Like most things, our active commitment varies with the exposure
to the material. While still
appreciated, the original series grew tired as each episode was rerun and
rerun. The Next Generation series brought
a number of questions to us Trekkies;
was it authentic? Were you “cheating
on” the original series by watching the new? Could a true Trekkie enjoy both and
would this divide “the faithful”? While
it took some time to work through these issues and get to know the new
characters, my answer to these questions was an acceptance of the new series and
subsequent movies because they supported the key fundamentals that fed my
delight.
What does this have to do with a tumor? Nothing and everything I suppose. While everyone loves a good story or movie to
escape and distract for a time, I’m especially attracted to Star Trek
because it shows a fulfillment of some very attractive ideas. Through technology, wit and a little physical
strength, everything can be neatly solved in either a 60 minute episode or a
most a 2 hour movie. There are no
mysteries that can’t be solved and there is little dependence on anything outside
of one’s control. I love all of
those ideas, but they are sadly far from the truth.
While Star Trek boasts that through human effort we will have a future of greater independence and freedom, my experience
is pointing to just the opposite. Human effort does some good, but plenty of bad as well and that I am largely dependent on things out of my
control. It’s not comfortable to admit,
but I have to look no farther than the beating of my heart and each breath I
take – humbly dependent in this world. I do love technology, wit and strength, but trying to learn to shift my trust and acknowledge some greater powers. “Three things will last forever – faith, hope, and love – and the greatest of these is love.”
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