In Deep Water

In a moment of folly I asked for three words of inspiration for this blog - they came from friends and people I admire, namely - Perry Timms (who gave me “guile”), Julie Drybrough (who offered “philanthropy”) and Simon Heath ( who threw down the gauntlet in the form of “antediluvian”).  In light of the violent storms, ongoing high tides, wind and torrential rain, which have created devastation across much of the UK, it would be easy to write about what life was like prior to the recent floods and how people now are coping.  My mother and sister live on the edge of the Somerset Levels and they tell wonderful stories of bravery and escape.  I could expound on the philanthropy of those providing support and aid to the afflicted, as a contrast to the guile of less decent people who are taking (or will take) advantage of the opportunity to make fraudulent insurance claims and/or to break into abandoned buildings to help themselves to others’ possessions.

Glastonbury Tor viewed from flooded fields

However, although antediluvian refers to times “before the flood”, it is not referring to the current water levels across much of the UK and the drop in value of grandiose, river-frontage villas in the Home Counties (an affluent area of southern England); it means The Flood mentioned in the Bible, Quran and Torah: the time stretching from the Earth’s creation until a Great Flood wiped out all life, except according to these scriptures for Noah, his family and the wildlife and seeds they took with them on the Ark.  In many other culture’s stories there is a similar survivor, who usually took to a boat with his spouse and was eventually grounded on a mountaintop when the waters subsided.  According to Bob Dylan - who commented on the stories of floods in a BBC radio interview and clearly has researched the Great Flood (perhaps because of his album Before the Flood) - “There are at least 80,000 different versions of the flood story...We found them in at least 72 languages.”  That gets me thinking as to what could have happened to impact so many people and what the world might have been like before the deluge. 

The Flood by Carlo Saraceni

I have spent a few days diving into deep waters.  Long before Christianity and Islam became dominant, Plato wrote of a flood that engulfed the island of Atlantis in the 10^th millennium BC, the land was supposedly located in the middle of the Atlantic, between Europe and America, perhaps near the Azores.  The Sumerian version of the Great Flood is the earliest recorded version, written in Sumerian cuneiform on a stone tablet.  This Mesopotamian story is older than the Bible version, but very similar, including a man taking his family and animals into a boat, which grounds on a mountain top, and, as the waters subside, using a bird to determine whether there is any land.  I have read of “a time of great wickedness”, populated by giants (the Gibborim of Genesis described as “heroes of old, men of renown” and the Nephilim – strange beings - half mortal, half angel).   

 

The Fall of the Rebel Angels by Hieronymus Bosch
is based on Genesis 6:1–4

I have looked into occult contact and relationships with these creatures (the likes of the libertine, pansexual magician Aleister Crowley) and the concept of Theosophy, as espoused by Madame Blavatsky – both individuals used guile to attract followers and when that failed fell on hard times.  Sex with angels has been an appealing concept to man over the ages (and angels themselves are fascinating - so many interpretations, worthy of another blog).

I have pondered Peruvian walls and studied ancient maps.  The Peruvian walls intrigued me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66x9VLwZaDQ

as did the fact that similarly impressive masonry can be found in other locations across the globe.  Certainly, ancient monuments exist, built by long gone civilisations.  I have metaphorically crawled over pyramids and contemplated huge stone steps, spheres, elongated skulls and jars.  The Internet is awash with creationist testaments to ten great Kings and the longevity of the ancients and New Age stories abound of enlightenment and astrology.  I have visited the Bermuda Triangle and pondered underwater pyramids.  I have read about asteroids and the death of dinosaurs and looked at man-made artefacts apparently showing these ancient creatures.  There is an awful lot of peculiar stuff out there...and it is easy to become beguiled by the tales, supposition and explanations.

Aleister Crowley by Leon Engers Kennedy
in National Portrait Gallery London

We could experience another great flood.  We know that there was a 300ft ocean rise at the end of the last Ice Age (as proven by core samples taken in Greenland) - there are also archaeological sites that seem to indicate humans operating as societies at a time of differing sea levels (according to some, the now 9,000 ft high Andean highland city of Tiwanaku shows signs of having once been a port and there are cities on what is now the sea bed).  Change in climates and tectonic movement is widely accepted (Captain Scott, of Antarctic fame’s Polar party found fossils on their way back from the doomed Terra Nova expedition to the South Pole that clearly show tropical vegetation) and that is just part of the way the world works.  It makes sense for our own survival to think about what the future might look like and plan ahead.

