My beliefs
What I was taught to believe
{ 12:27 PM, 24/2/2007 }
{ 3 comments }
{ Link }
I'm going on 67 now. This is the time when one reflects on life, and what sense one can make out of it. In doing so, I hope to clarify my thoughts, and hopefully leave some record that may be of some use to my three beautiful children. And anyone else who cares to read them. You may choose to agree, or disagree. That is as it should be. If you are moved to make a comment, please do, but I won't be entering into any futile arguments. I'm old enough to have learnt the folly of that. My intention is not to force my views on anyone. If they help someone through this life, then the effort will have been worthwhile. If they offend some, then I'm sorry, but they are my beliefs. I don't say they are right for anyone else, but they are right for me. I was raised a Christian in the Anglican faith. I went to Sunday School, and was altar boy for many years. I had no reason to question my faith, as it seemed to serve me well, answering any quesions about life and death that I may have. All I had to do was try to live by its teachings, and all would be well.
When I became an adult, my church attendance dropped away, and became an annual event, but I was still a believer. Eventually church attendance stopped altogether, but I still believed.
I didn't start to question until I was about 30. Until then, there were more important things to do in life. When I was 29 I commenced work at a Snowy Mountains Hydro Electric Authority construction camp. I was to remain with Snowy for five years, and spent that time trying to understand what the hell was going on in this world. And out of it, for that matter. I tried to study religion, philosophy, science and politics. I watched all the ABC TV programs, read Readers Digest and anything else I could that might answer the questions running around in my mind.
And I became one very confused person. All the beliefs about life that I had taken for granted came falling down around my ears.
All this worldly wisdom was once the unamiable heresy of some wise man.
Henry David Thoreau
What started it
I'd had this vague feeling when I got to Snowy that I was searching for something. Moving around had satisfied my curiosity for a few years, but I had tired of that. There was something else I was yearning for. I realised many years later that it was the need to develop a personal philosophy to give my life some meaning.I was lying in bed one night when it occurred to me that if I had been born just a few years later, I may have been conscripted into fighting in Vietnam. To fight Communism we were told. We were told that the Communists were intent on world domination, and that if they won in Vietnam then the other South East Asian countries would fall like dominoes until we would eventually be fighting Communism at the doorstep to Australia. That was the infamous Domino Theory. But I didn't even know what Communism was! I thought I'd better find out. Until that point, I'd accepted without question everything our Liberal - Country Party Government had told us, even though I had always been a Labor voter. Because Dad said that working people voted Labor. But that was about the sum total of my political knowledge. I had no reason to distrust our Government, as they were Australians, and would always do the right thing by their fellow Australians. Wouldn't they?
So what was this Communism that was so bad that our young had to be killed defending us from it? I had some vague idea that Communists didn't believe in God, but that didn't seem reason to kill them, or be killed. So I bought books, read Time and Newsweek magazines, and watched the Current Affairs programs. I also talked to workmates who had come from European Communist countries. Much to my surprise many had no problems with Communism, and planned to return to the Communist countries they had come from. They said that their health system was free, and everyone had a job under Communism. So why were Aussies being killed fighting this thing called Communism? Something didn't add up.
Then I talked with some of the older workers who had come from Communist countries. Their opinion of Communism wasn't very high at all. And I watched the newsreels as the Russian tanks went into Prague. Hmmm.
Then I met Sam. He must have been around 70, although he told Snowy he was 55 when he started. He said he was Irish, but had lived in the Phillipines for many years after the war. I never knew whether he was telling me the truth. But he did show me a Time Magazine he had brought from the Phillipines. He said you would never be able to read anything like that in Australia. It contained an article by an American columnist called Drew Pearson. And Drew Pearson had listed his ideas of why Kennedy had gone into Vietnam, and there was nothing there about fighting Communism!
