**The eyes of observation and pondering. Another traveller on this Earth.

               Having been curious regarding one of the more famous people in history, I decided to borrow a few books and peruse the topics.   What I found is far more than ever I grew up understanding. 

                We often think of Mr. Albert Einstein as discovering the theory of everything, perhaps the author of science so to speak, but as I grew up to believe, that is as far from the truth and he would admit the same if he were here today.  In fact, he has already shared with us. Of course, by reading his own writings, we can discover.  From what I understand, he took much of what he learned as having gained so much from those who worked before,building upon their endeavors.  But he also indicated that he only understood a tiny, tiny, part of all there is.  I imagine, he would agree, if he could have lived ten thousand years, he would still have more questions than answers.  And that’s as it should be. 

                At the dentist, today, I was talking with one of the “business partners,” and the topic of the amazing world we live, the incredible complexity, and how it all finds a way to work, is beyond us.  It will always be thus.  We’re just not that smart. And our time on this planet is very short.  And that’s good. But someone asks, why is that good? I smile. I’ll leave that to others.

But what gives anyone the idea of knowing so much? As I’ve said, the more I learn, the more I realize I know very little, or nothing.

                Something Albert Einstein said returns.  Something along the line of always looking at things in amazement. A leaf is incredible and wonderful.  Even while walking at night, seeing the moon or little dipper, even a red planet in the sky, it’s just so amazing.  And while many think of the Milky Way as filled with planets and stars, if we were to just travel around our solar system, we would eventually realize most of it is “empty space,” meaning no materials, energy yes.  But look at an atom.  Between the nucleus and electrons is, relationship wise, tons of empty space.  That reminds me of when I read somewhere, that for the Earth to be a black hole, all the material would fit inside a marble.  Consider that I say. In other words, from my current perspective, all that empty space.

Someone might think they know how atoms and molecules work, but they’ll never know why or how?

                But like many, Albert Einstein did not just sit in front of black boards and consider equations.  This has led me more to encourage people to think for themselves.  Never allow those “above” to teach us everything.  Why do that?  Go discover on your own.  He wrote on so many topics.  He was concerned with the Jewish people, but also the state of the world, and he communicated with so many.  And there is much more.  Perhaps some would like to read about Albert Einsteins writings in his own words. One might realize he was a regular person following his interests.

Time and tide.

 

**Einstein in His Own Words by Anne Rooney. Einstein on Politics by David Rowe and Robert Schulmann. And more. Take your time to peruse the materials.

**Talking with a neigbbor friend, I explained walking along with Louis and Clark better than any office job. The real.

***

                Here’s a tidbit.  I noticed something the other day, which I have pondered from time to time.  All the minutia, distractions, regulations, and busy-body movements each and every day, always moving away from noticing, observing, and pondering, something Albert Einstein remained thoughtful.

                It’s like the conversation I had at the dentist:  while customers were few.  Just a small topic.  The noticing of things.  Like watching those vegetables grow in the garden, then looking back at those seeds, the wonder from little to large, and not intellectual.  Or driving across Utah, really looking, perhaps stopping to take some walks, take snap shots, and look at the rock formations. 

                In a sense, it’s a small thing, but looking at a leaf, a bee working it’s wonder, or the stars above.  I imagine, as this man pondered, the more he observed and saw, the more he continued looking, amazed at where the pondering and equations are going.  And I suppose, much of the time, when he saw people squabbling over silly things, arguing about world affairs, and so forth, he probably often returned to his “room” or place of work:  a place where things made sense.         

                It’s rare I find.  From time to time, I can pick a topic and look at it from every angle.  And in this, I find an entire world:  one which hints at other worlds of understanding, one topic leading to others.  It’s a ponder.

Prayers.

From one person to another.

Just chose this picture because it reminded me of a movie. Pretty cool.

                Here’s something I imagine many have noticed over the years, but for some reason, I always found it odd. I do believe it’s important to recognize.  It seems to have a particular quality, something acceptable by most people, but has various techniques, but I’ll keep it simple. 

                The article is about how people “blame” or criticize others, something we’ve probably all experienced from time to time. **I see it also having the quality of separating people.  I’ve noticed, in recent readings, more people writing about the problems of the human race.  Yet, they seem to forget they are part of that population. In other words, they are what they are criticizing, but the act of criticizing seems to provide relief for them from them being part of the problem. Or another way to say this is they seem to be setting themselves up as “above” the rest, in pride, having more awareness, and therefore not part of the problem though everyone is doing the same thing.  And this quality in human behavior politicians and the media utilize.  Most of us have seen the commercials, including the voice quality, as candidates are made to be responsible for bad things happening, the method of choice. We avoid those topics.

** (An aside.) I want to affirm. When we see problems, we are not taking ourselves out of the equation. As such, sometimes, when we point out something, we see ourselves as well.

