Theos-Talk Archives (May 1996 Message tl00843)

At 10:13 PM 5/14/96 -0400, you wrote:

>'Tis a thought.  However, I recall using a DOS based program in which
>many lines of header info came down the line with each message, and all
>were visible on screen.  This meant scrolling down at least a screenful
>just to see something like "Hi! I'm back!"  It's quite possible some
>subscribers are using such software, which isn't much fun.  IOW, the
>messages *as seen* were anything but short and pithy.
>
>Alan
>---------
>THEOSOPHY INTERNATIONAL:
>Ancient Wisdom for a New Age
>TI@nellie2.demon.co.uk
>http://www.garlic.com/~rdon/TI.html
>
>It seems to me that a message like "Hi, I'm back!" is a good sign of people
feeling "at home" in a milieu. To me, the short messages that you and Chuck
and Jerry S. and JRC and lately myself send back and forth, seem an
indication of a developing collegial or familial atmosphere in which people
feel very comfortable in sharing personal feelings, thoughts, and insights.
It seems to me that a list such as this creates a kind of Virtual Reality
social-Intellectual Association,in which people of differing backgrounds and
interests and points-of-view can "share and compare" in a totally "safe
place". How many people would enjoy the list if it was just long discussions
of every period, comma, and hyphen in the "Complete Works of HPB", or "Those
of Alice Bailey, or Gottfried de Peruker, sure those discussions are of
major interest to many people who subscribe to this list, myself included,
but a little "light relief" and a touch of humour, and a touch of personal
contact and friendship I think are the spice that makes the soup taste good.
If it were all long and ponderous lectures, I think most folks would find it
hard to maintain their interest. Now, as it stands, I always look forward to
meeting friends like you and Jerry S and Chuck even though i don't always
respond to the messages. It's a question of atmosphere.

alexis