Facebook and all social media fuel the Ogre of Instant Gratification. Oh, most people will deny it and say they just love to interact with others. Bosh. Balderdash. Rot. Social media encourages vanity and oneupmanship. I know; I was a part of it.

Self-inquiry is best done alone rather than in the company of other people. I just had one too many boring encounters with people rushing to brag of their enlightened state. There is no such thing, if you ask me. Enlightened states care nothing for explanations and proselytizing, not to mention making money in the process.

Vernon Howard did nothing but continually strip us of any ideas that might encourage us to be socially active. His students were fed steady diets of admonitions to “shut up.”

Enough of that for now. Down south we are stuck in a rut of sultry weather and soggy skies. Outdoor workers are unable to get anything much done. Everyone is ready for the coolness of autumn. August cares nothing about what we think. It swelters on.

My neighbor’s butterfly bushes are teeming with vitality, though. I stopped to watch a hummingbird feeding from it. There are bumblebees and smaller bees, big butterflies and tiny yellow ones. They thrive on the heat and humidity, I suppose.

I am still on a break of sorts. Waiting to get my new glasses, still a few weeks away. With no reading to do, I am falling into silence more and more easily. It would be nice to have nothing at all to say.

Vicki Woodyard