                What I’m looking at is this “blame” thing, the act of criticizing.  Often, if not always, it seems not an honest thing.  As I see, the behavior is an attempt (conscious or unconscious) to forget one’s own mistakes and cast blame on others.  At the very least, perhaps, to see one’s self as better in comparison to others, whom we may deem worse by comparison.  But it seems, we still have ourselves to see. And I’ve wondered if the act of “judging” others for their mistakes in order to justify ourselves, or make ourselves better by comparison isn’t in reality worse. For should we not actually point out problems in the hope of helping and not comparing? And the mindset of the above seems to actually separate people from the possibility of real communication and family. However, the latter would be real and present in real cooperation.

One thing I might add. Personal motivation. Does one want to understand or seem to understand?

                I don’t remember the last person I heard talk about this, but I imagine how much better we could make our days if we each solved our individual issues, did our best, and helped others in their positive endeavors.  I think, for this article, that says enough, though I appreciate others in their sharing of understanding.

**Prayers.

**As promised: some editing and/or additions. I am looking at something while a neighbor friend is talking with another friend.

** Once in a while, like all of us, I hear someone talking that is just so real.  More recently, a friend sharing something of the past year or so.  It’s in the air.  The conversation comes through with thoughtful words.  In this, all the minutia and irrelevant thoughts we see in the media, that often permeates into society, is immediately forgotten.

**We need food, but it’s now about food. We need doctors, but it’s now about medicare or any other agency. We need money, but it’s not about the money. Someone asks what is it about? Then time to ponder.

                Here is something that might be good to share, but we leave that for each person to consider and ponder.  I once thought that I would be the most difficult person in the world to convince of the gospel.  The reason I say that is because from early on, I had a very active imagination:  one I actually wished I hadn’t had, because I could reason things in so many ways.  I remember saying to a friend, I wished I had been simpler, listening to my common sense, as one who finds honest trust easier, but I do ponder that statement from time to time.  Perhaps there is a reason for everything, something I’m growing to believe.

                I think, we’re surrounded by a world of very clever, intellectual, and all too many who would attempt converting others to their ways of thinking, though not honestly.  As with the movie, Pinocchio, we have a choice.  However, without family and other significant people in our lives to push the wolves away, or those with strong common sense, to keep us home schooled, and to provide a sort of “insulation” from “the world” while we become stronger in principles and the values that are real, many make small and larger decisions that impact the mind and soul, making more difficult to follow what they know is right in their hearts.  And so, making the good choices becomes something entangled with so many lies and conditioning.  **There may be purpose in all of this, perhaps necessary in some aspects. 

**I must explain something above. Making wrong decisions, depending upon motivation, to then making right decisions, isn’t always simply changing, for what is our motivation. Sometimes, when people have lived years making wrong decisions, they may turn around immediately upon realization, or it could take weeks, years, even a lifetime, which is why it’s so important for parents to lead by good example and provide a good framework at home.

                Had I persisted in my earlier thoughts, I imagine I could have been an atheist, one who could challenge and argue away so many points, even encouraging many not to believe.  I could share some of the “ideas” I had as a child, even as a teenager, but then, I wouldn’t want to add to the lies or anyone’s confusion.  Thankfully, I could not be “okay” with that.  I think, like many, we can only be happy with our Father in heaven, believing in His Son, Jesus Christ, and looking to live a better life.  There is no place else to be.  He is the source of our lives. 

                Yes, as many know, I did go through the readings about cells, the complexities of our solar system, learned about the intricacies of life, and pondered thoughts and understanding, wondering where the latter came from.  I also realized I hadn’t put myself here, like the homeless man in a recent article, and there are many other thoughts, like we all belong to families and so forth, and principles and morals are key to better lives.  And it seems to me, in everything, no matter the rabbit trail, we always return to the same place:  the beginning. 

                All those readings, discussions, and ponderings were good.  However, I think it simply comes back to one thing.  And no one on Earth can answer this question for me.  Or for us as I believe. What do we want and where do we want to go?  I suppose, no one can answer that question for us.  And something else, though I just thought of it, and I don’t know if it fits here.  I don’t mean to sound “harsh.”  But someone said when we die, we die alone.  To me, that makes sense.  All the words, all the ideas, all the stories, all the cars and material wealth, all the propaganda, all the people we’ve known, and all the experiences…  I’ve wondered since our brain contains our memories, perhaps that doesn’t go with us as our bodies die here on this Earth. 

                I believe there is hope and love.  Our Father above, as the gospels share, is love.  In one place, we read that we never loved anyone first, but our Father loves us.  He is the source of love and understanding.  So, as I currently understand, I gather that when we die, we die in the arms of God.  We never knew life before this one, and not until we gained consciousness, as far as I know, though I believe there are things I don’t know, haven’t remembered, yet they are true just the same.  And God brought us into existence.  And so, when we die, we are completely in his arms, fully and completely relying on Him as He has always been fully in control of our entire lives, giving us some freedom to learn and ponder.

**This is written to encourage people not to listen to propaganda, to lies, and be persuaded by worldly elements, but to follow principle, decency, and understand, which I believe, if honest, always brings us back to the beginning.

**Even the universe, many know, has a starting point, and I always ask, where do “you” think that starting point came from? And how was everything created so perfectly?

Prayers.

Just trying a catchy title.