According to Drew Pearson the reasons why Kennedy went into Vietnam were:
1. Kennedy was still smarting from the Bay of Pigs fiasco.
2. He, as a Roman Catholic, was influenced by American Roman Catholic Cardinal Spellman's antagonism to Communism.
3.South Vietnam was ruled by Roman Catholic dictator, Diem.
What was all this about religion? I had thought that we were defending our country against the downward sweep of a world dominating Communism. And Jack Kennedy wouldn't take his country into war for reasons as frivolous as this, would he? Were Australians really dieing fighting a religious war they knew nothing about? This was all too confusing.
Do not worry if you have built your castles in the air. They are where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.
Henry David Thoreau
The light dawns
1:51 PM, 8/6/2006 ..
The realisation came as a shock. These politicians, who parents had entrusted with the lives of their beautiful children, were fools!
Never again would I take them at face value. Especially when I learned years later that the leader of the Country Party had justified our prescence in Vietnam as an "insurance policy". The "thinking" of these fools was that if we followed the U.S. into Vietnam, then the US would feel obliged to defend us at some future date if we were ever attacked. And the premium paid for this insurance policy? The lives of over 500 of our beautiful sons, some of whom were conscripted into fighting a war they never understood. And the lives ruined of thousands more who would be physical and emotional wrecks for the rest of their lives. To say nothing of the millions killed in Vietnam in our name, and 54,000 U.S. soldiers, many of whom were conscripts. And all for nothing....
And the final proof that we should never have been in Vietnam? We lost. And all that those Vietnamese people did was just get on with living their lives. No falling dominoes. No nothing. Just the taking control of their own country which is all they had ever wanted to do. And all that we had "achieved" was the needless loss of millions of lives, including 500 of our own precious sons.
I suppose it was the final loss of my innocence. But it was also the dawning of my realisation that we are on our own in this world. That we never, ever, trust our leaders when they appeal to our patriotism, mateship ideals, and other emotive tools they use to mask their true intent. When the politicians volunteer their sons first, then I might listen to them. I know that will never happen.
And to think I've lived to see Australians being told the same lies justifying our presence in Iraq that we were told when we went into Vietnam. And with the same outcome. I wonder how they sleep at night...
The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs, is to be ruled by
evil men." -- Plato -(429-347 BC)
Pointless
Even though I wasn't around during the time of the Vietnam war, I am often confused at how such a war came to be. I believe that there is no viable reason at all for a human being to die a violent and untimely death - and yet to die such a death not really knowing what it is you're fighting for in the first place? When I was at school, there was such focus on both of the world wars, and I can recite facts and dates and names for both of them. However I don't recall ever being taught about Vietnam and why such a war came to be - despite Australias involvement. It all just seems so pointless and such a stupid waste of human life; but then, I guess all violence and killing is such a waste of human life, regardless of what war is being fought. Perhaps the reasons for war don't even matter, just the absolute pointlessness of it all does. I often wonder if what is happening in Iraq will turn out like Vietnam - no-one really understanding why it started, what people were dying for, what the aim was.I am enjoying reading your posts!
Rinny
Good to hear from you. Glad you are enjoying the posts. I am enjoying writing them.To their credit, Former Army Minister, Malcolm Fraser, and former U.S. Defense Secretary, Robert MacNamara admitted after the war that we were wrong to go into Vietnam. But I'm getting ahead of myself...
Iraq sickens me, and it is with a sense of frustration that I look at the unconcern of most Australians as to what is going on there. I have some theories on that too, but that is later in the blog.
Have a good one.
Edited by snowy on 7/6/2006 at 3:38 PM
The journey begins
7:59 AM, 8/6/2006 ..
So it was that I started on my journey of discovering just what was going on. It took me into politics, religion, philosophy, science. You know, all the easy ones...It was clear that my world view wasn't really my worldview. It was a world view inluenced by people with whom I had come into contact. And it had been found wanting. But I was finding that there were so many worldviews to choose from! Which was right?
