Annihilate: destroy utterly; obliterate Annihilation: from the Latin verb for "reduced to nothing"
Death: The end of the life of a person or organism; the destruction or permanent end of something
Are they the same? You tell me.
Don't mistake this for something more than it is. I just think often about reducing something or someone to nothing. Does death reduce you to nothing?
Can a person annihilate some part of themselves and live to rebuild that part? Or does annihilate suggest there is no return?
Can annihilation ever be a good thing?
I don't think annihilate even SOUNDS like a good thing :). Most definitely not. Death, on the other hand, is something we all must experience in order to make it to a better place. That I believe to be true with all my heart.
ReplyDeleteIf you annihilate something that is not positive, then it can be a good thing, right? I don't buy the better place after death so that is a wee bit of a problem for me......
DeleteOh, gosh, you are bringing out my violent side. I think possibly there are things, even people, who may need annihilating, but the people part makes me a hypocrite. I don't really even believe in the death penalty, but then I think of the evil of some of history's monsters, and think, yes, they had to be annihilated. Some institutions may need annihilating-- thinking of the way mental hospitals used to be brings this to mind. Not sure if I'm making sense or going in a direction that you were questioning. But I guess even a generally anti-violent person has a breaking point, unless that person chooses martyrdom. I am no philosopher, though.
ReplyDeleteI hope whatever has you pondering this annihilates itself, my friend!
You are making sense. I can think of a number of institutions that need to be annihilated......
DeleteP. S. Are you okay? Email me if you need an ear.
ReplyDeleteI would like to send an email to reassure you but I can't find an email address. Can you send me something at
Deletejamm@sonic.com?
I just did, and my email is melanie.bruce13@gmail.com
DeleteOoops. My email to you was returned. In it, I was telling you that we both work in "institutions," and I thought that might have something to do with the word annihilate. Drop a line if you need a virtual listener to vent to!
DeleteI absolutely think annihilation can be a good thing.. we all most tear down things from time to time. I feel like much of my reaction would have to do with how much control this 'tearing down' involves. And, no, death is not the same thing. Perhaps death is a type of annihilation, but not one in the same.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you have something, maybe some some part of yourself, that you're targeting for destruction. Good? Bad? Why are you choosing the word annihilate? How about 'rebuild' or 'redo' or 'reform'? True, these all start with some sort destruction, but ultimately they are about creating something new, which sometimes requires cleaning of the old...
To me, annihilation implies some sort of forgetting or complete destruction - which is sometimes necessary.
-Bubba
That is a very thoughtful response to a very ambiguous post, Sonny Boy. You nailed it. I have come to think of annihilation as a tear down effort and then space is created for a rebuilding effort. I am not sure how much control there exists in the tearing down or how one gets the notions for the rebuilding process. Annihilation does feel more vicious, more violent, than mere death.
DeleteThanks for stopping by.xoxoxoxoxoxox
I always associated annihilation with war. Man-made. Total destruction of The Enemy. Nothing positive. Not inevitable like death. I still believe there's something after death that's better than this. But the concept of tear-down and rebuild actually seems hopeful to me. That we can be the creators of something better for ourselves while we're here. You make me think. MS
ReplyDeleteWow, I like the sound of tearing things down to their simplest forms, starting over sometimes, rebuilding our selves, our worlds, our patterns, our lives. It's not always what we need to do, but there are times when starting over from scratch makes sense. The paradigm that is our life may no longer fit who we are, and then it takes great courage to find a new way to see. It's not always a bad thing to start over. Does death reduce you to nothing? I doubt that. We are so much more than these bodies we inhabit for this briefest of time. Can't say what comes after, but am pretty sure it's all good. Have faith! matt
ReplyDelete