I’ve come to believe the entire purpose of my morning cup of coffee is to get me to the next one. Even with the many instances I’ve stopped drinking the stuff completely, I always come back to those two cups.

Maybe my brain has always been a bit slow, or sluggish, requiring some kind of external encouragement to get it going. Whatever the case, I take solace in knowing I’m not alone on in my morning endeavour.

There’s something about a morning ritual, even one as innocuous as coffee, that centers us for the day. It starts us off on certain footing, allowing us to tackle whatever may come.

Ritual is at the heart of human experience. The one qualifier that unites us even if the details differ across households and cultures. It unknowingly gives us a sense of purpose and helps us make sense of the world.

It may not always give us the desired outcomes (in fact, it probably rarely does), but helps us grasp a sense of time that is much larger than the moment we live in.

Sure, two cups of coffee isn’t much of a ritual and almost seems silly to call it one. But hey, it’s mine.

Maybe there’s too much of a population today for this to happen, yet that’s precisely the reason it should.

When you look at the broader strokes of human history, it is filled with nameless, faceless people who merely lived their lives. A few pockets of stories—some great, some not, but nothing more remarkable than a few lines in a historian’s book.

Yet, periodically, you get a culture bomb of a figure: Plato, Alexander, Michelangelo, Cleopatra, DaVinci, Isaac Newton. A litany of biographies that fill libraries and shape history. But, why so few? And why so few today?

You would think with the unlimited access to knowledge and seemingly endless opportunities at our disposal (not to mention the tools), the great figures of the past would be the stepping stones as opposed to the goal. I am dumbfounded that we are on the threshold of unlocking some big mysteries of the universe and yet science teachers are still pulling their hair on trying to engage students.

That we are facing some of our greatest challenges and endless people are claiming to be bored.

Have we become so accustomed to an easy life that we no longer strive for more? Or we have we always felt this way?

In a world of eight billion, it would seem that some culture bombs of figures should emerge to shape the future and while there are many great people today, what we need are extraordinary ones.

Where are they?

“I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.”

John Adams

I think it’s quite fortunate that at this time, in this part of the world, we can raise generations that do not need to prepare for war. The sacrifice of the brave who faced the reality of utter carnage, the likes of which the world still can’t wrap its head around, has given us the freedom to shape a future of our own design.

Yes, there is still war in this world and there may continue to be war for some time, but it’s not a desirable course of action when you consider the global response. Statistically, it’s actually one of our most, if not most, peaceful times.

The efforts we’ve been making to build a more peaceful world are working, and will continue to work, if we keep going. We just need to constantly remind ourselves of what has been and be thankful for those who believed a future like this could be possible. 

If we’ve never had to prepare for war, let us remember why.

This is a book that’s been on my to-read list for ages and I’m finally mustering the courage (well, patience) to read it. There’s no doubt Wallace was incredibly bright and l absolutely loved the insights from his essays and interviews, but to dive into a brick of a book that became the siren call of the hipster generation?

I had my serious hesitations.

For one, I didn’t want to fall prey to a book that everyone claims to get, but doesn’t.
Or has on their shelf with the implicit claim they’ve read it, but haven’t, which, I think is  the more likely candidate.

However, curiosity got the better of me and I finally picked it up.

This is turning into an excellent decision because I keep finding myself wanting to dive into it at every chance. There’s something compelling about the writing and the incoherence of the greater plot, which serves as a reminder there’s still a market for people who want something more than the usual formulas. It’s a breath of fresh air in a world built on endless sequels, remakes and series that just won’t end.

At the time of its release, the world was ready for a book like it. While it might not stand up today, the core of what it stood for is desperately needed again because we need to be challenged out of our familiarity once more.

My favourite lesson of the year is when I give my students an existential crisis by letting them know that all choice is an illusion. I spend the better part of the class dissecting why their lives are completely deterministic before ending with,

“You are nothing more than a predictable cog in the machine of the universe.”

Their reactions are something to behold.

I mean, last year, one of my students informed me that he didn’t sleep for three nights thinking about it. Not one wanting to cause harm to any student, I eventually land the plane where they start to think for themselves and have them play back at me.

Although the prevailing consensus right now really does suggest free will is an illusion, it’ll just take one more discovery before we pedal back and reconsider the whole argument.

It’s happened many times before and will happen many times again. After all, when it comes to understanding the universe, we are always at the beginning of infinity.
And when it comes to understanding God, we’re always further away than that.

There is a choice in all we do as long as we open ourselves to the possibility.

One of my biggest health worries is making sure my mind stays in-tact. Watching my grandfathers succumb to ailments where they lose all sense of reality was a wake-up call.

I suppose this is one of the reasons I became a voracious reader, but it turns out there’s a myriad of ways to protect the brain and unfortunately, none of those can beat genetics. However, there’s a huge advantage to living today and that’s access to decades of research alongside medical advancements.

The real irony to watch for is getting so stressed about it that the stress exasperates the problem. So what to do?