**With writing time now limited, we thought to just share a bit.

We’ve been hearing much about the former New England quarterback’s return to football, but also the “media” difficulties regarding his personal life, which I don’t read except seeing the titles. And that is the direction for this article.

I know what I’m about to share may sound overly simplistic, but I believe it also explains much. Whatever we do, whatever we learn, whether about mathematics, another solar system, or running a business, we always return home. What I mean is we are, to a degree, what we do and the decisions we make, but also where our hearts are in making choices.

I have shared this before, but whatever we’re reading, whatever we’re doing, and/or whatever we’re thinking about, everything always returns to one thing.  At least, it seems that way to us.  And I believe, if we’re really looking, and wanting to understand, we eventually realize we’ve all been created, our lives are not completely our own, perhaps not even our own, and there is purpose:  good purpose.  And I believe, when we realize that, we may be more patient.  We also may realize we can’t live without our Father in Heaven.

I remember a joke about an atheist using the very life and understanding he was given to argue, and if he would just be honest, he would see the falling apart of his own thinking.

                Somehow, having that mansion or nice sports car isn’t so important anymore, though you can still purchase such things, but it will be within principle and timeliness.  For some reason, winning all the arguments isn’t necessary, though you will still stand on principles regarding what’s right, but the timing may change. 

                There’s a passage in a good book that I’ve been pondering.  It says something akin to not making the things of this world more important than what we may realize inside.  Something along the lines of the things of this world are all temporary and subject to decay, but what is above and within, regarding trusting in God, is eternal. 

                I know believing for some can be a challenge.  Like many, we grew up believing in God, but didn’t go to church, but also didn’t have discussions regarding at home.  As such, we learned about life from very secular points of view, not realizing at the time there was a reason for that, including why the bible was taken out of the classroom. For some reason, at a young age, I asked some questions.  One was how did I get here and who could tell me?  For some reason, I realized, perhaps at seven years of age, that “people” could not answer my questions.  Well, they could answer, but there would have to be recognition within attesting to the truthfulness of the right answers. In other words, without realizing this for many years, I intuitively knew others could not answer my questions. Only our Father above could answer any questions.

                This reminds me of the man who, walking along the streets of New York, asked a homeless man if he believed in God.  The homeless man replied:  Of course.  Who do you think made me?

                We always have the understanding all around us.

**I was reading an article about all the disinformation being printed and aired, not to mention in curriculums, which is why I so urge parents to home school.

                I remember a passage in Proverbs.  It was about “training up” your children in the way they should live their lives, and when they’re old, they won’t depart.  Yes, I understand how many will look at this, but that’s due in a great part to the disinformation they’ve lived.  If we’re honest, believe in God, and raise our own children in such a home, living honestly and integrity, the children will grow up with good beliefs and habits which will last a life time.  Okay, here’s the flip side.  If parents aren’t honest, following the rabbit of reason along the trail of understanding, not sharing the bible so at least they’re aware and have read some, and maintaining integrity and honesty, sending their children to public indoctrination education camps, allowing the corrupt world to fasten into their brains, the difficulties they’ll have will be compounded exponentially.  It will be like The Matrix.  They’ll have trouble with the tape instilled in their brains warring against decency, morality, and integrity.  Oh, it starts very early in life.  Prayers.

To go horseback riding in such a place.

From time to time.

**Though having visited the Grand Canyon, I’ve always wanted to trek along and through it on horseback. Perhaps, one day we shall.

                Memory has some interesting qualities.  I’ve heard/read that often, the memory is unlike the real.  More so, the further we’re removed from those events, the memory is even further removed.  But I wonder how much of that is due to our own emotions, thinking about those times, and perhaps our hopes and thoughts about those times.  More on this in a little bit.

                I think memory, in part, is where we get the idea of time:  past, present, and future.  We remember things that have happened, and that also gives us the idea of what might happen in the future.  Yet, in a sense, there is no past or future, for we only live in the present.  Always in the now.

                However this happens, we “retain” memory of events, but those memories are not the events themselves.  They’re what we’ve observed, perhaps reacted to, and so forth, for I’ve been wondering why during those early years, some things I remember but others are long forgotten. Perhaps, some things had an “oddity” about them, other’s were new and filled with wonder, and some created reactions.

                For instance, during my third year on this planet, I remember my father holding me up at a farm, looking at some what to me were large pigs (Of course, that was because I was tiny.), and when I was placed back on the ground, how large they appeared close up.  I also have a few other memories of that day, but that’s it.  Over 99% of my third year is gone or hidden somehow, perhaps somewhere in my brain cells but not consciously privy to me.  And like many, I can think of other years where only one or two things return upon pondering. 

Decades later, we visited that old farm, and I think there was a pig or two, but of course, being much taller and older, my new memories vary from the older ones. But I still had a fondness for that time, when I was little.

                When I once returned to a place we’d lived for several years, which I thoroughly enjoyed walking down memory lane so to speak, I also noticed that some things were not as I remembered.  Some were, like the tree we spent many an afternoon climbing and playing tag, even building tree forts.  However, things and spaces I remembered being far larger were small upon returning.  And a couple of people I did remember had changed, though that might just be time and tide. 