"The Deluge", by John Martin, 1834. Oil on canvas. Yale University

There is ongoing debate as to whether the time before The Flood was an idyllic paradise, the Garden of Eden, or a dystopia of wickedness and corruption resulting in god(s) wiping men off the face of the earth.  The antediluvian world and sophisticated civilisations envisaged by many, especially those whose ideas include aliens and high functioning non-human life forms, are not dissimilar to the high tech vision of Los Angeles in 2019 that was created in the film Blade Runner.

Original theatrical release poster by John Alvin

I was fortunate when younger and living in Hong Kong, Sir Run Run Shaw invited me to the first screening of Blade Runner and the experience has had a lasting impact on me.  The film’s themes around the moral implications of human mastery of genetic engineering and the impact of corporate power and corruption (still highly topical today) are powerful, as are the core questions of what it is to be human.  The replicants seem to show more consideration and compassion to their colleagues than the actual people.  All sides use guile to aid survival.  The are antideluvian hints - the humans have fabricated a world with what appear to be animals, but are in fact artificial substitutions to replace the creatures that have become extinct.  It is a dark place with little charity or philanthropy, other than at a very personal one-to-one level.  It concerns me that many of the visions in Blade Runner have come to be the reality in our current world - we are now using robots for dangerous, menial and leisure work and sending them into space.  Our lack of concern for the Earth and the impact we have on our environment is verging on terrifying.  Sir Run Run was Blade Runner ‘s producer and the director, Ridley Scott, has said that he regards the movie as “probably” his “most complete and personal film”. 

Rutger Hauer as a replicant in Blade Runner
mixture of savagery and tenderness

Sir Run Run was an amazing man.  It was with regret that I learned of his death earlier this week - mind you 106 is a great age to reach (or 107 in Chinese calculations – the Chinese year is calculated differently, you start at a year old at birth).  Sir Run Run was still active in his media empire as late as 2011.  The world is the poorer in very many ways without him.  Sir Run Run was an innovative and successful businessman – charming, strong-minded and charismatic.  He started his career with his brothers, running cinemas in Singapore, after leaving Shanghai in the 1920’s, and moved on to make films, co-founding the Shaw Brothers Studio in HK, which produced more than 1,000 films.  He is credited with creating the first ever Kung Fu action movie, One-Armed Swordsman, in 1967.  However, his charm and guile were insufficient to lure Bruce Lee into his fold (Bruce went with a Sir Run Run’s former employee Raymond Chow, who was wise enough to ensure that his star and Sir Run Run were kept apart, by filming in Thailand instead of Hong Kong).  Sir Run Run spotted the potential of television and established Hong Kong’s first independent television company in 1967.  He leaves an amazing legacy.

Sir Run Run Shaw GBM, Kt, CBE
in youth and age

However, one thing that many film aficionados are probably are not aware of is that Sir Run Run was an extraordinary philanthropist: building schools and hospitals and founding scientific, medical and teaching establishments in the UK (e.g. donating $10 million to set up the Run Run Shaw Institute of Chinese Affairs at Oxford), China (such as his donation of HK$341 million to Zhejiang university to create two medical institutes, two stadiums, a hospital, a science museum and three teaching buildings in Ningbo where he was born) and Hong Kong.  It is estimated that Sir Run Run donated at least HK$4.75 billion to education related projects in mainland China by 2012.  He set up the Shaw prize in 2004, an international award for research in astronomy, mathematics and medicine - last year it awarded HK$200 million.  Some say that he invested in China to win the favour of the Chinese leadership prior to the 1997 handover – he had the wit to appreciate potential repercussions of his actions, but none can doubt the good that his investments have produced.  Guile and philanthropy can work hand-in-hand.  I am honoured to have known Sir Run Run and he deserves to be honoured for all he has done, as American president Calvin Coolidge once said:

"No person was ever honoured for what they received. Honour has been the reward for what they gave"

If the world’s climate keeps changing (witness recent unseasonable weather patterns) and man’s impact on the environment continues to go unchecked, we will have need of the research that is supported by Sir Run Run’s philanthropy.  We could find ourselves in deep water again...

