Saith Me… Embrace the Journey

Life is not a race. Some days we must walk rather than run so that we can more easily pause and take in the beauty around us.

 

Embrace the Journey

 

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Stumbling

In our pursuit for excellence, let’s never forget that we are already excellent. We are not starting from a place of failure, but rather from the exulted place from which our diligence and charitable natures has brought us thus far. Yes, we may stumble, and that stumble may make us feel low, but a stumble in itself does not make us lose ground. Rather the stumble reminds us of where we are on our journey. A stumble reminds us to take in our surroundings and reaffirm where we want to be and where we want to go.

During our journey, well-meaning people may only focus on where we need to go and minimize the importance of from where we have come. They will tell us not to dwell on the past and will tell us that we are weak for weeping. We should not wallow in frustration, disappointment, or pain, but we should always remember the struggle of our journey. It is when we remember from whence we came that we can truly celebrate where we are and where we are going.

Stumbling

 

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Who is expendable?

I just read something that gave me pause. 
 
In response to President Obama inviting Ahmed Mohamed to the White House, certain opposition voices criticized the president over his priorities.
 
Why didn’t he invite the family of the woman in California who was shot by the illegal immigrant to meet with him? Why didn’t he invite the families of those killed in South Carolina?
 
As questions of this nature continued, I kept feeling a greater sense of disquiet. The tragedies which occurred in these examples were perpetuated by criminals, people who through either direct intent, or through a lack of responsibility and adherence to the law brought about a terrible result, someone’s death. These were criminal acts committed by criminals.
 
However in Ahmed’s situation he was the victim, not of a criminal act, but a victim of the government. He was treated by those in authority as if he was a criminal for doing the very thing we hope our youth today will do – get excited about learning.
 
While we may debate how the authorities should handle the serious task of protecting our youth, let’s not lose sight of whom we are protecting. If in trying to protect our youth we trample on their rights, have we not taught them a terrible lesson? If in trying to protect the whole we damage the one, have we not already lost the battle?

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Saith Me… Fear as an Excuse

If we let fear become a legitimate excuse for the violation of law then we have lost the war – terror wins.

 

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Saith Me… Embrace the Hills

Many years ago a friend gave me some advice. He said that rather than dreading the hills I should embrace them. So after lacing on my running shoes, I began a chant. “I love hills, I love hills…”

Learning to love hills, or at least telling myself that I loved hills, greatly benefited me during my years of running. For some odd reason, I always ended up living in an area dominated by undulating terrain.

Hills come in all forms, and life’s undulating terrain challenge even the most fit among us. Sometimes the only thing that stands between success and failure is the mental chant, “I love hills.”

Hills are never fun, no matter what we tell ourselves. They require determination and perseverance. Sometimes they require great sacrifice and can even cause great pain. However, as we scale a hill, we become stronger, and when we stand at the summit, we become sure in the knowledge of our newly gained strength.

 

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Sanitizing the History of War

Not so pithy but I felt this was important to share on both blogs.

Jessie Hagen, M.A.'s avatarPithy History

The study of history can be a wonderful method of instilling patriotism and civic pride into a nation. During the early years of the Cold War, the study of history was viewed as a vital way to instill the notion that the home nation was virtuous and grand, but opposition to a sanitized version of history was growing even as ultra-patriotism became a propaganda tool. Certainly, the sanitization of the history of war did not begin during the Cold War, but during that half century, the sanitized version of history was considered patriotic, and history critical of the homeland was seen by many  as being subversive. Therefore, the shock was profound when footage of war was televised for all to see during the Vietnam War. A generation reared on stories of the noble victories which had defeated tyranny, slavery, totalitarian abuse, and genocide found themselves faced with the horror of…

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History: To Study or Not To Study

The more I study history the harder it becomes to ignore the ignorant who have been fed propaganda and generalizations rather than actual history with all its good, bad, and complicated parts.

The notion that one must tear apart mythology in order to seek fact does not appeal to me, nor does the idea that all facts must be conclusively proven in order to be held as true. Yet on the other hand, I find the the idea that mythology and popular lore should be the only history consumed by a patriotic citizenry just as unappealing.

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One Bite at a Time – Adjusting a Classic Saying

For years I have used the old saying,

“How do you eat and elephant – one bite at a time.”

Recently I realized something was missing. In light of the disposable nature of a commercial world and the addiction of instant gratification, I feel the old saying needs to be adjusted.

So how do you eat and elephant?

One bite at a time, day after day, until the task is complete. 

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