Davidc

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Hello, I'm David and I guess you are wondering what I am doing in this space.  (In case you are questioning my spiritual credentials, here's a picture of me with the dalai llama).  I am here for two reasons, first as a contributor (sorry, no money, just an [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Ken_Wilber_on_Spiritual_Growth:_A_Christian_Perspective article]) and secondly as a friend (for almost 30 years now) of Rob, the admin of this domain.  Rob and I rose from similar humble beginnings to become what we are today--humble middle-aged old men.  Personally I started out with nothing and still have most of it left (stolen joke).  I am originally from Birmingham, AL and currently live in the outback of rural Mississippi and work at a large university.  I am married, no kids, and have a small zoo of llamas, cats, and a possum (that's Southern for "opossum").[[Image:Celtic4.jpg|right|frame]]

Hello, I'm David and I guess you are wondering what I am doing in this space.  (In case you are questioning my spiritual credentials, here's a picture of me with the dalai llama).  I am here for two reasons, first as a contributor--sorry, no money, just some articles (see links below)--and secondly as a friend (for 30 years now) of Rob, the admin of this domain.  Rob and I rose from similar humble beginnings to become what we are today--humble middle-aged old men.  Personally I started out with nothing and still have most of it left (stolen joke).  I am originally from Birmingham, AL and currently live in the outback of rural Mississippi and work at a large university.  I am married, no kids, and have a small zoo of llamas, cats, and fancy mice.  Pete the Possum (pictured) passed away in 2008.[[Image:Celtic4.jpg|right|frame]] See all my animal photos on my [http://www.dropshots.com/drc3po photo page].

For several years my interest has gravitated toward the integral spirituality and philosophy of Ken Wilber.  I first began to lean toward integral thinking in high school and my academic track finally culminated with an MA in Interdisciplinary Humanities from Western Kentucky University, a program that was consciously integral (though that term was not used).  Throughout college and beyond I had accumulated quite a personal library in my quest to connect all of the dots of existence, and then one day I discovered Ken Wilber.  His integral system was so plausible and elegant that I found myself in the strange situation of suspecting that most of my library had been rendered obsolete by a small handful of Wilber books.  In fact, I sold and donated most of them shortly thereafter, resulting in no regrets and a feeling of spiritual lightness.[[Image:Cats_1.jpg|right|frame]]

For several years my interest has gravitated toward the integral spirituality and philosophy of Ken Wilber.  I first began to lean toward integral thinking in high school and my academic track finally culminated with an MA in Interdisciplinary Humanities from Western Kentucky University, a program that was consciously integral (though that term was not used).  Throughout college and beyond I had accumulated quite a personal library in my quest to connect all of the dots of existence, and then one day I discovered Ken Wilber.  His integral system was so plausible and elegant that I found myself in the strange situation of suspecting that most of my library had been rendered obsolete by a small handful of Wilber books.  [[Image:8cats_sm.jpg|left|frame]] 

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Considering that I am a "recovering Protestant" as well as a "failed amateur Buddhist" I have long been hard-pressed to categorize myself in any positive way, not that I feel a particular need to be in a category.  However, it has become apparent fairly recently that my spiritual path is Franciscan, and has been moving in that direction for several years unbeknownst to myself.  The simple zen-like act of daily feeding and caring for a variety of dependent animals, each one a singular miracle, has become no less than a holy communion of boundary dissolution requiring neither intentionality nor effort, altogether lacking the strainings and distractions of meditation, and quite likely the closest I will ever come to finding mystical union in the routine of daily existence.

Considering that I am a "recovering Protestant" as well as a "failed amateur Buddhist" I have long been hard-pressed to categorize myself spiritually in any positive way, not that I feel a particular need to be in a category.  However, it has become apparent in the last couple of years that my spiritual path is Franciscan, and had been moving in that direction for several years before I began to realize it.  The simple zen-like act of daily feeding and caring for a variety of wonderful animals, each one a unique miracle, has become my spiritual discipline [which I like because it's an easy one!] and brings me the closest I am likely to approach mystical union in this life!

Thanks for visiting my page!

Thanks for visiting my page!