Life Changing Books

I've read some good books, and I've read some great books. But very few books have actually made a difference in my life over the long haul.

Following is a short list of authors (and their books) that have made a long-term difference in my life.

• Daniel Quinn
  
  
  
  • Ishmael
    
  • Story of B
    
  • My Ishmael
    
  
  
• Richard Dawkins
  
  
  
  • The Selfish Gene
    
  • The God Delusion
    
  • River Out of Eden
    
  
  
• Harry Browne
  
  
  
  • Why Government Doesn't Work
    
  • The Great Libertarian Offer
    
  • How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World
    
  • Fail-Safe Investing
    
  
  
• Stephen Covey
  
  
  
  • First Things First
    
  
  
• John Taylor Gatto
  
  
  
  • Underground History of Education
    
  
  

Those are the books that most directly changed my life. Some set the stage for other books or writings or the like, some were the "final straw" in changing my opinion about things. But none of them were insignificant to me. If you're interested in discussing any of these books or recommending others that you think I might benefit from, feel free to comment on this post.

Petty Things of Vast Importance

Until recently, my life has felt just a bit off kilter. Things were out of balance. And what, you may ask, was the cause of this imbalance? Nothing significant, at least, not to anyone other than me. But first, a little background.

I recently made the mental move from leaning toward paganism (but not practicing anything) to out-and-out athiesm. This has been a change that has been in process for quite some time since my original disillusionment with the church I was raised in. Initially, I continued to believe that Christianity was correct, but the manner my church practiced was problematic. Then I did some thinking/studying and came up with many questions that I couldn't find satisfactory answers to. At that point my opinion shifted to a belief in a creator, a desire for something after death, and an affection for the trappings of peganism, but no real spiritual practice. Then, recently, I learned a little bit about evolution (which I had been previously told functions on pure chance), and my need for a creator was abolished, and with it my lingering belief in God. (I am now starting a slightly more in-depth study of evolution for my own benefit.)

So, as I approached this decision, the necklace that I wore constantly (a heart with a cross on it) no longer seemed appropriate and I removed it. I knew exactly what I wanted to replace it with (a pegasus pendant, I've been in love with the idea of winged horses as long as I can remember), but didn't have the funds to do so. This lead to me not wearing a necklace for a month or two, and that made me feel slightly off balance.

Then there's the technology. I own a palm pilot. I use it to track everything from appointments and contacts to gas milage and my menstrual cycle. I also read extensively on it, both news (from Lew Rockwell.com) and books (purchased or manually digitized). But in May of this year, my backup palm pilot (actually Rich's that he loaned me) broke, leaving me without one. Once again, this lead to an off kilter feeling as I struggled for new ways (albiet temporary ways) to keep things in some semblance of order.

However, Rich recently came into a small amount of money (a bonus at work) just after we got all our bills caught up and we were able to take care of some things that had been pending for a long time. We got both palm pilots repaired for under $100 (I'd highly recommend the individual who repaired them, Chris Short, though he does specialize in only a few models -- email him at ips AT chartermi DOT net for an estimate) and I got a new silver pegasus necklace for $25. And as I went to bed last night I finally felt like everything was right with the world.

They may seem like very petty things to most people, but somehow having my necklace and a working palm pilot make a huge difference in my life. And it all makes me wonder, is it only me or are there petty things that make a big difference in most everyone's lives? Things that may only matter to you, but without them everything just seems slightly wrong. Anyway, that's my thought of the day.

Connections

I started out life raised in a Christian family. I became a Christian and didn't once question it until around age 18 when I had a long discussion with a friend of mine. That discussion led me to the "seeker" path I'm currently on.

I also was raised Republican. At some point after my questioning of Christianity started, I started questioning politics too. I found my way to Libertarian beliefs through the writings of Harry Browne. As I continued to explore my political beliefs, I have since pushed through to a position of being almost able to consider myself an Anarchist (though I have one or two issues with that position it does typify most of what I believe). I believe strongly in ZAP (zero aggression policy or non-initiation of violence). I also believe that the only crimes that should be prosecuted (and maybe not by the government even so) are crimes where there is a violation of another's rights.

From Libertarian/Anarchist beliefs, I have moved closer to Paganism, especially Wicca. They seem to fit together very comfortably with ZAP and the Wiccan rede being basically the same thing ("an it harms no one, do as you will"). Though I don't yet consider myself Wiccan or Pagan, I do feel a strong draw in that direction, and plan to form my religious rituals with those religions in mind.

Then most recently I added to the mix my concepts of parenting and schooling. I have always planned to homeschool. But I recently stumbled onto the concept of "unschooling". The best explanation of unschooling I've seen is from Wikipedia:

... individualized, child-led learning [which] is more efficient and respectful of a child's time, takes advantage of a child's interests, and allows learning and exploration in depth rather than shallow coverage of a broad range of subjects. It is not what subject matter the child learns that is important, but that the child learns how to learn and learn in depth. Given that, if later, as an adult, he finds there was some subject or nuance that he missed in his education, he will be able to acquire it on his own.

So, unschooling is facilitating the child's interest without trying to direct their path in any particular direction. This form of schooling tends to lead naturally into a form of parenting that is called alternately radical unschooling or attachment parenting. This parenting is based on respect for your children and trust that they are making the best decision they can with the information available to them, doing what they need to do. Practically it consists of doing your best not to say "no" to the child, but to (as needed) direct them to more appropriate avenues, locations, or times for their activities. It is treating the children, from birth, as full blooded people who deserve to make their own decisions about their lives. It is not neglectful parenting, as it requires a parent to be present and intimately involved in the child's life, but it can seem like it to less informed people who don't understand why you don't stop certain activities. I'm sure I'll come back to this topic later as I learn more, but it all makes sense to me.

Anyway, from religion to politics to school to parenting, I have found a path that merges and blends into one coherent world view. It is internally consistent and bears the common theme of respecting the rights of those around you and not trying to limit activities that don't violate those rights. It has taken me a long time to get to this spot, and I won't be surprised if I find more steps to the process in the future, but I wanted to share my exploration with everyone.