towns of Yehuda.

 

 

*A part of a verse somewhere in the Old Testament, which is often sung at Jewish weddings.

 

[elTee]

Hey, I used to live in Israel. And Pomigliano D'Arco, in Italy, south of Naples.

There is something I want to say, but its about my religious beliefs so maybe I shouldn't - people may be offended. Dont take that to mean I don't believe in God, because I do. Its... complicated.

[Darnn]

Well, you'll never know unless you try, now won't you?

[Prendo]

Am I exempt from this thread because I was never educated?

[elTee]

Ok.

I belive that life is simply to gain experiences. It is hard because this way heaven will seem so much better. You live so that you can find out what you like - for example, in my heaven would be a real Monkey Island Carribean. If I had killed myself before I ever played the games, then I would not know about them and my heaven would not be complete. You understand? Thats why its a sin to commit suicide. Ok, it seems naive, but I haven't explained it well here. If you are offended, then I am sorry.

[Schmatz]

Originally posted by LucasTones

For example, in my heaven would be a real Monkey Island Carribean.

 

Yes but the point of going to heaven is releasing all materialistic things and, depending on your faith, devoting life directly to God. You may like Monkey Island now, but once you die and raise to heaven, you will not forget it but you will find something far greater. Even recent scholars decide to use the term "Reign of God" instead of the "Kingdom of God" because people tend to materialize heaven and see like giant castles and everything all flowery etc. On Earth, living in the Monkey Island Carribean would be the greatest life to live, but not the greatest place to be when you die, for there is far greater in the afterlife. Or so I am taught.

 

If you don't agree with this, please don't start an arguement... it is only my views.

[Schmatz]

OK, now I can educate some people with a bit of trivia:

 

J.R.R. Tolkien was shunned by his colleagues because he had such a great mind, but he wrote about tiny people in Lord of the Rings. Critics would give it a bad rep (this is back when it was published in the 70s mind you) because they were all hippies. Had the 70s not been hippyrific, Lord of the Rings might have been ultra popular and wouldn't need the movies to make them popular again. it is true there are many who loved LOTR before the movies, but I was never suggested to read the books for any reason, and I had never heard of it until the movie. I had seen the book the Hobbit before, but all I saw was a picture of an old man on the front, and he looked all rugged and poor, so I thought 'The Hobbit' was just some old poor dude. Man was I wrong. This is why I think 'The Hobbit' should be read in grammar school so kids have an experience with Tolkien's works, since The Hobbit is not as long as LOTR.

 

There... tada.

 

Old Lady: Excuse me sonny, do you go to this school (fancy rich school).

Homer: Of course.. me go school.

 

That's edjumacation for ya