I tried reading the New Testament. I prayed so hard when my brother-in-law got Hodgkin's Disease. He recovered, thanks to a new chemotherapy treatment, but I wondered if it was my prayers. Then I wondered why prayers didn't work for the poor soul in the next bed to him, and I couldn't really answer that. But I tried. I talked to a workmate who was very religious, and went along to see an American evangelist at his church. I prayed with my friend. But I finally had to admit that it just wasn't doing it for me. Whose side was God on during the Second World War? And would Jesus really approve of the slaughter in Vietnam?
So my religious beliefs were discarded. Not willingly, as they gave me answers to questions that I no longer had answers for. But what use was that if I no longer believed the answers?
So I tried Philosophy. And I read Bertrand Russell's "Why I am not a Christian". He said it was because no-one could answer the question "Who made God?". Who indeed.
I tried to read Plato's "Republic". Nearly forty years later, I'm still trying to read it. But one thing I did understand, and that was Plato's cave analogy. We are all like people in a cave, forming our opinions from the shadows we see cast on the wall of the cave. But the true light casting the shadows is outside the cave, and we never see it. All we ever see is the shadows, and we think that is reality. How wise were these early philosophers. I was to learn subsequently that the Bible had been rewritten in an attempt to incorporate the wisdom of the early Greek Philosophers. The word of God, or the word of man?
For what are the classics but the noblest thoughts of man? They are the only oracles which are not decayed, and there are such answers to the most modern inquiry in them as Delphi and Dodona never gave. We might as well omit to study Nature because she is old.
Henry David Thoreau
My world gets bigger
1:22 PM, 8/6/2006 ..
The Snowy camp only had one pub, and the beer was awful, so I had plenty of time to delve into whatever interested me. I decided to buy an astronomical telescope. Just a 2 1/2 inch refractor, but big enough for a beginner. I knew nothing of astronomy as it had never been taught at school. My interest had been aroused by an article in the Readers Digest on the size of the Universe. The mind boggling figures of just how big the Universe was, and just how insignificant our little planet was in it began to put things into perspective for me. Why ever would God go to all the trouble of creating a Universe for human beings to sin in? That was the final clincher for religion for me.
I looked at the planets, the moon, the stars, and the galaxies, and marveled at how wonderful and mysterious it all was. I read books on cosmology, and the search for life in the Universe, and became aware of how precious this gift of life is to us all. And how precious is every instant of our time on Earth. How foolish to waste our time on frivolous pursuits. And how foolish to kill our fellow human beings. The horror of Vietnam became even more unbearable especially as the reasons for it became less credible.
Religion is something left over from the infancy of our intelligence, it will fade away as we adopt reason and science as our guidelines.
Bertrand Russell
So much to do, so little time..
9:08 AM, 10/6/2006 ..
It was with a sense of frustration that I realised that no-one during their lifetime could process all the available information so that they could form a truly informed worldview. I came to realise that the best you could do was to go through life tasting the fruits that took your fancy, and accept that your worldview was going to be a work in progress. And you have to make your choice as to what to spend those precious moments of your time on earth doing. It is true that much of that time has to be spent on the drudgery of survival. The value of this drudgery is measured by our fellow humans in terms of money. Far more important to me is the value of self worth one places on oneself, and only the individual can determine that for him/herself.
We are all human beings who come into the world the same way, and go out the same way. And we are all equal, no matter what the supremicists may say. Equal in the sense that no human has the right to take another human's life. The problem arises when we see the survival of other humans as being a threat to our own. Humans have used this basic fear to their advantage to exercise power over other humans since civilisation began. We must acknowledge that it will always happen, and learn to recognise it when it does, and learn how to deal with it. The stupidity of the invasions of Vietnam and Iraq come to mind.
