The Right Words

Only the right words convey the truth.

I think a lot about words. I didn’t set out to do this; it happened over the years; I’ve written poems since I was a boy. As I wrote about different subjects and in different styles, words became more and more important to me. From my reading, listening to podcasts and conversations—and through the exploration of English and other languages, I learned more about words: how they form and how they are used in different cultures—how our minds use words to build organized and complex thoughts. In the last few years, wherein speech is under radical changes due to social forces, more than in regard to poetry, I realized the right words are essential to preserving and conveying meaning and intention, from ideas to dreams to realizations.

But all of this isn’t new. I found when I was young, that sometimes even people speaking the same language have trouble understanding one another—and so I ‘translated’ for them. I also seem to possess these capacities in relation to ideas in general—seeing to the heart of a matter when others around me don’t seem to; is it y imagination? It works. This has changed the orientation of my thinking and writing somewhat—from poet, if I may say that—to philosophizer.

I would be honored were you to read some of my ideas and decide if you agree or disagree. And please share your ideas with me, if you have the time.

Thank you for reading.

Carl Atteniese,
Tokyo

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Carl Atteniese / 亜天二恵世万慈道

Thank you for reading. I hope this finds you exceedingly well. I was born in Brooklyn, in the middle of the NASA Gemini space Program era--which was on course for the Apollo program, aiming to land men on the moon. I watched Neil Armstrong make humanity's first step on the lunar surface. The space program left a lasting effect on me and inspired life-long interest and passion in me. I was born a little more than 2 years after President John Kennedy was assassinated and a few years before Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated. It was a time of tumult, but better manners, a gentler approach to one another (despite the prejudice being worked on by progressives-) little political correctness, no cancel culture and thicker skin & more opportunity for laughs, a time of fantastic television, austere and fact-based news delivered with brevity and sobriety and much superlatively stylish design. It was the beginning of Star Trek, Star Wars, and a few years on, personal computers, digital watches, hand-held electronic games and movies were still in theaters--not on our TVs--unless they were a little old. People paid more attention to books, from where trust is built with credibility we intrinsically see, competency earned and reflected and facts & expertise. One reason I am not apt to dabble in irrational conspiracy theories is I made many a trek to the local library, to read about stars, planets and astronauts, and to the local bookstore--no longer there--to find my favorite science fiction novels--to either read, or simply marvel at their covers, by Boris Valejo and Frank Frazetta--inspirations that would fuel my later entry into the School of Visual Arts in New York City. I grew up in Long Island, worked and was educated there until I discovered New York City, then it was on to Boulder Colorado, The Mojave Desert, South Korea and now Japan. I have visited Mongolia, the Philippines, and England and hope to see the rest of the world--and maybe even beyond it. I teach English as a Second Language, practice secular Buddhism and pay attention to philosophy, astronomy, spaceflight, aviation and human & species rights. I make art, poems and photography--and real friends, wherever I go--when I can. Maybe our paths will cross; until then, enjoy my writing and pictures, and send me a note. Maybe we can have a cup of coffee someday, somewhere. Thank you for reading. I wish you love, peace, joy and enlightenment--sincerely--because you are sentient, and you suffer, too. Carl Atteniese Tokyo

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