Multiverse

“What if the fiery passion of the writer could melt the sands of time into a sheet of glass? If he could then peer into it to see his reflection, would his quill not have the power to hold a mirror to society’s face?”

I think you should become a writer.

I’m serious.

You should become a writer who allows his words to carve out an adventure. You don’t have to know where the story leads or where your thoughts will culminate. Seize what you feel or think in the moment and write! You just might surprise yourself with what you find.

I think you should also become a philosopher.

I’m serious about this one, too.

You should become a philosopher who explores the depths of the soul and observes the world and its people. Wonder, discuss, search for reasons, ask questions, and be willing to be proven wrong. Ponder the meaning of right and wrong and allow what you learn to become evident through your actions. You just might surprise yourself with the changes that occur.

Why do I mention these two pursuits?

Why is it so important to become a writer and a philosopher?

Because the physical world is unashamed. It stands blatantly before us and vies for our attention. It would have us believe that nothing can be found beyond just the material, the tangible, the visible. It would have us drown in our obsession with how we look, what we wear, how people see us, and what we own.

I look around and I find one thing truly evident: The physical world has our society in a stranglehold.

We are neither writers nor philosophers. We are blind – blind to that which lies beyond the immediate.

And there is something that lies beyond the material … a second world – one which we cannot see.

Am I saying the comic-book multiverse is real?!?!

You know, comic-book readers will likely hate me for this, but we might be able to call it that.

I think that what I am talking about is not exactly what is portrayed in the comics or movies, but perhaps it comes close.

I think there is a parallel world to the one that we see. And we are part of it, just as much as we are part of this one. I’ll admit, it’s a bit more difficult to grasp this alternate world because it is one that cannot be seen in the ways we would expect.

Let me use a tree as an example:

How do I know a tree is real?

I can touch it, and I can feel the roughness of the bark. I can pick some of its leaves and watch them fall to the ground. I can climb to its top branches and watch the sunset. All of this evidence would convince me. The tree seems to be very real. I would not doubt its existence after monkeying around in its branches.

But the second world – let’s give it a name: the idea world – is not like this. I cannot find trees, houses, or even mountains there. And yet, that does not make it any less real.

Instead of trees, there are concepts in this second world. I cannot see a concept. I cannot touch it or feel it.

Instead of buildings, there are ideas such as grace, forgiveness, and mercy. Again, I cannot see these things outright. What if I wanted to paint “grace”? I do not even know which color I would choose for the first brush stroke.

But these concepts are still real, right?

Hate is real, even though it is not physical. Fear is real, as are love, morality, and values. These concepts exist but cannot be touched or seen.

But none of us would deny their existence.

I could not paint a picture of “grace,” but I can still see it in a person’s words.

I could not mold “fear” from clay, yet a person’s actions reveal if they are living in fear or faith.

I could not carve a statue of “values,” yet a person’s decisions show what he values.

And so, while I cannot make these immaterial things material, they still become evident to us through actions and words.

We are part of this idea world, even if we do not recognize it.

I’ll be the first to admit that it is certainly hard to see the idea world; the physical world is so much more prominent. But this absolutely does not mean that the physical world is more important than the idea world.

So, why do we need to become writers and philosophers?

Because it is through language and thought that we can come to understand the idea world more fully. Language and thought build a bridge, providing access to explore the idea world.

The more I become a philosopher, the more adept I am at navigating the idea world. The more I become a writer, the better I will be at harnessing language to express my understanding of the idea world.

We cannot see the building blocks of the idea world as we can see those of the physical world, but the idea world impacts our lives so strongly that we absolutely must explore it.

I think you should become a writer.

And I think you should become a philosopher.

I am serious.