The Babylometer

The cause of all anxiety in modern society.

As some of you may or may not know, I usually go to the National Rainbow Gathering of the Children of the Light, commonly reffered to as the Rainbow Gathering, or for those in the light, The Gathering. As usual I learn something at each gathering that strikes me profound and this year was no exception.

Held in the beautiful Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, this year's general theme was rain. It rained and it rained until finally one day it poured. A dry creek turned into a raging stream overnight. Clay trails turned to mud that became hungry for a loose sandal. 

This year I was sitting under some tarp out of the rain and listening to a brother when he mentioned the word "babylometer" in one of his remarks. I never heard the term before so I inquired.

What's a babylometer?

What is a Babylometer you ask? Before I quickly answer let me give you a bit of the etymology of the word via the oral tradition of the Rainbow family.

When you are inside the Gathering, which is held deep in a national forest, you are cut off from cell signals, electricity, bathrooms... in other words, completely cut off from the grid. Uniquely enough, there is no money exchanged at the gathering. It is all out of love. So for one week you live this ideal where all food is miraculously provided while everyone works together to cook, cut, play, teach, poop, clean, learn, and grow. And to share pure spiritual love with each other while praying for peace and enlightenment.

Occassionaly there is a need to go "outside" the gathering into "babylon" to get some supplies. Hence the term bablyon. When applied with the word chronometer we come up with a word for babylon's clock, the "babylometer".

And you thought I was kidding when I said profound!

The babylometer is the beginning of machine consciouness manifesting itself through human endeavor. Before the babylometer man was ruled by the rhythms of God and nature. 

These rhythms are much more analog, never perfect, always ebbing and flowing. The babylometer, on the other hand is precise, never ending, incessent, pounding, demanding obedience, and tireless. 

From this simple device the machine was born. Everything we do today obeys this babylometer. It is even the cause of the speed of light to be limited. It is the one device to rule above all other and that includes man. And we are so eager to accept its mastery over us. 

Could the babylometer be the cause of western pychosis? Why is everyone depressed? Why do we need and sell some many anti-depressents, sleep aids, power aids? Could it be that our anxiety stems from the incessent ticking of the clock? Its ticking, nicking, clawing, chiming, buzzing and blaring sounds are the cries of our soul as its gets worn down by the gears of this machine.

Everyday at 9, 8, 6, in an hour, when?, how long? race the clock, faster, no time to rest, it is Monday, it is 8, it is bus, it is car, it is time, tick, time, tock..... 

It never ends!

What is a human to do? 

Could we actually live in a world without a babylometer? Live by the rhythms of light, temperature, age, family, and relationships?

I don't know, but let's meet at dark thirty to get consensus on it. 

;-)