To start, a variety of everyday actions that will build a healthy brain and body:

Some exercise
A variety of nutritious food
Connecting with those I love
Challenging the mind
Self-reflection
Hobbies
Finding the joy in the every day

For me, the biggest thing to avoid is isolating myself in my own world and forgetting that what happens in my head is of my own making. To protect my mind, I need to step out of it.

I can remember snow on some Halloween nights growing up. Having to layer your costume with warm clothing, having it bulge out, all in the pursuit of. free candy.

Oh, the things you would do just to claim your stash.

It would all be worth it when you got home and felt the tingling of your extremities as they warmed up while dumping a mountain of salt & sugar on your floor. Little did you know that your parents would secretly siphon off some of the bounty while you slept.

As a Canadian, it was the one time of year where you didn’t care what the weather was doing. Snow? Rain? Windstorm?

You’d take it all.

Then one day your childhood escapes as you decide not to go out. The weather suddenly seems annoying and while you still long for the free treats, you settle for other things: giving out candy, party with friends, a movie night.

The adult world approaches and it’s time to put away childhood things.

But…

every snowy Halloween, you remember what it was like to be young again.

There comes a point when you must accept when things are coming to an end. For me, I’ve been invested in young people and Religious Education for twenty years, which… I think… is a pretty big chunk of life.

I love what I do and will keep fighting to make it the most enjoyable class I can. I’m proud of the work I’ve done and certainly proud of all my students—I mean, they survived a class with me!

But the writing is on the wall.

I’m in one of the last vestiages of my position in the country and the end is coming. Not for me as a teacher, but for teaching something I absolutely love. There’s no need to point fingers at why because that will just spiral into an extended rant and I’ve moved beyond that at this point.

While there’s still a few tricks up my sleeve, there’s also a need to prepare for what’s next. This is about reinvention.

Age forces that upon us as we become more experienced and self reflective, but the rapid changes in our world also cause us to adapt. My generation were raised by those who prepared us for the thirty-year career and pension. Today, we’re teaching kids to leverage their skills for new positions when their current one becomes stale (or disappears).

The end of the line isn’t really the end, but the final stop on this train before you must transfer somewhere else. And right now, I’m checking all my luggage and preparing for a new train to board.

It may be a few years and I’m going to enjoy every moment of it that I can, but I’ll be ready.

I recently took my son to his first martial arts tournament. As someone who loved the sport, but also permanently injured by it, I’m happy to support him without pushing him. There was a great joy in my heart to watch him stand in front of the judges, speak loud and confidently, then show his technique.

He is not the type to speak in front of crowds, at all, but in this instance, he had the courage to do so.

While it’s been documented people have a greater fear of public speaking than death, there comes a point when we must all confront that fear.

It may be an impassioned to speech to a crowd.
An article for the world to see.
Or a demonstration for judges.

While I’ve always found a comfort in front of an audience (magician, teacher… kind of goes with the territory), my writing hasn’t found the same level. I’ve hidden behind the excuse of improving quality instead of gathering the courage to stand and deliver.

This is a lesson I am now learning from my children.

After all, it’s never too late to learn and it’s always a good time to show courage.

Many moons ago, there was a satisfaction I gained from using my skills as a magician to shatter people’s perception of reality. While no master of the craft, by any stretch, the philosophical underpinnings of bringing awe through illusion kept me satisfied and insanely curious. It kept my mind occupied for years.

Unfortunately, with the commitments of life and saturation of online video content that spoils every magician’s routine, I fear the mystery is gone. The awe has been replaced with the act and the achievement of the illusionist today is to appear on a reality TV show in order to fool people.

Is there still good magic out there?

Absolutely. 

But my worry is people aren’t seeking it anymore because they are happy to build a world of illusion around themselves. In fact, they’re content to actively fool themselves. The worry, and the difference, is you ask a magician to pretend their powers are real. When the show is over, you go back to reality.

And right now, reality is becoming a fleeting concept.

Take, for instance, the online world of pornography. This has become the teaching device for young people today, who fail to recognize none of what they are witnessing is real. Not to mention the numerous other issues that results of it—even preferring the digital screen to real intimacy.

Or the fact it’s becoming incredibly easy to isolate yourself in a bubble, accepting social media posts as being indicative of what’s happening in your community instead of actually going out and being in it.

Recently, I went on an old man rant with my students that Civics is a required course for graduating high school and yet, we’re witnessing the lowest voter turnout on all levels of government and a complete failure to understand how our country is even run. People would rather doomscroll the latest TikTok video on the subject, regardless of its accuracy… or in most cases, inaccuracies.

I know my concerns are also shared by those in the tech industry. I mean, that was the whole reason “The Social Dilemma” documentary was produced.

The question I consider is whether we will continue to build this world of illusion, or swing the pendulum back to some semblance of reality?

I, for one, would rather watch a ballgame with my family and neighbours, building a real community with all its joys and flaws, than live in fear and anger over a world of illusion I willingly put myself into.