                But there’s another aspect.  Perhaps many readers can relate.  How we view people.  Sometimes, we might have a view of someone, yet upon seeing them again, find a different aspect that was there when we first saw them, but changed in memory, that upon seeing them again, altered our conceptions while away. 

                But to a degree, and I’ve been noticing this more, that also occurs right when people are talking to one another, which I imagine, leads to changes in memory as the “thinker” is doing something in their brain we’re not privy to.  I’ll share it this way.  We have a neighbor, that I first liked, but now avoid (I don’t look to avoid, but simply no longer look to meet up and talk.).  I think he’s a nice enough fellow, but after the first couple of small chats, he looks at us differently.  Something’s changed.  Early on, we just made a few comments, talked a little about college football or the weather, and parted after a bit.  Neighbors you know.  However, since then, he’s always talking about himself, his career, and so forth, though we never indicated a great desire to know all about him and his life.  That’s something he did in his own head.  And his perception of us has changed.  I gather, he sees us as people to discuss his life without end, a conversation he’s having in his head whether we’re there or not.  And as such, he doesn’t really see us anymore.  Certainly not in the present.

                And I think, most if not all of us, do that to some degree.  We see people.  And we see people as we would like to see them, or perhaps in not liking them, we see them in ways that support our not liking them.  For instance, a college friend of mine I used to think was a very good friend, and so, I had good memories when apart, looked forward to seeing him again as when fishing, hunting, or just hanging out with friends and family.  However, as we grew older and apart, finding disagreements increasing, I noticed both of us becoming critical of the other.  I gathered, that supports whatever narrative is going on inside our brains.  But is that the truth or simply a means of fitting the world as we would see it? 

                Because, I had experimented, to a degree, with this.  A friend and his significant other are often together.  While I enjoy talking with him, I didn’t as much with her, for she was always critical of others, always trying to find fault and correct.  However, I decided since she’s with my friend, I will make the effort.  And guess what.  We found some commonalities, argued a few times, but more times we were working to help one another with the business.  And now, when people talk about them, I say she’s a nice person.  Yes, she’s critical, but she’s well-meaning.  But what changed?

                Our memories, as I see it, are both the events but how we reacted, what we noticed, and what connected to whatever is going on inside of us at the time.  But as a simple recording of events, I’m not as certain.  For when we “think” of the past, which did happen, but only when it was in the present, which means no longer exists. Except in our brains. But not entirely. For there’s another quality. For what we do we always do in the present, and in that, echoes.

**How much of our lives are affected by memories: both those we remember fondly and those we wish to let go? Hmmm…..

As time passes, our sense of things change….

                This should be shorter.  Perhaps. The older I get, with time passing, the more I notice we’re realizing things are not as we imagined in our youth.  In fact, I might even say that when I was young, I might have been closer to “reality” prior to all the things in this world, which may have altered how I saw things.  Perhaps.  And perhaps, somehow, I started asking the wrong questions: the media, school, advertisers, and so forth telling us this and that is important, but sometimes finding myself not motivated as they made seem regular. In school, I was often a day-dreamer, but I think I just wasn’t “plugged in” so to speak. But one thing I believe, that no amount of thinking, wishing, and analyzing changes anything. 

**I have thought about Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn who could not be changed by all of communist Russia, remaining free within. He once mentioned a man the Kremlin tried to break, putting him in prison and mental health facilities, but he couldn’t be convinced. So, the Soviet officials wanted him out of the country, but according to Solzhenitsyn, he refused until they let out all his comrades out of those psychiatric wards as well, or something along those lines. Real integrity.

                For instance, how many people wish for a different life?  How many believe that if they go “there,” or could return to an earlier time and place, things might be different? Maybe bettter?  Of course, if you had been living in the Soviet Union, or North Korea, the opportunity to leave and live in say… Sweden or America would be a very positive opportunity, and in that case, would really be different.  Even better. But in all cases, as one relative shared before, wherever you go, there you are.  The meaning of this is you will always be with yourself, that the decisions we make are our decisions. And therefore, in a sense, people can make good choices wherever they are.

                I find the concept of here and there interesting.  As I see it, in a sense, there is no “there.”  Why?  Because in whichever direction we travel, whether we walk, drive, go beneath the oceans to the bottom, or land on the moon, it’s always here.  When Neal Armstrong stepped out onto the moon, that incredible voyage, he was caught up in the excitement, and forever after his life might have been changed. But from a certain perspective, no. Depending upon what he learned during those times. Everywhere we go, we’re always “here.”  He learned a ton, worked very hard, and the journey was a lesson for all, but the question is what did the man take away from the experience that is true and real? In other words, did he “get lost” in the emotions and attention, or was he more grounded?

                Then, the next question.  The location of the universe, something I asked when much younger.  Actually, what I asked was what’s at the end of the universe? A friend during our college (I believe.) years asked where the universe is located.  Good question… maybe.  In other words, where is the universe and in relation to what?  Or, is it the universe and nothing else?  Then, what is nothing?  But in asking those questions, I felt an “off sense” like those are questions not to ask, so I stopped asking.  Because I think the question is a detour from what is real and honest. Too much intellectual. Too much playing with imagination. Not real wondering. Maybe.  Then, there’s the idea that space is curved, which then raises the thought that how we see things, imagine them, and talk about them is not as they appear to us.  Or, perhaps how we see things is as they are, but going further and further, the mathematics lead to other realizations.  If we are willing to study enough. 