We are all concerned first with survival, and some never go beyond this first step. For some, every waking moment is filled with thoughts of accumulating wealth. And when the time comes to die, they can point to their accumulated wealth, and say that they have had a successful life. We all differ in our mental and physical faculties, so our time on earth is governed according to the mental and physical hands we were dealt, together with the nurturing environment in which we were raised. The values we learn in this environment serve to point us in a certain direction in early life.
But at various points in life, the thinking person has to reappraise these values, and discard those that no longer are appropriate to that person. Similarly, new values must be acquired in order to give meaning to one's existence. Only then, can one begin to be truly free. To my way of thinking, once an individual has accumulated enough wealth to provide for his/her needs , then any further time spent on the pursuit of wealth is a waste of precious moments on this earth. Thorsten Veblein had it right with his Theory of Conspicuous Consumption in his "Theory of the Leisure Class". As did Henry David Thoreau in his "Walden".
My parents lived all their lives in a small country town. They came from farming stock, and manual skills were all that were necessary for them to have a fulfilling life. They lived healthy active lives into their eighties, before both succumbed to cancer. For most of their lives, any information about the outside world came to them through newspapers and/or radio. In the last few years of their lives, they had T.V. So, did they have good lives? I think so. They remained believers to the end, and never questioned their faith. They never had need for sleeping pills, antidepressants, or tranquilisers. They lived their lives according to what gave it meaning, and then died. Along the way, they never knowingly did any harm to anyone else, and raised my sister and I. Yes, I think they had good lives. But would that have been a meaningful life for me? No, but that doesn't mean to say it wasn't a meaningful life.
The fact is that a man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessarily comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous.
Niccolo Machiavelli
Out of the darkness
And so I stumbled along for a few years trying to make sense of it all. Then one night at a friend's place, I saw hanging on the wall some words saying in part:You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
It was, of course, Max Erhmann's wonderful "Desiderata".
How simple, and yet so true. We are a part of this glorious universe. We always have been; we always will be. Not in our present form, certainly, but the universe is in a constant state of transformation, so why not us? Why should we be any different to any of the other forms of life on this planet which share a common ancestry with us? It is true that "The universe is unfolding as it should". I will be forever grateful to Max Ehrmann for his words which I consider the wisest ever uttered.
This was the personal philosophy that I had been seeking. I have tried to live by it ever since, and have never found it wanting. Sometimes my efforts to live by it have been, but not the philosophy. I have passed it on to my beautiful children. They have no need of it yet, but in years to come, when they begin to question why things are as they are, it will serve them in good stead. No doubt they will develop their own philosophies, but I am sure that Desiderata will be a launching pad for them.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.
Max Ehrmann - Desiderata
From human centric to universe centric
4:10 PM, 11/6/2006 ..
I had now changed from a human centric worldview to a universe centric one. I suppose this first took root when I first looked through a telescope, and marveled at the splendor of the universe. I imagined myself in space looking back at earth, and imagined myself as a tiny speck on that earth. What arrogance to assume that the universe revolved around me! It isn't surprising that we humans see the world with humans at the centre of it. Our religions are all about a universe revolving around us. So it isn't surprising that our religions were developed from this worldview, as our ancestors just didn't have the knowledge of the universe that we have now. It was Copernicus who started the rot when he declared that the earth revolves around the sun, instead of everything else revolving around the earth. The religions have never recovered from this blow to a human centred worldview. Darwin's Theory of Evolution further eroded the power of the priests, and they have never forgiven him for it. The priests had enjoyed thousands of years of power over other humans by setting themselves up as the interpreters of Plato's light outside the cave. Even kings had to bow to their power. When science challenged the power of the priests, they first tried to suppress science (see Galileo) Then when science prevailed they decided that maybe they'd better accommodate science before they lost all their power. But it is an uneasy truce, and the Christian Right still tilt at old windmills that they see as a challenge to their self appointed authority as God's interpreters of the light. There will always be some who will prefer Faith over Reason. And there will always be some who will use their positions as interpreters of this faith as a means of power.
