Safe at Home

I'll let you in on a little secret. I'm not a real deep thinker. My political science degree was mostly a place holder. I'm not passionate about health care, and I don't make enough money to care about what happens to my tax dollars. Ok, so I occasionally read the drudge report, and I downloaded a CNN app, but that's about as close as I'm ever going to get to watching the news. I operate on the assumption that others will worry enough for me. That others will tell me what to do in a crisis. In my small world, on my small plot of rented land, I feel safe. This isn't the most popular way to go through life, but I promise I'm not just freeloading. I try to do little things to help, love my dog as much as possible, shop local, water my plants, say thank you, and smile at strangers. To you this may sound shallow, but I make a consciencous effort every day to remain thankful. The problem is, the world operates on a scale that I cannot control, and while I have the fear enough to worry, I appreciate the shelter. I recognize that I've only ever heard gun shots on TV. I value only ever having to watch stories about war on afilitate news channels. I can say, with a fair amount of certainty, that I will never be tortured for classified information. My location today, will remain the same at my will. I own my freedom, because others own it for me. I may not watch the news, I may never know war, but I am thankful for the people who chose to save my life everyday. 

Lesson #58: Let Freedom Ring

Blind

In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't. 

-Blaise Pascal

Ok so I might be making it up as I go along. Some days, I have no idea what I'm doing. I can't tell you what's right and wrong. This doesn't seem to be multiple choice. Life is an essay test. I don't know the rules, I'm not sure if you kneel or bow, when you dip your hand in the water, I'm not exactly sure what it means, and I have no idea how long you should pray before going back to your seat. I drift off to places in my head, and standing still with my eyes closed, sometimes makes me feel like I might topple over. I prefer to make it up as I go along, I'm trying the best I can to be what would be described as a good person. So in the morning, I say hello in the hall way. I think about the best stuff in people. I ask God to help my friends. Some might think it's time wasted, but if one action, creates another positive reaction, then what we believe maybe trivial. The time I spend saying thank you is my time well spent. I've never been good at letting go, in fact I suck at release, deep breathing exercises, and reaching REM sleep. Sometimes I feel faithless, a failure at letting things happen, but I say hello in the hall way, and I hold the elevator for some guy on the second floor, and I smile at a stranger, and I take a deep breath, and try to have faith. If it doesn't mean anything, then what does it mean?

Lesson #28: Do the right thing.

Hope

"In violence we forget who we are."

-Mary McCarthy

Sometimes I wonder what the world has come to. Who are we as people that we resort to anger? What happened to the Mickey Mouse Club era, the harmless world of Leave it to Beaver? I miss the innocence of being oblivious. I wish we could go back to simplier times. I question now if they ever actually existed. The truth is, the world has evolved, and and in that evolution, out of greed and angst, come criminals and gunmen. I am a member of the Shel Silverstein generation. I will be my own light source. I will find ways to stay simple. I will believe in something greater than myself. As I write this I am hopeful.

Lesson #8: Keep the faith