But there’s something else I’ll touch on lightly here. Although I’ve taken a good amount of mathematics, it’s nothing compared to physicists and engineers. However, we do sense things that I believe leads to mathematics. Or, another way to say, perhaps mathematics are ways to relate to the world around and in us. But though we might never work such amazing equations, we do sense things that are real but can’t put words or numbers to the music. As such, though I’d need bottles of excedrine or tylenol to understand a tiny portion of Eistein’s mathematics, I do believe there is within us an understanding, whether it can be described with math, that opens us to understanding things without putting numbers on paper. The numbers are there, in sense, but we can understand also without all of that. **We’ll leave it at that.

                I’ll try something obvious to make a point.  I imagine most everyone has seen the ocean and looked out at the horizon.  I once held up a yard stick (3 feet long) up to the horizon and do you know what I saw?  The horizon is straight.  Then I asked myself, why does it look curved to me:  very much so, yet the yard stick is right along the horizon?  In other words, as I look, I see curvature, but it’s also perfectly straight. And that’s because our eyes can detect distance. *What I mean is the fact that every point along the horizon is equidistant from us, though straight, indicates curvature. If the world were a cube, then every point along the horizon would get further away the more we move from center. Then, we wouldn’t see curvature.

                You see, that tells us the world is round even though it’s right next to the straight edge.  Our eyes can see to the horizon, but the distance to the edge of our vision is always the same, telling our brains the world is round.  If the world were truly straight, like a cube, then our eyes would see a straight horizon.  It’s almost as if our eyes and brains are made to function and notice the difference, even from such long distances.  What is straight by a ruler or straightedge is curved in reality.

                Now, this last point isn’t the same as the ones above, but I’m using it to illustrate the idea that how we perceive is often settled by thinking a certain way all of one’s life, yet isn’t the real.  In other words, we can believe something, live by it, but it can also grate on us because it isn’t real. Like going to Greece or Italy isn’t really going to change one’s life, but imagining such things is a function of something else going on.  And in life, we’re told all kinds of things we start to believe, but they’re not the real. Like football doesn’t change anyone’s life and it isn’t the way off the streets. Because if it were true, then the problems we have are far more serious and we need to look at that.

                Now the last part of this article, and I didn’t know I was going here.  It’s just a pondering.  I’ve looked at this idea from time to time, but not too long.  The idea is of heaven.  We’ve heard people ask where heaven is.  Also, the other place.  I am learning not to imagine, though sometimes the brain does as it pleases, and therefore to make into something what I don’t know and have no experience.  But like many, since the point has come up from time to time, I have thought about this. 

                It sort of goes back to wherever we go, there we are.  Whether I’m on the moon, across the universe and within a nebula, or sitting at home typing, I am always here.  No there.  Here.  Here is where I am always.  Here is where each reader always exists. Not there. You’re here.

                I have thought, upon seeing some people, that a person I was looking at is already in heaven:  in a sense.  Meaning, the person is honest, at peace, and seems to always be present and unconcerned with unnecessary things.  Always here.  Not looking to “find anything.” 

                I think I saw something about this in the bible.  About looking for the Kingdom of God first, then all else shall be added.  I think what we’re looking for is always with us:  right here and right now, whether we’re aware or looking.  Two people, standing side by side, one is at peace, honest, and not looking to find the grass greener on the other side of the fence. 

**Here is the last part for this article. I remember a long-ago friend saying something about looking for answers here, there, and so forth. Later, he gathered he could not find the answers wherever he went. Whether through tons of library books, on television, to the heights of mountains, in the ocean, or on Mars. And no one had his answers. So, he stopped looking. And I’ve wondered if that passage in the bible, the one above, is the meaning.

**Prayers.

Perspectives across the spectrum of dimensions.

With these articles, we are always hoping to improve the quality of learning and discussions. When people thoughtfully reason and think for themselves, mindful and appreciative of others, learning also from others, perhaps more so, more and more people look to clarity and honesty.

                There is a concept I’ve pondered upon from time to time, and have attempted to put into words in such a manner that it be easily digestible, but more so, that those who read, who understand, and already have thought about in their work and readings have additional supportive ideas of which to share with others.  And I think this is important, to a great degree, due to the overuse of simplicity in explanations and ideas concerning high tech and enormous ventures in waiting, which are far more complex than most people realize. 

**I’m seeing the problems in attempting to make concepts easy to understand. A great difficulty I see becomes too many people thinking they know far more than they do when real scientists and engineers have spent their lives to learn and understand. I believe there is a strong need to demonstrate just how complex much of what we don’t understand, which will/may have the positive effect of thoughtfulness, appreciation, and realization to learning in real time.

