Winning Words 8/31/11
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” (Thoreau, quoted by Arlo ‘n’ Janis) It’s surprising how many philosophical thoughts you can find in the funny papers. Thoreau believed in the value of simple living in the out of doors. The result of Arlo spending time outside is the comment of Janis, “I’ve never seen so many chiggers.” Try to ignore life’s chiggers, while you look at the big picture. ;-) Jack

FROM PRJS IN MICHIGAN: Again Reality is ignored....the beholder becomes more important than the object itself...that way, of course, there can be no truth and we are all free to believe whatever we want to believe and it is just great.....////FROM JACK: Which vision of the world is correct? Yours? Mine? Thoreau's?

FROM HS IN MICHIGAN: Clever////FROM JACK: I always liked to watch "Leave It To Beaver," with the Clever family.

FROM HAWKEYE GEORGE: Dogs see with their nose.////FROM JACK: Somehow, the thought of that doesn't appeal to me. But, I guess it's true.////MORE FROM HG: Just watch dogs being near each other. Plus I attended a fire dept demo by a dog trained to find accelerants.////FROM JACK: ...and drugs, cadavers....and food. I used to play hide and go seek with my dog. We both had fun.

FROM OUTHOUSE JUDY: Thoreau lived a mile away from home and went back there often for lunches and dinners. He wasn't as alone as everyone thinks. Sometimes what you look at isn't what you see and sometimes what you see isn't what you look at. An aside: I don't like chiggers at all! I'm not sure while God added them to the list of needed things on this planet. I'm sure He had His reasons!////FROM JACK: I didn't know that about Thoreau. About chiggers..."Who has understood the mind of the LORD, or instructed him as his counselor?" Isaiah 40:13

FROM PLAIN FOLKS CHESTER: My favorite philosophical thoughts come from Pogo. The very best is, "We have met the enemy and they is us."////FROM JACK: You're right! One of the best strips ever. It had more of an edge that feel-good "Peanuts," although that Charles Schulz put philosophy in it.

FROM BLAZING OAKS: HA! My comment at our Church picnic was, "I've never seen so many FLIES!" I am not a big fan of eating in the great outdoors, but unavoidable this time, as I was in charge...:-( "If NOAH had been truly wise, he would have swatted those two flies!!!" And the mosquitoes and chiggers, too. But as to REALLY seeing: "Focusing on the tiniest details, finding magic in even the smallest inspirations, embracing the briefest moments----that's where passion is" from THE POWER OF SMALL by Linda Kaplan. Some truth in that...////FROM JACK: What interests me most about the Noah story is not the ark and the animals, but... What does it mean?