John Belmont

Kierkegaard on seduction

“The person who is unable to seduce people, is not able to save them either.“ Søren Kierkegaard Source: The Quotable Kierkegaard edited by Gordon Marino, p.32. Appropriated from Kierkegaard’s Journals and Notebooks, Bruce H. Kirmmse, General Editor. Vols.1-6. Princeton University Press, 2007-12. Kierkegaard justifies seduction as a means to an end, if that end isContinue reading “Kierkegaard on seduction”

The Flowing

If there is nothing between any two given bodies in space,then what is it that holds the two bodies apart? If there is nothing to separate me from you,then why should we ever live our lives as two? The emptiness that warrants the illusion of distance must not be real, therefore: Distance is a dream,aContinue reading “The Flowing”

The Advocate and the Attendant

In the near future, in a typical office of a typical office building, in a typical downtown of a typical major city—two men sit talking. A large window on one wall extends from floor to ceiling so that pedestrians can be seen going about their daily routines. The first man appears to be in hisContinue reading “The Advocate and the Attendant”

Dove

Dreams of my body sprouting wings of fire, comeon waves of sound, drifting between production and perception, leavingvacant trails of surface meaning, quiescingeternally, burning, maternal, she… dove.

Nirvana Recompense

Between the ones and zeros, lingering within a yellowing sort of cellophane haze, a whole number is born, expanding horizons, colliding, smashing into particles of thought, tells a story: between here and there exists a place, a certain locale – a state of mind, a kind of blind metaphor for peace, an abstraction of space,Continue reading “Nirvana Recompense”

Abbie on the Overpass

I walk to work and back every day, to North Seattle College. It’s a two-mile round-trip. Today, on my way home, as I approached the overpass at NE 92nd Street and I-5, I noticed someone there pacing back and forth. At first, I couldn’t tell whether the person was male or female. Soon enough IContinue reading “Abbie on the Overpass”

On Being Bombarded

I wish the calms before the storms would last a little longer. Who am I kidding? I wish such moments would last forever. Spending time in public, for me, has become a double-edged sword. I never know what I’m going to experience: one of those lovely calms I so cherish, or a storm––that feeling ofContinue reading “On Being Bombarded”

Kierkegaard on the qualification of untruth

“There is one view in life that holds that wherever the multitude is, there too, is the truth—that truth itself needs to have the multitude on its side. There is another view of life that holds that wherever the multitude is, there is untruth, so that even if every individual, silently and separately, possessed theContinue reading “Kierkegaard on the qualification of untruth”

Seneca on writing

“I wish, my dear Lucilius, that you would not be too particular with regard to words and their arrangement; I have greater matters than these to commend to your care. You should seek what to write, rather than how to write it – and even that not for the purpose of writing but of feelingContinue reading “Seneca on writing”

Quora: How does one go about discovering or defining purpose?

This question was originally posted here on Quora.com. How does one go about discovering or defining purpose? My response: That is definitely a tough question hence appropriate for this venue. I will start off by simply saying, regrettably maybe, I don’t know. How do you like that for honesty? Regardless, maybe some discussion can helpContinue reading “Quora: How does one go about discovering or defining purpose?”