Laura Alyn Ornelas
@itslauraalyn
educator, artist, and seeker exploring the many ways we come to know the world and ourselves
Laura Alyn Ornelas
theornelian.com
“When you know, then it actually is true. And you have no way of denying it because everything fits to that.”
The Greek poet Archilocus’s well-known dichotomy of hedgehogs and foxes—“the fox knows many things but the hedgehog knows one big thing”—is another theme that plays throughout Peter Burke’s book.
Epstein, Joseph. “A Gallery of Know-It-Alls: Those Strange Creatures Called Polymaths.” Commentary 151, no. 4 (April 2021): 33–36.
I feel like there’s a very thin veil between my conscious, subconscious, and unconscious mind. I have a lot of communication with different parts of myself that want to share information with me. A lot of that, as I said earlier, comes through my body. I’ll notice myself make a gesture and think, “Oh—hi.”
-Alexandra Beller, ILA Radio, episode 39.
Mary Astell, “A Serious Proposal to the Ladies, for the Advancement of Their True and Greatest Interest (In Two Parts).”
53-63
For since GOD has given Women 53as well as Men intelligent Souls, why should they be forbidden to improve them? Since he has not denied us the faculty of Thinking, why shou’d we not (at least in gratitude to him) employ our
... See moreSOUL and
Mary Astell argues that women, possessing rational and immortal souls equal to men’s, have a moral and spiritual right to education. Denying women intellectual cultivation, she insists, weakens their judgment, distorts their will, and leaves them vulnerable to folly, manipulation, and shallow pursuits. Astell distinguishes true learning from trivial knowledge, warning that idle entertainment and fashionable reading fill the mind without forming wisdom.
She proposes that women be allowed serious study, especially philosophy and theology, not to claim public authority but to understand their faith, govern their lives wisely, and prepare their souls for heaven. Education, for Astell, refines character, deepens piety, and enables women to live purposefully, serve others charitably, and use time well. True religion and learning, she concludes, do not diminish joy but elevate it, aligning reason, devotion, and happiness into a disciplined yet life-giving whole.
On Experiential Knowing:
“And then we can learn through everything. Everything from volunteering to just activities, hobbies, and reading.”
“Pick up random hobbies… gardening, fitness, just whatever I can learn about.”
-Cynthia Garcia
We were talking about my interest in knowledge; but, as usual, we were on two different tracks.
I was referring to academic knowledge [capricorn] that transcends experience [aries], while he was talking about direct knowledge of the world [cancer].
"Do you know anything about the world around you?" he asked.
"I know all kinds of things," I said. [cap
... See moreCapricorn and
Slow down. We’re not meant to move this fast. We’ve developed all these technologies—cars, planes, rockets, the internet—where everything happens at high speed. But evolutionarily, our species isn’t built for this pace. We’ve created a speed in the world that our bodies, minds, and spirits aren’t truly functional at.
-Alexandra Beller
39. TRUSTING
... See moreI feel like I’ve had an interesting journey in my life. I don’t subscribe to the “everything happens for a reason” philosophy. There’s nothing wrong with it—it’s just not mine. I think there’s a lot of randomness in the universe. But I do feel like the paths in my life have always opened up for me. That doesn’t mean any of them were easy.
For
... See morethe qualities that go to make the polymath:
high concentration, [taurus]
powerful memory, [aquarius]
speed of perception, [gemini]
imagination, [libra]
energy, [cancer]
a competitive sense, [aries]
and more.
Epstein, Joseph. “A Gallery of Know-It-Alls: Those Strange Creatures Called Polymaths.” Commentary 151, no. 4 (April 2021): 33–36.
Epstein is
... See morePisces and