Scientific love

Have you ever come across a love letter written in terms of science? Here are selected samples taken from a site on FB “Love - Real Life Stories.”1 It gave me a laugh, and then it got me to think about a current training trend.

Dear Love,

Right from the day I set you optically in my eyes on you, I knew there was a FORCE OF ATTRACTION between you and me... My heart couldn’t forget the OHMS LOW (V=IR) between us... Now, I have the CURRENT, RESISTOR AND VOLTAGE to tell you....

The Science Girl reply: Hi, Sincerely, physics boy, I don’t have any CHEMICAL COMBINATION for you... You are an ELEMENT in my PERIODIC TABLE, and if you are there, you must be among the TRANSITION METALS because I don’t usually notice them amongst my FIRST 20 ELEMENT. I already have an ELECTRONIC CONFIGURATION for my Love, which can neither be created nor destroyed. This is, of course, stated by The FIRST LAW OF THERMODYNAMIC... Stop making your heart bubble in Love for me because HATING YOU IS CONSTANT AS O2 (OXYGEN)...

I think love letters written this way would be poorly received.

A lot of business and leadership training today is on Wellness. Understandably so because of the difficulties people are experiencing in these uncertain times, I have participated in these webinars and shared the virtual platform with speakers and industry leaders.

When it comes to emotional intelligence, the books, articles, and even the live conferences I attended during pre-covid days would feature speakers explaining that emotions like happiness, despair, and depression are brain functions primarily a matter of the brain and chemical reactions.

One example goes this way: “Happiness is a function of the left side of the frontal lobe – known as the left prefrontal cortex and that there are things that you and I can do to strengthen the left prefrontal cortex  – the feel-good center of the brain.“ They explain.

Whew! Just going through these terms leaves me exhausted and has significantly reduced my level of happiness. Professional speakers and trainers locally are picking up the trend. I am sure they mean well, but how does a “scientific” proposed solution help alleviate fear, anxiety and increased depression brought about by job losses, retrenchment, etc. as brought about by the pandemic?

Now do not get me wrong. Science is essential and is a discipline we do not ignore. But this is what happens when the trend is to project the evolution of man in contrast to creationism, thereby leaving no room for addressing the soul’s issues.

If we approach leadership training with this concept, would it help people struggling with emotional issues, especially amid the Pandemic challenges? Does it work, and more importantly, does it help?

There are soul issues that even science cannot deny nor defy. And while I respect its discipline, I do not think science can teach a person how to live a morally-right life of meaning and fulfillment. I wondered if science can teach us how to show care, compassion, and empathy to people who need it the most during these times of difficulty. Addressing soul issues in leadership training should not be considered cheesy or “soft.” But if our view is that man merely “evolved,” that it is merely a body made up of different chemicals devoid of a soul. Then that is where we are headed. That we live a life of meaningless existence because we are mere chemical blobs floating here and there. Oh, I don’t know, and you will have to forgive me. Perhaps the older I get, the more cynical I become about business training trends and practices. I can’t help it but let me give you one more love letter expressed in science. I will give it one final jab.

Suppose you write a love letter this way:

Sweetheart,

When my ocular nerves met yours, you have been present in all the four chambers of my coronary organ. Your impression is printed on the retina of my eyes. There is a compulsion arising from the gastro-intestinal tract that stimulates me to exchange body fluids with you.

Yeew! Makes you lose your appetite and a lot less happy wouldn’t it? The simple interpretation for this would have been: “The moment I set my eyes on you. I wanted to kiss you...” Not very scientific but a lot more acceptable, wouldn’t it?

(Connect with Francis Kong at www.facebook.com/franciskong2. Or listen to “Business Matters” Monday to Friday 8 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. over 98.7 DZFE-FM ‘The Master’s Touch’, the classical music station.)

https://www.facebook.com/Love-Real-Life-Stories-405912710135150/posts/