The Almost Island Way

In my childhood, and to this day, aphorisms have been placed before me, as sign posts for living life. Some I have remembered although many years have passed since I first heard them. For instance, Rudyard Kipling's, "Laugh and the world
laughs with you...weep and you weep alone". I once mentioned this one, in the presence of a man given to challenging
anything anyone says, in the name of "honesty". Like an ancient beast he jumped to his feet to proclaim, "I don't think weep
and you weep alone makes any sense...how about all those weepy people that meet in recovery circles?". He may have had a bit of a point, but in his haste to rise to the attack, he had forgotten that someone also said, "Misery loves company!". What's
a poor human being to do when aphorisms contradict each other?. I think one thing you can do is reflect on each one, that
has come to your notice, which may lead you to finding a "hybrid working model", that you can incorporate into your life, that
may be a bit different from what the creator of the original saying had intended. When this happens, the saying would have
done its work anyway...getting you to think for yourself until you arrived at your own take about the subject at hand. I was
thinking earlier, that it's true that "No man is an island on to himself", given, what would we do without our witty, reliable,
loving, quirky, stimulating, and, at times, loving brothers and sisters, not to mention those who run the services we use in
our world etc.?. Having this in mind we are saved from falling into narcissistic traps. Despite these considerations, I was also
thinking, no man is an island to himself, but how about " man" being an island joined by a spit of land to the mainland?...now
there's an interesting notion..that is to say...continuing your vital interaction with people you know and being open to knowing others, while trimming away your addiction to having them in your life all the time...becoming more and more self sufficient...especially with your emotions...while health permits...appreciating people and giving and receiving love...without
having to cling to them...not being afraid of solitude because you make good use of its riches...knowing that if you master that...you don't have to feel an overwhelming need...to run anywhere...just to be around other human beings...in your
desperation. From your "almost island"...keeping yourself open to connecting with the mainland inhabitants. Yes...self sufficiency and an openness to all has its merits...the "almost island way"...as the waves of life break upon all your shores. Quester.