Second Thoughts – Still Boldly Going

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes I will end the day with thoughts that are important to get out.  Usually I just write them and put them in my journal folder.  I have chosen that on occasion I will share them with you Dear Reader.

Fifty years ago today at 10:00 PM Eastern time my mother awakened me from slumber in my room.  She led me to the living room and gave me popcorn and juice as I watched the opening moments of the first Star Trek episode. 

I was instantly enthralled.  I have spent the last fifty years living and reliving the many voyages of the Starship Enterprise.  Her ongoing mission in my life has shaped my love of literature, film, and life.  I owe a debt I can never pay to Gene Roddenberry and the cast of that original series.  I talk about this at length in Sheetrock on the Road, my latest novel. 

As I think about all that has happened surrounding this show and its children I ponder all the people that have journeyed with me through the adventures.  I have used the common ground it creates to entertain and educate.  It has been the backdrop to much of my thinking and values.

I have been privileged to meet William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Deforest Kelly, and Georgie Taki.  I have spent hours in discussion of the philosophies and values represented in the episodes with students, friends, and families.  The final frontier is still not close enough to us for my liking.   I think we need to try harder to build the dream.

As this milestone passes I am thankful for all that has been given me by this lovely creation.  IT is in this fantasy that I find much of my understanding of reality.  It is in these characters that I find much of my character.  Long after the credits fade and I trundle off to bed the lessons and adventures of Star Trek linger in my heart and mind.  It is in this that I sometimes find the courage to keep boldly going.

Thank you Gene for your creations and their place in my lives.  I lift a glass of Romulan Ale to you and with you much peace.  I pray we can actualize your dream.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Second Thoughts – Star Trek Beyond Commentary (SPOILERS)

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes I will end the day with thoughts that are important to get out.  Usually I just write them and put them in my journal folder.  I have chosen that on occasion I will share them with you Dear Reader.

I have heard both sides of the discussion on this film.  There seems to be no middle ground.  My younger Son, Bezel said, “It is not just a great Star Trek film.  It is a great film.”  Another friend hated it.  He said it was too much like the original series.

I loved the film.  It keeps its promise to take us beyond in ways I value.  It also was a good film on its own merits. 

Beyond the Five Year Mission:

We see Kirk and crew at a crossroads.  It is after the five year mission.  It is beyond the commitment and the team is strong and loyal. The three have become good friends; family.  The crew is loyal.  There are five years’ worth of logs, episodes, and stories.  Kirk makes me laugh when he says it feels “episodic.”  The federation is growing faster than it did in the other time line.

Beyond the Original Choices:

Kirk refuses the Admiral’s Chair.  He stays with his ship.  The original words of the original Kirk become unnecessary.  Yet the hope in them is fulfilled “Don’t let them promote you.”  The new Kirk stays with his ship even though he still must get a new one.

Spock also stays.  He does not go to New Vulcan.  He does not pursue being more Vulcan. In fact he becomes more human (More on that later).  He chooses to become more of a friend openly.  He chooses to use colorful metaphors sooner.  He communicates the loss he feels when his other self dies.  He is both a Vulcan and one of us. 

Beyond the Original Cast:

The new cast pays such beautiful homage to those who have been left behind.  They love and respect the characters and the actors without being cheesy or ham handed about it.  They do such a beautiful job of closing the loop on that which I have loved since I was a wee lad. 

Another goodbye is the sad and painful one we bid to Anton Yelchin.  Some of his lines in the film become so cryptic because he is dead.  I am not sure how they will handle it in the films but I know that the loss will be felt for quite some time.

Star Trek is part of me.  It is part of the best part of me. I have a Spock and Bones in my life.  I am seeking for some other things.  My mission is ongoing.  I am still trying to turn death into a fighting chance to live.

I have this poster and it is still true, almost everything I needed to know I learned from Star Trek:

• Seek out new life and new civilizations
• Non-interference is the prime directive
• Keep your phaser set on stun
• Humans are highly illogical
• There is no such things as a Vulcan Death Grip
• Live long and prosper
• Having is not so pleasing as wanting; it is highly illogical, but often true
• Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations
• Tribbles hate Klingons (and Klingons hate tribbles)
• Enemies are often invisible- like Klingons they can be cloaked
• Don't put all your ranking officers in one shuttle craft
• When your logic fails, trust a hunch
• Insufficient data does not compute
• If it can't be fixed, just ask Scotty
• Even on our own world, sometimes we are alien
• When going out into the Universe, remember: "Boldly go where no one has gone before"

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Second Thoughts – To Boldly Go

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes I will end the day with thoughts that are important to get out.  Usually I just write them and put them in my journal folder.  I have chosen that on occasion I will share them with you Dear Reader.

I was six years old and the summer heat had not yet broken in Atlanta.   The Braves were having a losing season.   School was already a torture under the tutelage of Mrs. Methuselah Mars.  And then the Great Bird of the Galaxy flew into the heart of my small black and white TV and into the soul of a six-year-old fatherless boy.

Forty-nine years ago today Star Trek premiered.  The show was in danger of cancelation from the outset.  Still over three years the work of the cast and crew of this ground breaking, envelope pushing show changed my life.   I learned so much about life during these weekly forty-four minute adventures. 

The challenges Kirk and crew faced taught me values and judgment.   They taught me to see the good in everyone.  I learned to honor the differences between Kirk, Spock, and McCoy.  Later in life I had the honor to meet and thank each of them.  Today as I ponder the long life and deep success of this venture I am reminded of the good it has done in so many lives.

This entertainment transcended simple fun and dared to teach us along the way.  Thank you Gene Roddenberry and company for all that you have given me.  I continue to learn from reruns and movies.  Hailing frequencies open Captain. 

All that I Needed to Know About Life I learned from Star Trek:

• Seek out new life and new civilizations.
• Non-interference is the Prime Directive.
• Keep your phaser set on stun.
• Humans are highly illogical.
• There's no such thing as a Vulcan death grip.
• Live long and prosper.
• Having is not so pleasing a thing as wanting; it is not logical but it is often true.
• Infinite diversity in infinite combinations (IDIC).
• Tribbles hate Klingons (and Klingons hate Tribbles).
• Enemies are often invisible - like Klingons, they can be cloaked.
• Don't put all your ranking officers in one shuttle craft.
• When your logic fails, trust a hunch.
• Insufficient data does not compute.
• If it can't be fixed, just ask Scotty.
• Even in our own world, sometimes we are aliens.
• When going out into the Universe, remember: "Boldly go where no man has gone before!"

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)