ethos and identity
There is an image embeded deep within the perception of this language.
It is a metaphor that continues to trip me out every time I think about it, this image of reflection.
Reflecting.
Recently I have had the kind of life turbulence which creates incredible opportunity for going inside and reflecting on the state of what I like to think of as my soul.
Indulge me for a moment, if you will...
Consciously or unconsciously part of the legacy every native English speaker has inherited from our cultural ancestors all the way back in ancient Greece is a kind of logic, which is reflected in our language, our grammar, and in our tradition of using speaking as a tool for moving the minds of our fellows. Now the Greeks had a cultural mania for isolating the elements of nature, and they (probably meaning Aristotle and whatever traditions he developed on) isolated three parts of effective speaking:
Logos, or (as I understand it at this moment) the logic of your words,
Pathos, your naked emotional appeal,
and
Ethos is the part where you create an aura of authority by explaining who I am, what I have done, and how you know you can believe me.
So recently, with all of this life turbulence swirling around me, and in a state of disorientation I found myself wondering about my ethos.
Who am I really? What have I accomplished so far? What things, monumental and minute have I completed? And which others have I yet to complete? What is it at the core, when everything else is swept away, that makes me what I am?
What I know so far is that I have a history, I have values, I have ideals. And I am not my history, nor my values, nor my ideals.
When my mind is graced with the opportunity to feel the space to relax, really relax, and reflect...when I take advantage of these precious, elastic moments to simply let myself recognize my presence in this moment... when i allow myself to stop playing the game of playing the role of how I think I want to look to an imaginary judge or audience... when I simply breathe and let myself be...
What I know so far is
that I
like you
simply
and purely
am
what
I am...
And you don't have to believe me, or take my word for it.
You can just take a minute or two to reflect
and recognize if it isn't true for you too,
in a way.
It is a metaphor that continues to trip me out every time I think about it, this image of reflection.
Reflecting.
Recently I have had the kind of life turbulence which creates incredible opportunity for going inside and reflecting on the state of what I like to think of as my soul.
Indulge me for a moment, if you will...
Consciously or unconsciously part of the legacy every native English speaker has inherited from our cultural ancestors all the way back in ancient Greece is a kind of logic, which is reflected in our language, our grammar, and in our tradition of using speaking as a tool for moving the minds of our fellows. Now the Greeks had a cultural mania for isolating the elements of nature, and they (probably meaning Aristotle and whatever traditions he developed on) isolated three parts of effective speaking:
Logos, or (as I understand it at this moment) the logic of your words,
Pathos, your naked emotional appeal,
and
Ethos is the part where you create an aura of authority by explaining who I am, what I have done, and how you know you can believe me.
So recently, with all of this life turbulence swirling around me, and in a state of disorientation I found myself wondering about my ethos.
Who am I really? What have I accomplished so far? What things, monumental and minute have I completed? And which others have I yet to complete? What is it at the core, when everything else is swept away, that makes me what I am?
What I know so far is that I have a history, I have values, I have ideals. And I am not my history, nor my values, nor my ideals.
When my mind is graced with the opportunity to feel the space to relax, really relax, and reflect...when I take advantage of these precious, elastic moments to simply let myself recognize my presence in this moment... when i allow myself to stop playing the game of playing the role of how I think I want to look to an imaginary judge or audience... when I simply breathe and let myself be...
What I know so far is
that I
like you
simply
and purely
am
what
I am...
And you don't have to believe me, or take my word for it.
You can just take a minute or two to reflect
and recognize if it isn't true for you too,
in a way.