Through reading Thomas Merton’s New Seeds of Contemplation, I have discovered two ideals that I try to utilize in my own life: that the question is the answer, and our superficial “I”. Merton explains how “[w]e awaken...to realize that the question is it's own answer” (Merton 4). In other words, through Contemplation we live out the question, to discover the answer. In my life, I ask myself many questions. By asking these questions, I continue living which produces my answer. I become more aware of my doings which helps formulate my answer. Furthermore, the idea of the superficial “I” Merton describes as “[our] external self” which is not the same person we present before God. In other words, our inner selves are the real us whereas the external