London under water 

Instead of closing on a message of doom, I would like to end with some thoughts based on antediluvian experiences, guile and philanthropy that also link to the work place and the way we interact with each other.  The three words given to me made me think hard to find a way of connecting them.  However the answer (as is often the case in life) was right under my nose (well, on my book shelf).  As a child my mother read to me a book that she had loved when she was young, The Log of the Ark by Kenneth Walker and Geoffrey Boumphrey (published in 1923).   It describes various animals that came to the Ark, to be saved by Noah and his family.  

The Sloth sleeping on a towel rail in The Log of the Ark

It is an amusing and interesting reflection on different types and how they cope while the world around them changes.  Some creatures were left behind – such as the Wampity Dumps (so called because of the noise they made as rolled to move) and others were unable to cope in a new environment e.g. the Clidders (who melted in the rain).  Not all can survive in a new world.  There were those who opted out - the Seventy-sevenses (so self-named after the number of their cabin, as they were seen as so insignificant and were themselves so shy that nobody named them prior to the flood).  They eventually find the Ark such an oppressive environment that they leave of their own volition on a raft.  Good but unappreciated employees will leave their employer in a similar manner.  Noah, although philanthropic, is a fallible leader - but learns as he goes along (for example, for convenience he tries to stow all the large animals in the same area of his craft but discovers, almost to his cost, the impact that this approach has on the Ark’s stability and buoyancy).  There are guileful villains who take advantage of the situation:  an outcast animal, the Loathly Scub, infiltrates the ark and introduces certain of the other species to the idea of eating meat - instead of their diet of porridge and a dollop of treacle.  Events change people and we would do well to appreciate this fact.  In the book Noah is horrified once back on dry land to discover that some animals hunt others while others hide – however, that is the way of the world

Noah's Ark (1846 painting by Edward Hicks)

I would like to thank Simon, Perry and Julie – you three have made me think a lot this week and I have learned quite a bit too.  I have been to places where I would never normally go.  You have broadened my horizons.  Perhaps the biggest observation I have is this - to avoid sinking you need to be open minded, to gain what you can from others and be prepared to learn and use your knowledge.

Positive Vistas

As my recent silence perhaps indicates, I have been on holiday for much of the past fortnight – firstly dashing round the country catching up with family and friends, then returning to work, to clear some urgent matters, before now finding myself seated on a plane bound to Crete to spend a week with close loved ones.  Like many, I find it valuable to step out of the work environment for a few days, not just for the rest and recuperation but also because I am able to see things from a different perspective or angle.  It is not uncommon for me to gain my best insights whilst I am slightly distanced from pressing priorities and demands.  Much to the surprise of some of the people I work with, I paid to spend the first morning of my vacation at a conference in central London.  It was on Positive Psychology with group discussions as to how it can best be applied within the work environment.  It was the best way to start my break - interesting and uplifting – all credit to Sukh Pabial who decided to organise the event, because of his knowledge and passion for the topic and his belief that it could be of value to others.

The atmosphere at the event was exceptional – it really was one of the best conferences I have ever attended. I agree with Dave Goddin’s comments in his blog that this is the way conferences should be http://peopleperformancepotential.com/2012/08/17/a-social-learning-masterclass/; every person who came was there, not out of a sense of duty or to please others, but because they wanted to be there and learn; we all shared a genuine interest in the subject.  Due to the way in which the morning was designed, not only did we find out about the subject, but we also had ample opportunity to mix and talk with fellow delegates and by so doing expanded our own knowledge, as well as making some great new connections.  I have come across various contacts through New Media (especially Twitter) and this was the first time that I met some of them in person – it was a genuine pleasure. 

People were eager to contribute to discussions, to expand on others’ observations (a lot of “Yes, and...” as opposed to “Hmmm, but...”) and I learned much.  In an attempt to maintain the spirit and enthusiasm, let me share some of our learnings: we explored the concept of our Third Spaces (places where each of us feel content and away from criticism and judgement).  I was not surprised to learn that a fellow fishing enthusiast is most at peace on a riverbank (tight lines to him going forward – it was great to see him at the event, especially after the past couple of months that he has endured).  Another pair, whom I have known for a while, realised how important their quiet time simply walking the dog was/is – a chance to revel in the pleasure of familiar landmarks, as their canine companion leaps ahead and dashes back to rejoin them, both clearly happy bounding across, or simply taking note of, well-known fields and paths whilst appreciating being with a much-loved escort.  A number mentioned the reviving power of water – Ian Pettigrew (who works under the name Kingfisher Coach) has known this for a while, hence his chosen name for his business. 

