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She is 30, and she crashed into some tough obstacles in her 20s, but she set her eyes on that goal and achieved it.
Not bad for the child of two uneducated people who met in a dive bar and went to a horse track on their first date.
It sounds like you have a daughter to be very proud of, congratulations to you and her. We always wish to have our children do better than ourselves and it sounds like she will have a very good future.
It sounds like you have a daughter to be very proud of, congratulations to you and her. We always wish to have our children do better than ourselves and it sounds like she will have a very good future.
Thank you. She has just secured a very good job that not only pays a decent salary, she is doing something worthwhile to make the world a better place, and while the company for which she will be working is profitable, it is based on principles and goals of bringing people together and has a company culture of working together. The CEO eats lunch with the other employees and works right alongside of them.
I am proud of her for choosing a career in a field that isn't simply about making money.
mordant, you asked me a good question, you asked me what I have made of what is going on these days.
I think, and this is just my opinion and observation, that we have lost our way and that we are wandering about trying to find the right path to take. In the past few years things have really gotten confusing and out of hand, we have lost our ability to be able to communicate with one another in a civil way and it has caused a great deal of pain and divisiveness within us and in turn it has caused a lot of suspicion, distrust, and animosity to one another. My heart is very heavy over the most recent events that have taken place where the lives of innocent adults and children have been taken for no reason other than hatred. This is something that we need to try to understand and to eliminate. Granted there is always going to be those individuals who are going to be felt to be outsiders and I think if we were to sit and talk and try to find out what is troubling these individuals maybe there is the possibility of stoping all this hatred and learn to care and live with one another in harmony and peace. That is my hope for humankind because if we don't learn to respect and listen to one another then there will be no hope and we will eventually exterminate ourselves.
Thank you for sharing your views, ptsum.
I don't disagree.
While it's not unusual for older folks like us to complain that the world has deteriorated and is no longer recognizable to us, the current situation seems to be quite a bit more than just that. And I agree that it is potentially an existential threat to all, and on more than one front.
One thing that I'm fighting is to not become inured to all this suffering. It is easy to turn away because there is so much of it that it can be by turns overwhelming and exhausting to bear witness to, and for some it seems like cruelty has become the point of their interactions with others.
I really appreciate the space you carved out in this thread, it is refreshing.
for me, the data points to everything being connected and acting more like a unit than isolated pieces. That's the some thing more to me. What's it mean to me. Be as honest and open as we can be. Try and help when we can. We are all we have. As soon as we have to omit some things to maintain a statement of belief, that is when we are not trying to be the best we can be.
Whenever we come together to discuss things of great importance it is always done within the sacred circle. Anyone is welcome to come and sit within the sacred circle and participate in the discussions, however all animosity, hatred and prejudice are left outside of the sacred circle, these things are not allowed within its confines and each individual who steps within the sacred circle is expected to help govern it and be responsible to see to it that peace, harmony, and understanding prevail within the sacred circle.
So now my brothers and sisters, I invite you to step within the sacred circle and tell us about your beliefs or non-beliefs without criticism or animosity to one another.
Remember, all are welcomed here who come with a good heart.
I'm reviving Ptsums thread again.
There's too much animosity on this forum. I don't understand the constant negativity.
Whenever I'm searching for positivity I'm often reminded of The Desiderata. I love this poem. I'm an introvert and this has always felt like the introverts anthem to me.
Quote:
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 to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or 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.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not 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.
Max Ehrmann 1927
This is my favorite bit:
"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. "
So beautiful.
As an atheist I appreciate the line:
'be at peace with god, whatever you conceive him to be' through the lens of the poem being written nearly a century ago. To me it says appreciate every interpretation of spirituality.
Perhaps some other people could post their positive thoughts today?
What changed?
Hope your tomorrow is full of positivity.
I still like it, so I probably shouldn't have said that, but the sadness and disappointment of life tarnished the hopefulness and idealism I had in youth when I first read it, I suppose.
Perhaps some other people could post their positive thoughts today?
Nice post. There are indeed people striving for high ideals, some not even misguided, and there is still much heroism if you seek it out. We are going to need lots of it in days to come.
I can also relate to the "gracefully surrendering the things of youth" thing. There's a lot of upside to this phase of life. I often joke that I'm not the man I used to be, but then again, it is perhaps questionable that I ever WAS the man I used to be. No one's more impressed with themselves than the young, and I was no exception, lol.
Even the scriptures say, "not to think of yourself more highly than you ought", and according to what one pastor at least said in my hearing, the more literal translation is, "have a sane self-estimation". I think at this phase of life, one's self-estimation comes down to earth sort of inherently. And that is a good thing.
I still like it, so I probably shouldn't have said that, but the sadness and disappointment of life tarnished the hopefulness and idealism I had in youth when I first read it, I suppose.
Have never heard of Max Eherman until now nor this work. I find it pragmatic rather than hopeful actually, and a bit dour.
Google brought up another work of his, A Prayer. That was interesting
MQ, pull out your writing and work on it! aren’t you writing a historical fiction?
i just heard a Ted talk on patience. Slowing down and being patient changes the perspective. something else happens and this too would pass.
Good night to you.
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