Envy, a powerful narcotic

Without a shadow of a doubt, folks that have been following my pilgrimage of this great passion, know the foundations of my beliefs and where I search for inspiration.

The once tranquil practice of man and nature and the mystical beauty of their creations left the practitioner content. In silent meditation he would allow the rapture of his creation to slowly sink in, while contemplating possible futures for his prodigy. Many a fellow enthusiast would fascinate over the rendition with admiration rather than envy.

Once upon a time there was a boy and a girl. Oops! wrong story.

Once upon a time the availability of information contained on the Internet and Bonsai related forums, was second to none. With this new available venue, it wasn't long before information circulated, spurring future generations of enthusiasts. Folks exchanged ideas, shared information amongst themselves to not only increase individual knowledge but to further advance the passion and the ever growing community, both horticulturally and artistically.

This venue led to a greater dissemination of information and many break troughs were possible. It was not only a wining situation for individuals but for the community at large. These days we are left to sift through "restroom" graffiti for the lack of a better word and to climb insurmountable mountains of egotistical participants, while searching for knowledge and/or improvement. The game has changed from a free exchange of ideas to one of constant one-upmanship.

Competition is an inherent trait of mankind, the narcosis of wining at all cost, overwhelming. At times I am left to wonder if one wouldn't sell his own mother in the pursuit of recognition and self-gratification. Why is that?

Greed and envy has once again veered its ugly head and in slowly infecting the bonsai community. But Internet participants are nothing more than a fraction of the whole, therefore I doubt that this disease is capable of infecting the entire community. Deep seeded traditions and beliefs are strong antibiotics and will undoubtedly fend off these demonic capitalistic creatures.