Today I had a moment with a machine. It is a machine that I have used for over a year during my shifts at a Test Prep Center. At the Center one of my main jobs is to scan test grids and print the results for students. The scanning machine has always given us problems from countless error messages to just getting the grids stuck in the machine repeatedly. Today was no exception. My boss was cussing and getting frustrated as she tried for the nth time to get the grids to go through the scanner. The grids wouldn’t ‘t make it farther than half an inch without getting stuck. I completely understood how she felt as I had been there so many times, when the machine is making life difficult, as it refuses to perform the task it was created for. In the past I have often remarked that it should not be kept near a window as it invites us all to daydream about chucking it through.
As my boss became more and more frustrated and started to use the machine roughly as her impatience grew, I decided to take the initiative and see if a gentle approach, using the right intent of respect for the machine might actually get things working again. My days thinking it is acceptable to wish harm to a machine are gone and I felt it was my duty to help the machine get back on track.
I took my place by the machine and centered my mind on it. I didn’t do anything, but mentally radiate thoughts of kindness and respect and right away the machine worked for me. All the test grids sped through with more ease than I have ever had before.
It was an amazing moment of connection. It felt like definite point of contact between me and another life form that previously had felt so alien. I felt that spark of sentience that I feel when I look into the eyes of an intelligent being.
This is vastly encouraging for my work on the Intent Project, as I am only beginning to realize how many angles there are to approach making conctact with mechanical complexities. I am happy to see that something so direct and pragmatic as truly just using a machine with kindness and respect can facilitate communication with the machine. This means that intent and the philosophy behind Greater Than is viable and can directly impact our daily lives with regards to even mechanical complexities. I am excited to try this with physical complexities as well. I know there have been some succesful attempts which I’ll look into gathering up as links etc. for the site.
This experience left me feeling like a lot of our technology woes might be over if the right intent is used when operating our machines, gadgets and gizmos. It is important to remember that if a machine isn’t functioning properly it is not its fault, but rather its creators.
