Whitehead famously stated, “Philosophy begins in surprise.” If that’s true, then my rescue kitten, Raindrop, stands out as the best thinker of all time.
Whereas path strolling on a wet Spring morning in early June, my husband and sister-in-law and I heard the pressing, distressing meow of a cat in a inexperienced thicket close to a creek. We thought it have to be a much bigger cat, given the sheer quantity of its voice, however after we lastly coaxed it out of the bushes, we noticed that it was a tiny scrap of life, alone, soaked, ravenous, and stuffed with tics and brambles. Due to his persistent cries, he was saved. And fed. And beloved to the hilt.
Eat, Play, Love
He-of-the-big-voice inhabits the tiniest of our bodies (presumably the runt of a litter), who we hope will quickly start to fill out with our care. However tiny is big within the realm of what issues. I spotted after every week of caring for him, that he has a lot to show me. His wants are easy: Eat, play, love. However the knowledge from this relationship — kitten and me — goes a lot additional.
Raindrop rekindles in me that foundational worth of surprise that undergirds the very best of religious traditions, poetry, science, and philosophy.
Philosophy actually means “the love of knowledge,” and I’ve devoted a lot of my grownup life to the research of philosophy and theology because of this; however knowledge, I’ve found, comes not simply from mental ideas, theories, and concepts; knowledge additionally involves us via the surprise of nature, the earth, the physique, the universe, instinct, creativeness, music, artwork, and spiritual life. Clever considering doesn’t get caught within the corridor of mirrors of its personal logical certainties however returns with humility to the wonder-filled world of tiny, misplaced kittens and rain and the wrestle to outlive.
Divine Marvel
The present of surprise comes from past us; it points forth from divine locations, each in heaven and earth, in sorrow and in laughter, in play and in love, in ritual and in music. The best thinkers are those that perceive this.
Raindrop is aware of one thing about surprise. He is stuffed with it, all 1½ lbs. of him. Every little thing sings and shines and calls out to be observed: the sounds and actions from tv, a toy ball that lights up, a mushy pile of towels during which to sleep and dream. Every little thing is model spanking new, contemporary, scary, and great — every part, the entire “kit-ten” caboodle — from the ecstasy of his first lick of butter to the worry and awe impressed by his 20 lb. ginger brother.
Radical Amazement
In a state of surprise, we develop our souls, turn out to be curious and open-minded. Our creativity blossoms, and our empathy deepens. In a state of surprise, we turn out to be wholly current within the second. Raindrop doesn’t fear concerning the future when watching squirrels and birds from his window perch. He doesn’t bear in mind being deserted and misplaced. He’s too enraptured with life! At each flip, with each new discovery, his slanted inexperienced eyes develop giant and stuffed with nothing lower than what Abraham Joshua Heschel’s referred to as “radical amazement.”
Raindrop teaches me different issues, too: while you’re in want, meow loudly till somebody pays consideration! Be persistent. Observe curiosity. Stand in awe on the bigness of the world. And, if every part round you is rising darkish and scary, search for the patch of sunshine streaming via the window and park your self there so long as you want.
Be Astonished
All of it begins with surprise. We are able to all be philosophers of surprise, with the knowledge that we’re very small creatures within the scope of the huge universe. As Mary Oliver put it:
“Directions for dwelling a life.
Listen.
Be astonished.
Inform about it.”
We want these directions greater than ever. These are indisputably darkish days, so it’s good to be reminded via our pets and youngsters and poets the right way to dwell in a steady state of awe and astonishment which retains the door open to hope and contemporary prospects. For surprise is a type of deep intelligence that may host empathy, wholeness, and deep religious awakening.
The Marvel Stays
After all, many nice thinkers start with surprise, however then lose it alongside the best way as they get additional into breaking issues aside within the mental quest for data. Issues start to be devitalized and life turns into bits and items of information with no actual embodiment. However data is just not knowledge. Intellectuals usually overlook to return their consideration to what’s most actual — and most essential: the dwelling, messy, ambiguous world. Good philosophy factors again to the world, to nature, to the entire internet of relationships that make up life. Clever thinkers stability their summary ideas and concepts with surprise and thriller and the humility of being a tiny being in an enormous universe.
It’s essential to notice that Whitehead didn’t solely say, “Philosophy begins in surprise,” however he added considerably, “And on the finish when philosophic thought has carried out its finest the surprise stays.” The surprise stays! That’s the key.
Everyone knows that life itself begins in surprise, however for the way many people does surprise stay? We develop outdated, cynical, and overlook who we’re: stardust in an unlimited and exquisite universe — part of the Nice Thriller of Being.
Sure, Raindrop can inform us one thing about being a tiny tyke in an enormous, scary world, and the right way to see this huge world via a lens of surprise, awe, and pure astonishment. Once I immerse myself within the surprise of my very own aliveness — the tickle of rain on my pores and skin, the delight of an excellent meal, the pang of loss, the enjoyment of discovering a misplaced kitten — I really feel a deep conviction that this tragic and exquisite world is by some means held collectively by love.
And all of it begins — and ends — in surprise.
