REFER TO GREY: Contemplations by Robert Greigos © 2007-2026

There is a rhythm to things out there,
     on the lake, close to the sky,
     and the wind, and the water.
     Those things touch me, comfort me.
     I feel at peace,
     at times exhilarated,
     and sometimes overwhelmed
     by the beauty and majesty
     of all that surrounds me.

At other times, my thoughts
     wander toward questions,
     questions about things
     I don’t quite understand,
     things that may trouble me.
     Sometimes, I seem to
     hit upon tentative answers
     and those feelings of peace return.
     At other times, I head toward home
     with an emptiness, and feelings
     of uneasiness in my gut.

I do this quite often, think about things,
     things not about me, not
     about anyone in particular,
     not even about
     things that are obvious,
     or concrete, like objects.
     It’s more about processes,
     dynamics, relationships,
     information, and what
     we tentatively call truths.

The universe is certainly vast,
     but humans mostly live
     their individual lives
     within small bubbles.
     That is where my thoughts
     have wandered today.

I am human. I, too, live my life
     within a small bubble.
     But I am not alone.
     My life touches
     and overlaps and
     affects the lives
     of other humans.
     And the lives they lead
     touch and affect my life.
     We are unavoidably
     connected to each other.

Is it wise or not that I consider
     the consequences
     for my fellow humans
     of any and all decisions
     I make to act
     or not to act?
     Or, is that an entirely
     irrelevant consideration?

Could my decisions possibly
     have consequence
     for the universe, too?
     The universe is not static.
     Its actions affect me.
     Do mine affect it?

The universe and its actions
     are relevant to me.
     My survival is at stake.
     Is the survival of the universe
     in jeopardy if my decisions
     do not consider
     consequence for it?
     Or is that a silly question?
     Perhaps the universe
     is not in jeopardy
     no matter what I do,
     or don’t do.

But the environment within which
     I live here on Earth,
     that is another story.
     Surely my actions affect it.
     And if so, surely its health
     could be in jeopardy
     as a result of what I do
     or don’t do. And if
     the environment fails
     in ways that support
     my existence, then
     my actions could put
     my own existence
     in jeopardy.

I am troubled, though.
     Have any of my fellow humans
     come to the same
     conclusions that I have?
     Some maybe, more
     than a few perhaps,
     but definitely not all.
     I wish I was not so ignorant
     about exactly why and how
     so many of my fellow humans
     behave and think the way they do.

Out here near the water,
     when it is calm
     and the sun is low
     I often do feel at peace
     with myself, and with the
     universe beyond our
     tiny lives within bubbles.

That peace I feel helps me believe
     the universe and I, together,
     have an understanding,
     that we share a mutual respect,
     and a kind of mutual trust,
     limited, of course,
     by my success in
     learning to understand.

Learning to understand?
     Understand what?
     I’ll tell you.

The universe obeys laws, laws
     that I can come to know,
     through both insightful observation
     and the processes of science,
     logic, and mathematics.
     If I also obey those laws,
     and consider the consequence
     of my actions and inactions,
     the universe and I will
     have accommodated to
     each other. An accommodation
     limited, of course,
     by any continuing
     ignorances I may have.

Within that accommodation,
     the universe reliably continues
     doing what it does
     while I feel confidently free
     to explore and question,
     wander and wonder at all
     the beauty and majesty
     our lives have to offer
     all without either of us
     tripping over or
     harming each other.

But if I return to the land
     where my fellows reside,
     all in their individual bubbles,
     I do not feel at peace.
     Fears and even disdain
     fill my thoughts,
     fears and disdain,
     but also puzzlement,
     all relating to my fellows.
     For I have found that I cannot
     totally trust them to observe
     the same laws of
     the universe that I
     know and observe.
     Nor can I trust them to
     consider the consequence
     of actions they take
     or do not take,
     for me, for each other,
     for the environment,
     or for the universe.

In other words, on land,
     the bubble I live within
     is not fully safe, reliable,
     beautiful and engaging.
     Instead, it is turbulent with
     the consequences of
     arrogance and ignorance,
     and abandoned responsibility.
     And that is sad.
     Very very sad.

It also irritates and agitates me,
     because I begin to fear
     all the un-considered and
     ill-considered consequences for
     every one of my fellow humans,
     for the environment and
     all its helpful creature,
     and even for the universe.

How, how can I help more of my fellows
     to at least consider
     the worth of my thoughts,
     thoughts regarding
     consequence and
     responsibility?
     And of the value and utility
     of laws that are knowable
     from the workings of
     the universe itself?
     How? How can
     I do that?

Or, maybe no, perhaps that is all wrong.
     Maybe my thinking is stunted,
     blind, riddled with false assumptions.
     Maybe the comforting order
     I see in nature is not a viable
     aspiration for human behavior.
     Maybe a more accurate
     understanding of human behavior
     would be corrosion, a forest fire,
     a destructive storm, a bomb,
     a supernova, or a black hole.
     Maybe it is hopeless fantasy
     to imagine humans dancing
     in harmony with the rhythms,
     colors, and songs of nature.
     Maybe humans are actually the disease
     that will bring everything to an end.