The Skin I’m In
My skin is brown with traces of crimson
given to me by my father who is mahogany
a beautiful smooth dark espresso kind of brown
…with hints of red
My father also has a deep rich commanding voice
that would let you know in the instant that you heard it
whether you were going to get a
ride in the swing that he made with his hands
or the direction in which to move to pick a switch
from the peach tree out back
My body is tall and ample
given to me by my father who is a pillar of strength
towering over most everyone in the crowd,
so that if I got lost all I had to do was…look up
My daddy…
intense and intimidating to those who cross him,
…like the man who tried to call him Billy...
‘cause see, by no means is my father Billy or Willie
that signified being a boy to him and my father…is a man
so his name, is just Bill.
Now it’s one thing to take after my father but entirely another
to look like my father when all I wanted to be
was one of those cute perky kind of girls that all the guys want to date in high school
or when I say hello have the other person on the phone line say
“oh excuse me sir, I was looking for Danielle”
…when all I wanted was to sound like syrup dripping out of the bottle
on an easy Sunday morning
… sweet.
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A friend recently emailed me asking for a simple definition of "cosmology." Below is my reply.
--Drew
It's not always easy to find a simple definition of cosmology that covers it fully, so when I present, I generally throw out a flurry along these lines (and some of these definitions are influenced by the ones used by Brian Swimme and Miriam MacGillis over the years):
Most simply, "cosmology" is the study of the cosmos. (Or the study of the universe.)
In terms of modern science, "cosmology" is the study of the origin and development of the universe as a whole ("in its totality" also works, and avoids any confusion that could arise from the fact that "whole" and "hole" are homonyms.)
Swimme would add this: "Cosmology" is the study of the origin and development of the universe in its totality, and the role of the human in the universe. Science would tend to ignore that last part about "the role of the human in the universe." To a 'new cosmologist' like Swimme, that dimension is crucial.
But the scientific study of the origin and development of the universe (the "Big Bang" theory; the study of the galaxies, and the large-scale structure of the cosmos; astronomy and astrophysics) is only half of a full definition of "cosmology."
"Cosmology" is also a worldview or 'cultural story.' (A paradigm or "cosmo-vision")
To capture this sense, I say, "cosmology" is the story that a culture tells itself about how the world came to be, and how we fit into it.
So I think that a complete definition of "cosmology" (even a simple one) should include these two major aspects: the 'scientific' and the 'cultural'. "Cosmology" is both 'scientific study' and 'cultural story.'
So to reiterate,
"Cosmology" is the study of the origin and development of the universe as a whole, and the role of the human in the universe. It is also the story that a culture tells itself about how the world came to be, and how we fit into it.
(One last wrinkle is that the mainstream definition of "cosmology" and particularly "cosmologist" leans toward the 'scientific study' part, so almost any time you hear the word "cosmologist," it would be in reference to a physicist, astronomer, astrophysicist, scientist, etc. The 'cultural story' aspect of "cosmology" is less understood, though that is changing.)
Hope this is helpful,
Drew
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