 

I am unsure as to whether I have a specific place (the Tithe Barn at Great Coxwell has always been a special spot for me, but I have not been there for over a decade) or whether I find contentment in a combination of factors, including being able to see the sky and having running water near me, that help me to recharge myself and relax.  I do know that when I lived in a town with tall buildings around me all the time I felt an aching need to see clouds and the horizon and I am seldom happier than when I am standing quietly on a riverbank, probably fishing.

We contemplated the difference between trying to view events in a positive light (“looking for positives”) and being genuinely happy and enjoying/living a positive life.  I am writing this from Crete and therefore feel it appropriate to add some Ancient Greek thoughts, which were not raised during the session.  To a certain extent Positive Psychology can trace its roots to the Ancient Greeks: Socrates advocated the need for self-awareness and establishing an understanding as to how you fit within the world around you to achieve true happiness; Plato’s allegory of the cave confirms Western thinking that happiness requires an understanding of deeper meanings. Some modern approaches in psychology (such as CBT) are echoed in spiritual “exercises” advocated by the Stoics, who believed that a life well lived needed to be grounded in being objective and reasonable. Aristotle philosophised on the merits of eudaimonia (which means literally “the state of having a good indwelling spirit, a good genius”) as the route towards having a happy and well-lived life, with a integral link between virtue and rational activity. 

Seeking succour in an appropriate Third Space can help to ensure a person remains happy and able to appreciate the world.  So can letting others know they have played an impactful role and done things to improve your life, or indeed being told by others how much you have helped them to become happy. 

I was quite struck by the power of this type of interaction during our discussions and wanted to help encourage some of us to do something positive as a result of attending.  To that end, I have promised my fellow attendees that I will meet with and thank someone who has had a significant impact on my life.  I know who I will be seeing – all I need to do now is arrange the meeting and take the time to go to Sussex.  I will report back after the event.  I would like to encourage you to undertake a Gratitude Visit.  My offer remains for any reader of this bog and/or any fellow attendee from the Conference that would like to thank someone and share their tale (perhaps of both why gratitude is felt and your actual meeting to thank that person for their impact on your life) - I would be happy to act as a receptacle for any stories that people would like to share.  When I return from Crete I will be setting up a website on which people can post their tales (I regret that I have found that I cannot do it from here as the Internet access is too intermittent).  It would be great to get together a collection of Gratitude Visits and Thank You Stories as a way of perpetuating the energy of the Conference and inspiring others to live more positive lives.

At the Conference it was interesting to discuss why we felt that certain cultures seem more contented than others – Bhutan, Jamaica, Ireland and parts of Africa were all named as countries whose inhabitants seem positive about themselves and their environment (I was also struck by the fact that, with perhaps the exception of Bhutan, each of these locations have also suffered severe social unrest within segments of their societies, yet the general opinion on the people is that they are cheerful and genuinely appreciate the lives they have).  I am now in Crete and I would like to add Cretan to the list of positive cultures – last night I sat under ancient olive trees with some elders of the village where we are staying.  It was a pleasure to sit with them, sipping their home made wine (and tasting fresh grapes, plucked off the vine from which the wine is made – both the fruit and the wine were soft and surprisingly floral).  Our host produced a simple platter consisting of chunks of local cheese (a delicious local hard one called Graveia and a ewes' cheese that is very more-ish named Myzitra), flavoursome black olives from his trees and a hard traditional Cretan rusk (called Dakos) that he had soaked to soften in olive oil and water.  Our table was a large used cable reel, turned on its side, none of the chairs matched and the wine bottle was a recycled plastic mineral water bottle.  Simple fare in simple surroundings and yet the contentment around the table was almost palpable.  Even the local cats seemed happy.

After last night, I can join with another group of Ancient Greek thinkers, the Epicureans, in believing that happiness can be achieved through the enjoyment of simple pleasures.