I suppose my beliefs could now be best described as humanist, although I hesitate to put any label on myself. I believe I am a part of a wonderful universe that I will never understand. I cannot believe that there is some all powerful super human deciding who will live eternally, depending on their acts on earth. The universe doesn't really care, and will just keep on unfolding as it should. I do not need the threat of eternal damnation to develop a moral code that I will try to uphold to make my time on earth as happy and productive as I can. That this striving for happiness must take account of other creatures, including humans, is self evident.
I have no problem with other humans living according to their various faiths, so long as I am accorded the same courtesy and respect for my beliefs. Killing other humans because of religious differences, and/or attempting to inflict religious beliefs on them through legislation is repugnant to me, and I make no apology for resisting such people in any way I can. And if I can puncture the balloon of hypocrisy surrounding these people, then I will do so at every opportunity.
If God created us in his own image, we have more than reciprocated.
Voltaire
Lessons of History
9:28 AM, 12/6/2006 ..
My quest for understanding received another boost as a result of a conversation with a friend from the Island of Guernsey. He mentioned one day that he had seen an interesting article in a Readers Digest. It was a condensation of Will Durant's book, Lessons from History. I read the article, and it again was a turning point in my life. As a result of what I had seen in the article, I purchased the book, Lessons from History. It answered all the questions I had concerning religion and politics. I will be forever grateful to him and his wife, Ariel. He wrote to inform the common man, and not the academics who looked down on his work. He must have influenced the lives of millions of people like myself who were struggling to find a way through the misinformation fed to us by people whose main concern was to gain control of our minds.I have given my three beautiful children copies of the book. I hope it is as helpful to them in their lives as it has been in mine.
This all came together for me towards the end of my five years at Snowy. I now felt confident that I could re-enter the world outside armed with my newfound knowledge.
Politics
I will never forgive the Liberal-National Parties for sacrificing our young in Vietnam as the price for a supposed "insurance policy" that guarantees that the U.S. will defend Australia in the event that we are attacked at some future date. Apart from the immorality of lying to us while sending our young off to their deaths, the "insurance policy" argument is just plain stupid. No country goes to war unless it feels that it is in its own best interests to do so. If the U.S. felt that it was in its own best interests not to defend Australia at some future time, then it would not defend it. The U.S. is not going to be swayed by the fact that Australia's politicians were stupid enough to blindly follow them into Vietnam. So when the Australian Labor Party said that they would bring our troops home, then it confirmed my life long support for them.How wonderful it was to see the election of the Australian Labor Party in 1972! And how illuminating to see the subsequent disgraceful behaviour of the "born to rule" Conservative parties. Parliamentary conventions that the ALP had always observed were thrown out by the Coalition in their desperation to regain the power that they always assumed was rightfully theirs.
And the behaviour of the Australian media was an education as well, as they fell over themselves to do the bidding of their Coalition masters. Finally, the ALP was brought down by an alcoholic Governor General who became just another Labor rat. And Australia went back to sleep for seven long years.
It is true that the world is run to suit the extremely rich and powerful corporate world. Because of their power, and control of the media, they are able to manipulate democracies by controlling the information that flows to the common people. And it has got worse. One only has to look at the disgraceful manipulation by the Murdoch media worldwide. Their connivance with the most stupid President the U.S. has ever had was instrumental in the early overwhelming public support for the invasion of Iraq.
It has to be said that these people care nothing for the lives of the common people. And they have even reinvented Christianity to line up with the interests of the rich and powerful. Thus the enthusiasm of the Conservatives for the fundamentalist Christians who disgrace themselves by doing the bidding of the rich and powerful in the name of one of the most gentle persons ever to walk this earth.
