Man Cave and Study

A few days ago this showed up in my inbox:

I love this.

I love this for two reasons:

1)  The first is that I love the implication of what it is calling men back to: greatness and wisdom.    These are traits which are valuable in any culture.  No one ever said "Be less great.  Be less wise".   It is calling men to a higher plane of living.

2)  The second is that it notes the subtle change in culture that has plagued us for some time.

The Man Cave.  Grasp the implications.  The place where men retreat from the world rather than engage in it.  A cave - a place to hide, a place where usually only the desperate and outcasts of a society would hide.  A place of darkness and boundaries.  In our current situation, a place where men gather with other men in a sort of inward looking engagement.

Compare this with the study.  A place of learning and knowledge.  A place where men train themselves intellectually to go out into the world.  A place where men gather to discuss matters of import.

One is a place of consumption and entertainment.  The other is a place of training and engagement.

I have never had a study.  I have always wanted one but with multiple children the potential study is always being converted into a bedroom.  I have had to make do with a desk or even a table top; my study is never more than 2" by 3".  But wherever it has been I have put the small reminders of my life and what I want it to be.  It my place to think, to study, to ponder, and to prepare.

Less Man Cave.  More Study.