                We’ll start this way.  One of my favorite movies was “Flight of the Phoenix.”  In the movie, which never would happen in the real-world, a designer and manufacturer of small planes (i.e. Small planes people fly for recreation and competition, perhaps some only a couple or three feet long.) is guiding the others to “fix and repair” a broken, and very real, plane in the desert, such that, they can fly away to safety.  In fact, I believe they’re attempting a reconfiguration without any engineering proofs, schematics, or testing. **So many technological problems with the movie.  The movie itself is excellent, hosts an amazing cast of characters, and for those of us watching who know little about aeronautics, a definite watch.  Well, for the rest of us as well.  It was just so good.

**For fun, recreation, and competition.

**A Boeing 747 in stages of production.

                Okay, here’s the concept.  From small to large.  The amount of study, design, and research, and testing, testing, testing that goes on with new models and designs are often extensive.  For instance, in the above example, this man (The first one in “Flight of the Phoenix.”) who designs and makes what some called toy airplanes would have worked extensively with designs.  And through all of that, testing, redesigning, talks with other toy airplane engineers, and further testing, such that, they put out a good product consumers will enjoy.

However, as extensive as that may be, to go to full-sized airplanes, more so those that will carry human beings, like Boeing 747s, a whole host of technology will be involved. **If ever one has the opportunity, I would encourage to look thoroughly through a large airplane, listening to a technician explain all the parts (I have a friend who worked on jet fuel systems, listening in rapt attention to his explanations. I had a lot of questions which he further detailed the answers.). What works on the small scale does not work on the large scale, though some principles may be the same. Simply stated, when dimensions change, a lot must be learned and taken into consideration.

When NASA was testing those F-1 engines to ulilize in the Saturn V rockets, the problems they faced when they increased dimensions grew dramatically.  Someone might say, but it’s the same engine, just larger in scale.  And that thinking, which I think pervades with so many people, the idea of simplicity, is the problem.  Unless we actually study, work on, and are involved in all the minutia of developing engines on a larger scale, we can never fully understand due to a lack of practical application and testing. **It’s always one thing to think and read about, a far different experience in practical application.

**From October Sky. His buddies are already behind a barrier.

**One part of the Saturn V rocket for assembly. Just looking at the above “toy” rocket for competition and this vessel part to reach the moon should make obvious the incredible shift in necessary information from small to much larger scale.

We can see the same ideas of rockets.  For those who remember the movie “October Sky,” some young men worked on developing rockets to compete in competition, the hopes being of learning but also perhaps going to a university, perhaps joining NASA.  Some did.  But what might have seemed easy on paper they soon discovered was an entirely different experience in the real world as rocket after rocket exploded.  That’s life.  On paper.  Then, the real.  And the real is what matters.

**Look at the detailed components of only one area of the Saturn V rocket.

I can only imagine what a person working on toy rockets for experimentation would think had they then seen the Saturn V rocket designed to send men to the moon.  Seeing all the components would stagger the mind.  But for those who truly love science, they would want to learn, go to a university, and perhaps join a company to work on such technology. **Engineers spend years developing parts for such endeavors, then reworking, reworking, and more reworking and testing. Then more testing, reworking, and more testing. On and on and on… for as long as is needed to get it right. Then, often, more problems or necessary improvements.

**Lab testing

**Far more complex.

The same goes with climate, ecology, global anything.  The previous article was written for people to consider dynamics most of us, including me, have not much experience, except in observation and reading.  But it becomes easy to see there is much to learn and much we don’t understand, though we’re growing in understanding:  slowly. 

This article is to increase awareness that going from small to large causes much more to consider.  While I can be taught that CO2 is a greenhouse gas, and experiments in a bottle might be designed to demonstrate a heat holding element, going to a planet is a far greater complexity.  What we can learn in the small-scale, we have so much more to understand on the larger scale, and more than we can ever imagine on a planetary scale, more so when we have so much to learn about space.  **And the mathematics involved. Wow! At my age, I’ve forgotten a lot of the mathematics. But I will say, while I do understand much, the mathematics would take years of more study followed by years of applications.

And the other concept:  testing.  As the plane maker tested designs, maybe hundreds of times, he/she would discover additional changes to work on the human support scale, then testing, testing, testing, perhaps for years due to all the components, interactions, and overall maneuverability in the air and with takeoff/landing.  Imagine if those same plane designers were to attempt creating airplanes that could hold all the people of say… Texas.  Or Nebraska.  Or California.  Many more factors enter the equations.  So it does with building rockets in high school to enter the science fair.  To go from those models, with extensive testing, to the Saturn V rocket to carry men to the moon. *Well, going from books, labs, and science experiments to an entire planet is complexity beyond our comprehension.

**Greenhouse.

**Far more to understand.

So, we understand CO2:  up to a point.  And we have so much more to understand about other gases, elements, and interactions with the environment and space. We understand the greenhouse effect:  up to a point.  However, as we go from small, what we can observe and test in say… a bottle, or a sealed room, then to city-wide, but then to global, the factors involved, in part supported by the previous article, tells a whole other tale.  We can test small.  We can’t test globally.  And for those who would, listening to honest scientists (i.e. geologists, astrophysicists, and more…), they would learn the incredible amount of data and questions that arise.  We would learn what we know, what we don’t know, and what cannot be explained though simple television shows. 