It's Time
I have often heard many people lament over the "spendthrift" ways of the Whitlam years. It's a shame, because even though I wasn't around to witness them, I feel that Gough Whitlam was perhaps one of the best Prime Ministers this country has known; if not for sticking to a budget :-), then for his willingness to listen to the public. My mother still hums the "It's Time" campaign song to herself !As a young labour supporter myself, I hope for a time to come when "progressive" change for our country doesn't occur at the expense of the people who reside in it.
Onya Rinny
7:59 PM, 12/6/2006 .. Posted by snowy
What nostalgia does that "It's Time" theme bring back to me... I wonder if those who accuse Whitlam of being spendthrift had any problem with the money that was (wisely?) spent by the Coalition on our "insurance policy" in Vietnam. The Whitlam government changed this country forever for the better, and would have done much more good if given the chance. It was an exciting time to live through after the horror of the Vietnam years.
Take an active interest in politics, Rinny. You owe it to yourself to stay informed. I join with you in hoping for a return to a more gentle, caring society.
Where we're at
1:09 PM, 13/6/2006 ..
So, here I am in 2006 and still trying to make sense of it all. This is what I believe:It's all about survival, both physical and intellectual. I think the Maslow needs heirarchy says it best. It makes more sense to me than anything else I've seen. I think that individual worldviews are formed according to the Maslow layers.
The more greedy and acquisitive among us never attain the fifth layer. I'll call them "Conservatives" They are also more likely to see physical survival as the sole reason for being in this life. Other humans are rated according to their usefulness in this quest for physical survival. Therefore, if other humans can be cheated of their labour, or sacrificed in war, they have fulfilled their purpose in life, which is to ensure the survival of the Conservatives. They are also more likely to see religion as a means of manipulation of their fellow humans, as well as the means to an everlasting survival after death.
Those who attain self actualisation (or liberals) are more likely to see a higher purpose in life than the accumulation of wealth, or exploitation of their fellow human beings. They are more likely to see their time on earth as being about physical/intellectual survival, and see man made religions for what they are. They are more likely to see co-operation as the means to survival on this earth rather than the exploitation favoured by the conservatives.
So, liberals must face the problem of avoiding exploitation by the conservatives. Knowing your enemy is a good place to start.
Because the conservatives see the accumulation of wealth as the reason for being on this earth, they devote all of their time to this purpose. They are not capable of self actualisation, so do not "waste" their time in pursuit of the intellectual activities favoured by the liberals. But this accumulation of wealth gives them a powerful weapon to use to control the information flow used for decision making by the masses who are preoccupied with the business of survival. Therefore, information favourable to the conservative cause is fed in a constant stream, while information favourable to the liberals is either suppressed or ridiculed. This is the situation confronting those of liberal persuasion throughout the Western world today.
In Australia, the Liberal-National Party commitment to Conservatism is evidenced by their disgraceful Industrial Relations legislation which destroys the hard won rights of working people, to the advantage of the employers. This upward redistribution of wealth has continued unabated for ten years.
The enthusiasm of the Liberal-National Party for sacrifice of other peoples' lives in the war in Iraq is justified as an "insurance policy" to protect their "born to rule" mean spirited hides. The incentive to exploit the oil of that unhappy country is an added bonus.
Other examples of their lack of concern for fellow humans is abundant. The infamous Immigration Department bears witness to that, as does the treatment of David Hicks, and persecution of gays. The list goes on, and on.
So, what to do about it? The liberals must use their accumulated wealth; their intellect.
So, what to do about it?
Much to the chagrin of the Conservatives, the anarchy of the Internet has deprived them of their most cherished power; the control of the information flow to the masses. Murdoch is doing his best even now to retrieve the situation, but even he and his billions will not be successful. And liberals have grabbed this opportunity with both hands. The proliferation of liberal sites has ensured that a more balanced information flow is available to those who seek it. But what of those who don't seek it; the masses? They are still influenced by the conservatives in control of the media. Nightly they are fed sanitised news through T.V. which is specifically targeted to subconciously influence their votes in favour of the Conservatives.Therefore, the liberals must also seek to influence by the means available to them, acknowledging that the task is formidable, but they must try. They must:
1. Flatter the Conservatives by imitating the methods employed by them to impose their will on liberals.
2. Challenge conservative views at every opportunity by whatever means available. Some courageously do this in the media, even though far outnumbered by Conservative talking heads doing the bidding of their masters.
