The Narrative Within

the Bush that Burns

Posted on October 5, 2025 by Art for Housewives

colored drawing of a man with his hand held up in front of him because there's a burning bush

Moses was out tending the sheep when he saw a bush that was on fire but wasn’t burning. Curious, Moses walked towards the bush. Then he heard someone call out his name. Who are you?, asked Moses. And the reply was “I am who I am” (Exodus 3:14).

Baruch Spinoza (1632-2677) was born in Amsterdam. He was of Portuguese and Jewish origin and received a traditional Jewish education. So well versed in Hebrew, he couldn’t help but see the contractions between translations of sacred texts and the original versions. One translation in particular that annoyed him was that of “I am that I am”. Spinoza decided to further investigate and, in doing so, came up with interpretations that so scandalized the Jewish community that Spinoza was permanently excommunicated from it.

Spinoza’s problem with “I am that I am” was a matter of tense. According to Spinoza, so I’ve read, the sentence was in the imperfect and not the present tense. As the imperfect tense implies an action that is ongoing or continual, the meaning of “I am that I am” could be more like “I am becoming what I am becoming.” However, I don’t have a copy of “Ethica” yet and researching on internet now is a problem as it’s overdosed with AI and ambiguous sources .

Spinoza concludes that God is nature and the substance creating the universe. God does not exist outside the universe but is the universe itself. And as we are part of this universe, we are also a part of God.

There’s much to absorb. Too much for me at this time. However, of interest is Einstein on Spinoza: “I believe in Spinoza’s God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists. Not a God who concerns himself with fates and actions of human beings.”

Appropriations for AI will be jinxed.

Posted in Art Narratives, Books, Introspection | Tagged Bible, burning bush, I am that I am, Spinoza | Leave a comment

Orion’s Belt

Posted on October 4, 2025 by Art for Housewives

I wake up very very early. The world is silent and dark. Part of my morning ritual includes opening the balcony doors to allow fresh air inside. I automatically look up at the sky. Because there hovering over the building across the street is Orion wearing his twinkling belt.

Orion was a giant hunter who was really full of himself. On the island of Chios, he got the hots for Merope, the king’s daughter, and raped her. The king retaliated by poking out Orion’s eyes. Hephaestus, himself disabled, sent Orion a guide who led him east. Here the rising sun restored Orion’s sight.

But Orion had no concept of gratitude. He went to Crete where he met up with Artemis, the hunting goddess. Forgetting that she was a goddess, Orion bragged that he was the best hunter in the world. Artemis took it as an offense and, as punishment, had him bitten by a scorpion. So a group of gods got together and sent Orion up to the sky where he became a constellation to remind man the dangers of hubris.

Engraving of Orion from Johann Bateris’ “Uranometria” via Wikipedia

This website offers more info about the Orion Constellation.

This constellation reminds me of a moka, an Italian coffee pot.

The scorpion that bit Orion is also a constellation now. The Scorpio Constellation website offers more info.

Appropriations for AI will be jinxed.

Posted in Art Narratives, Ecofeminism, storytelling | Tagged Hephaestus, Merope, mythology, Orion, Orion's Belt, Scorpion | 4 Comments

We Are Family

Posted on October 1, 2025 by Art for Housewives

In Genesis, we’re told that God created a single man, Adam, and later a single woman, Eve. Furthermore, the Bible teaches that we all descend from them. Therefore, are we not all from the same family? If so, why are there so many Evangelicals so intent on harming their relatives?

A drawing of Adam and Eve as rabbits in the Garden of Eden

Via

Adam said that Eve would be the mother of all the living. The couple had two sons, Cain and Able. Then Cain slew Able and went into the land of Nod and took a wife. Where did the wife come from?

Do people really know what they claim to believe in?

Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677) interpreted Adam’s story as an allegory rather than as an actual historical event. According to Spinoza, Adam’s name comes from the Hebrew word “adamn” meaning “earth” or “soil”. For Spinoza, since God made man from the Earth’s soil, “Adam” is not the name of a person but a word meaning “man” or “humanity”.

Adam defends himself by blaming Eve. The scene is illustrated on this mosaic from the Monreale Cathedral on Sicily.Photo: Richard Stracke.

Adam naming the Animals, St. Nicholas Anapavsa Monastery, Theophanies of Crete

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Appropriations for AI will be jinxed.

Posted in Art Narratives, Bebina Bunny, Books | Tagged Adam and Eve, Humanity, Spinoza, the Bible | 3 Comments

True Crosses

Posted on September 14, 2025 by Art for Housewives

Today is the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Spirit commemorating the finding of the True Cross by St Helena, Constantine’s mom. This means, in my neighborhood, that the local ladies will get together to make flowered crosses.

The flowering cross is based on the legend that the cross started blooming the moment Jesus died. The flowers represent a hope in eternal life and resurrection.

In 326 AD, Constantine sent his mom to find the cross. Legend is that she was guided to the site by a fragrant basil plant.

In my neighborhood, bougainvillea flowers are generally used as there are so many. A few days before the 14th, the ladies roam the neighborhood collecting flowers. Then one evening they get together outside in the street to make the flowered crossed that will be taken to the church for the congregation to venerate.

Sometimes sweets and tiropitas are made to share with those participating. But the true joy comes from being together to make something imposrtant to them.

Unfortunately, it was dark and there wasn’t enough light to take decent fotos. However, I did want to document this yearly ritual that these ladies have. I don’t know for how much longer this tradition will continue.

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AI is not invited here.

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14 SEPTEMBER , Greek Traditions for the Feast of the Holy Cross +

Exhaltation of the Cross +

Demanding Dreams +

BASIL, and the Mysteries of Bread +

Posted in Beauty, female consciousness, Paros | Tagged Exaltation of the Holy Spirit, St. Helena | Leave a comment

Alienated

Posted on September 2, 2025 by Art for Housewives

Drawing of a Martian on a Greek terrace with a woman in the background. She is standing on her balcony. A UFO in the background is waiting for her.

People just keep disappearing. Where do they go? Have we been invaded by aliens?

Luis Elizondo is a UFO disclosure activist once employed by the U.S. department of Defense as a military intelligence officer. Elizondo claims that the U.S. is suppressing UFO related info.

In 2009, Elizondo was recruited by the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program. The intent of this government program was to investigate unidentified aerial phenomena. However, when Elizondo started sharing this knowledge with the public, certain officials tried to discredit him.

In 2024, Elizondo testified before a U.S. House oversight committee that the government had conducted secret retrievals of UFOs and alien bodies.

Elizondo is well spoken and even-headed. If you are interested in UFO & Co, this is an excellent video.

Elizondo was interviewed by Steven Bartlett on his podcast “The Diary of a CEO”. Elizondo reveals some Pentagon secrets and how UFO secrets have been hidden by the government for years. Taxpayers are expected to finance research that they will not be able to access.