**But while we’re learning to appreciate….

** I was talking with a friend. The more I “observe” television by era, the manner in which people talk today, the more we’re becoming aware of the influence the media and politicians have on opinions. I wonder how many realize the battle against our second amendment rights was already in full-tilt in 1950’s Hollywood.

**To honestly learn, one must be aware and not influenced by opinions, but to sift through information, checking and testing, always thinking for ourselves: honestly. But thinking for yourself is not to be a selfish endeavor, but thoughtful and mindful of others, helping and receiving help when needed.

And amazing facts along the way.

**Many choices to garner information.

                Like many a novice, we still are curious, and with time, appreciate the efforts of the many true scientists sharing the information they’ve collected with us.   For myself, I find the best way to go about reading and researching is to take in the “facts” and data, as is, and hopefully collaborate with other sources.  But I also must remind myself that the information available is “defined” by our ability to utilize  a growing pool of resources, how scientists interpret, and separating data, information, and opinion.  As best I can, when I read, observe, research, and listen to speakers, I leave the information as presented, adding nothing of my opinions (at first), allowing for changes should new information arrive. For I have my own opinions, so I try to separate by just reading and observing first, letting ideas and considerations occur after.

                For instance, the Hubble telescope, launched in the early 1990’s, opened a huge opportunity to gather information on our solar system, galaxy, and the universe: gathering information on space dust, nebulas, comets, and a growing outer world. However, as I was reading, I questioned the reliability of information as the gathering is always based upon our ability to devise technology to collect.  In other words, while they’re collecting, what are they not seeing, what are they not detecting, and how accurate is the information they have collected?  We must always appreciate what we do gather, but also realize there are things beyond our knowing, for we keep finding out more and more. And these are some question I’m certain they ask as they endeavor to obtain more and more information.

**Effects from terrestrial and outer space.

For instance, when the Hubble telescope first attempted seeing stars, nebulas, and other objects, mistakes and quality affected the pictures, and so we sent astronauts into orbit to “repair” and amend. But here’s a question. What we “see” out there is light dependent, but also on the quality of our instrumentation. In other words, we get pictures, and say this is what’s out there. But we can only report on the “light” we collect (and light has varying wavelenghths), how well the telescope organizes the light, and remember there are things not included for we don’t have the understanding as yet.

**Some data available with current technology.

                This article is a bit tough for me to write.  There’s so much to learn and so much I have yet to see, which will never be what many real scientists have learned, and never what future generations will garner.  However, in looking at the pictures of our magnetic field, the solar wave influences on them, and our atmospheric levels, then reading, I grow constantly amazed at how many “things” affect our planet.  Not only the planet itself, what’s beneath, but also what’s beyond our skies.  For instance, the changing from atmospheric layer to layer, how cosmic radiation and the sun affect, the interactions of layers, our gravity, and the magnetic distortions that come with changes.  **And what are cosmic radiation, where do they originate, and what is the interplay with our planet?

                I was reading this part about how the Hubble telescope has difficulty taking pictures of space approaching the South Atlantic due to a changing magnetism/gravity there, different from other areas of the Earth.  What this tells me is our own planet is not the completely stable orb we take for granted, that energy is in flux, and that we only know a small amount.  For instance, gravity is not the same throughout the planet.  Yes, that means depending upon where you’re standing, you might weigh a bit more or less.  Of course, that might only mean a tenth of a pound, but for those vegan dieting gurus, they can log the data.  But the question is, how do scientist catalogue all the data?  Soil interactions and chemical changes?  Atmospheric levels and the interplay?  Understanding the effects of cosmic radiation, solar radiation, and all the cycles and changes that bombard and are a part of this planet? And how do we, if we choose, to separate the effects?

                And here’s something else we write to encourage more and more people to learn about science and space.  Much of this is new information.  Remember, the Hubble telescope has only been in space about 30 years, but also undergoing repairs and advancements as technology improves.  And just a hundred years ago, I believe, most people thought the Earth was the center of the universe.  We’re still in our infancy of understanding our own planet much less the universe.  And this is exciting, for young people growing up have much to learn.  Furthermore, while some will be akin to me:  enjoying the learning process and appreciating the efforts of other true scientists, some will decide to pursue a career in the science fields.  We could certainly gain from more real scientists.

**Cooperating with the Sun and solar system.

                Let me share a small item from the book regarding the Van Allen belts which is in the second to the last picture.  “The Van Allen belts, stable trapping zones in which particles bounce back and forth along the lines of force whilst rotating about the Earth.  Electrons complete this rotation in times from 1 – 10 hours in the sense of Earth’s rotation, whilst protons move in the retrograde sense with a period of 5 seconds to 30 minutes.”  There’s much more, including forms and sources of energy, and this is just one aspect of a picture with much left out.  But it’s a source of information and we can learn.  We’ll learn more the more we delve into available information.