3. Write letters to the editor. These letters serve a two fold purpose in that they reinforce the views of liberal thinking people, and also present different points of view that can be used by them in their own efforts to counteract the Conservative propaganda.
4. Compare the thinking of liberals with that of Jesus Christ. The Conservatives have reinvented Christianity to reflect the values of the Conservatives, whereas the moral code preached by Jesus was quite the opposite. Christians need to have this glaring inconsistency pointed out to them. While the values preached by Jesus are more in keeping with those of liberals, it is the Conservatives who have cynically used Christianity as a means of subjugating the masses.
5. Join a political party that best reflects liberal values, (NOT Liberal!!!) and where it doesn't, act to change it so that it does. We still have a democracy. Use it.
6. Join school committees to combat their use by Conservatives to impose Fundamentalist Christian views on school children.
And it ought to be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things. Because the innovator has for enemies all those who have done well under the old conditions, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new. This coolness arises partly from fear of the opponents, who have the laws on their side, and partly from the incredulity of men, who do not readily believe in new things until they have had a long experience of them. Thus it happens that whenever those who are hostile have the opportunity to attack they do it like partisans, whilst the others defend lukewarmly, in such wise that the prince is endangered along with them.
The Prince - Niccolo Machiavelli
Great Blog
10:35 AM, 19/6/2006 .. Posted by acat
Love the blog, especially the enthusiasm, and the call to be active. My blog is political (IR policy), and so nowhere near as interesting as yours. Thanks
10:56 AM, 19/6/2006 .. Posted by snowy
Thanks for the encouragement acat. I'm busily writing letters to the editor about Workchoices, too. Keep up the good work. Summing up.
11:05 AM, 16/6/2006 ..
And so, my beautiful children, I come to the summing up of what I believe is of worth in this life. I hope you will return to this blog through your lives for inspiration, help, or just to know that I am near you. I always will be, you know.I'd like to go through Max Ehrmann's Desiderata that he wrote in 1927. His beautiful words have helped millions to a more fulfilling life, and I hope they work their magic for you also.
- Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
What marvellous advice on how to deal with others! So often we react to supposed affronts to our precious egos. When we do that, we lose. So much better to remain in control of our emotions. Let others be ruled by them. Then we can "without surrender, be on good terms with all persons". By all means, listen to their story. If they don't listen to yours, then there can be no communication, so accept, and move on.
- If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
In our human centric worldview, we are constantly evaluating our self worth by comparing ourselves with other humans. As Desiderata says, a futile exercise. Far better to reflect on our place in this marvellous universe where our egos mean nothing. You must keep interested in your career, because it is your means to physical survival.
- Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
- Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
- Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.
- Be cheerful.
- Strive to be happy.
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{ 8:36 PM, 16/7/2006 } { Posted by Ninja }Snowy, your writings have a calming effect and thanks for sharing. It is true that in the cacophony of all the nonsense that we experience daily, it is easy to lose sight of the really important stuff.
What I will say, though, is that we need to maintain that bit of rage or passion inside as a driving force to keep striving for what we believe to be right. I'm from the school that doesn't believe that ignorance is bliss. Been hurt simply because I didn't know lots of times about lots of things.
Keep writing, it's wonderful!
My thanks, also
{ 9:08 PM, 16/7/2006 } { Posted by snowy }Thank you for the kind words, Ninja. I'm glad they have a calming effect on you. Your encouragement makes it all worth while.
Peace.
hi
{ 7:53 PM, 24/8/2008 } { Posted by goldguilt }I am a Chinese.I can't understand all of your words,but I want to make friend with you.
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