**Again, what I guess I’m trying to impress upon those I meet and discuss is we Earthlings are in the infancy stage of understanding our own planet and solar system. Our own weather is affected by so many things: under the Earth (i.e. magma, a metal core, underwater volcanoes, etc.), on the Earth, in our atmosphere, and beyond, not to mention the interplay and attempting to quantify and qualify the effects (**I wonder how many readers know the scientists utilize an “error” range, meaning what they write down often has a range of possibles?). I obviously cannot imagine what might be discovered in the years ahead, but it’s interesting. And perhaps others will find the reading enlightening on two of more levels: 1) We have so much yet to learn, and 2) It can be an enjoyable and wonderful ride, with patience, along the discovery curve.

**One of the things I’ve hopefully been getting better at is the realization I don’t know anything. Yes, I have done this and that, learned this and that, but in the overall scheme of things, like all so many, we really don’t know anything. And that’s okay. There will never come a time, in this life, where we’ll know a tiny fraction about the wonders of our planet and space. But it’s fun to learn, opening understanding and appreciation.

**Following the rabbit of reason along the trail of understanding.

**When we become more aware of what we know and what we don’t know, then we set about the resources to better find and understand.

When family is everything.

                While growing up, I never watched westerns or any of the old west shows.  While some of my peers knew about John Wayne, Audie Murphy, and others, I was more into the contemporary shows of the time.  It wasn’t until well into adulthood that I finally saw a John Wayne film, which came after some of the Clint Eastwood’s spaghetti western movies.  And I think, the only reason I began watching those was having watched the Dirty Harry series about a San Francisco policeman trying to clean up the city.

**The waiting was well worth it.

                As far as reading is concerned, I don’t think I ever touched a western novel until leaving the teaching profession (I think I attempted a couple of times, but readily returned them.).  At that time, I was reading Lee Child’s Jack Reacher series (Read them all up until the last couple, about 24 or so.), but also getting interested in more of the non-fiction tomes.  Then, one day, as I was looking for something new and different to read, I decided to try Louis L’Amour.  I think I tried it in part because I knew my grandfather had been a fan of those Zane Grey novels, but I couldn’t get into them, so I thought to try it this way.  And besides, I had recently watched a couple of Louis L’Amour movies, with Tom Selleck, an excellent pick for those stories, and figured it couldn’t hurt to try.  You just never know.

**What I missed in my youth I so much appreciated as an adult.

                As of today, I’ve probably read about 45 of his books, some twice, a few three times, and I may be getting set to read one a 4^th time, it’s so good.  I can’t explain it.  I just realized, though he writes shorter books, they’re packed with reality, history, but also well-told stories.  Admittedly, there are a couple I’ve tried and returned, but that’s always the case with most authors.  But the majority I will read again. I only wish he had written longer books.

                For this article, I’m sharing “Lonely on the Mountain,” by Louis L’Amour.  This is my second or third read, but I am moving through it a couple/three chapters at a time, taking my time.  I tend to read three books or more at a time, still working on the Apollo missions to the moon.  To some degree, I do that because his books are shorter and I like to stretch them out a bit, sometimes pondering upon the story while out back working in the vegetable garden or down by the lake fishing.  Oh, we have both fall/winter gardens going.  The first ones have sprouted.  We’re growing peas, kale, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes.  Big potato fan these days.  They grow so easily (just cut one up with at least on eye on each and bury them a couple inches deep), but they make for a variety of dishes.

                “Lonely on the Mountain is a story about the Sacket clan.  In this book, one of the Sackets, Logan I believe, is bringing cattle to be sold but has happened upon difficult times.  But hard times means more determination, for once their word is given, they follow through.  As such, the brothers/clan are helping:  Orrin bringing supplies from one direction and Tyrell and Tell Sacket bringing in the cattle.  They enlist help, but even as such, a possibility of Tyrell and Tell dying in a stampede is weighing heavy on Orrin’s heart, but he’s determined, with help and adversity, to recoup the cattle and help Logan out, hoping to find sign that his brothers, Tell and Tyrell survived the stampede.  In the Sacket clan, no matter where one is or what might be happening, the others help out.  And since Tell and Tyrell were bringing the cattle, the job now falls to Orrin until he finds them or must complete with his hired men.

                This last aspect is what’s excellent about the Sacket stories.  Doesn’t matter where one is, what has happened, if they discover one of their kin is in trouble, they check it out:  no matter how long it takes.  No matter what they have to do.  And they stand side by side through thick and thin, but always require the others work and do their best.

                Louis L’Amour also did a fantastic job of weaving three plots together with the main plot, but also including the lives of others as happens in real life.  Orrin is also trying to help a lady he met along the way to find her brother, a man who went west hunting for gold, which was something very common in those days, and there are others attempting to gain through the work of others, making their lives more difficult.

                Another aspect I like are the characters are very real, but told without all the extra author opinions we often find slowing down other stories.  In other words, the stories move and move quickly, sometimes as we might think in real life.

                There are a few characters Louis L’Amour stuck with in his writing.  The Sackets was one of them.  And he covered their stories through many years, even before America became America, covering some of the real history of our country in these writings.   This one is an excellent read.

**Glenn Ford. He I discovered long after John Wayne and Tom Selleck. He has a unique style.

**Often, many of the more classical stories return people to what’s really important in life.

**Prayers.