an old expression that even goes back to the days of oliver cromwell – meaning don’t jump into the fight until you are ready. this can also apply to everyday interactions with friends, family and in the workplace. so often we are defensive in our actions – we do not want our ideas challenged, especially ones that we have been voicing for years. but when another person says our ideas are wrong – we jump too quickly to defend sometimes – and when we do – we sound like a jack ass. others might take offence to our quick defensive remarks and see us in a negative light. this is not good and this quick reaction needs to be controlled. but how do we practice the control of these emotions in the middle of a discussion. we must try calming techniques. but we also must recognize that this is happening – we must identify this problem and we must try to adjust our personality a bit to be calm and don’t jump into the action until ready – and only jump in without defensive emotion. it also helps to know your audience before you get involved in a conversation – this will help guide your reactions.
Category: Society
articulation
this is a problem that everyone has from time to time. our minds have the ability to go deep into complex thought, which is natural for the human brain. the brain allows us to wander down very complex paths of thought – but as we go down that path, we also try to explain each part of the concept that we are formulating – so that the exercise is not wasted – and can actually be used to help us understand these complex thoughts. the problem is the further we take the idea and the further we do down the path of thinking – we also start to lose our ability to articulate these thoughts in a understandable and meaningful way. basically, our minds go deeper than what we can fully comprehend sometimes – or even though we may comprehend the idea or thought – we have a hard time explaining these deeper thoughts (case in point right now – with me trying to explain this concept in writing). however, it is good to think deeper – and it is a must to keep pushing the boundaries of our minds especially when looking at all of the key questions of life. so, we should think deeper and we should try our best to articulate those thoughts to ourselves and to others because any progress or new realization is worth it. however, we need to invent a way to help us articulate our thoughts better. if not already being done on a higher level to solve large problems – we also need to bring this assistance to the masses
this world
this world we live in is amazing. this time we live in is amazing. yes – over population is occurring at a faster rate than any time in history and yes – we are speeding up the process of destroying the planet – and these are not good trends. but right now at this moment in time – if we look around – we see a world that is amazing – we see a world that is alive – we see a world that is primitive and modern at the same time – and definitely more primitive if we are looking back at this time 1000 years from now. when future generations look back at this time – they will still see a garden of eden – they will see abundant nature – they will see us roaming around a beautiful world filled with sunsets, sunrises, rainbows, wild animals, wild forests, open plains, remote mountains, islands, valleys. they will be envious of the world we lived in because their world will be completely different. it might be man made or resemble some aspect of our time and our world – but it will not be our time and it will not be our world. this is the time to be alive, to do things with our hands, to walk among true nature, to look into the sky, to see the clouds, to hear the birds, to touch the rivers and oceans. this world that seems modern is in fact still in a pure and true primitive state which keeps us close to nature – the original nature of this world. we should relish this moment, this time, this world – which will be around for our lifetime and for the next few generations. the world as a changed place in the future is inevitable – we can make adjustments, we can help slow progress and destruction – but in the end, it will never be this good again – to live in a natural, beautiful, alive world. don’t dwell too much on the daily problems of life and enjoy this world as much as you can.
shit everywhere
don’t want to use the word shit but there is no way around it. every day, every week, every month, every year – there is shit going on all around us. i mean bad shit. bad shit in the world and bad shit in our own lives. we see relatives dying, friends getting sick, people we know dying young, kids getting in trouble, parents getting old, people getting fired, people getting divorced, teens dying young, friends losing their home, money troubles and health troubles everywhere. we see all this shit and we get nervous, we get worried, we get scared – we start to think we are losing our grip. but that is the test – shit is everywhere trying to pull you in, distract you, make you misstep and fall into the shit. this is the time where you just stay the course, stay focused, keep your grip, don’t make sudden moves. shit will always happen, so you need to work through the shit while keeping your grip or avoid it altogether.
experience with nature
each generation has it’s moments, it’s glory, it’s heyday. it also has a treasured memory of how things used to be in the past. it has a connection to nature as well. nature is a part of every generation growing up. they see the trees, the wildlife. they connect with it and wish it would stay forever. what people saw in 1900 was vast and abundant – it was normal to see so much nature. what people people saw in 1950 were still many scenes of beautiful nature all around. at the 2000 mark – nature was still part of the up-bringing experience – and today in 2018 – nature covers many parts of the world – we still connect with nature – even in the suburbs – there are pockets we can look into and get the feeling of being connected to nature. because we don’t know what it felt like in 1900 to see more nature everywhere – we don’t feel as if we are missing out now. we still see nature and we think that we are connecting with nature. regardless of how much nature is left to see, each generation will feel a connection to nature and they will feel like there is still enough nature to see and enjoy. they will feel this when growing up because this is all they know and see. but when people are older, they do go back to where they grew up and they will see the difference of nature then and nature now – they will see how nature is shrinking from generation to generation. but it also won’t affect them that much because they had their time with nature when they were young, no matter how small the natural landscape was compared to previous generations – they felt nature all around them when growing up. they have the memory of nature and that carries them through life. but it doesn’t help the fact that nature is dwindling. it actually hurts the fact that nature is dwindling – because they as individuals have their memory of more nature and that is all they need. they have no desire to help the nature experience of current or future generations.
social pressures
why can’t we ever escape the social pressures of life. from youth to old age – social pressures exist. they don’t change and they don’t go away. there is always a constant reminder of social standing, social groups, social inclusion, social exclusion, social ups, social downs – everywhere we go and everywhere we look – social pressures are occurring. you can’t escape these things – good or bad – unless you become a hermit and leave the social scene. other than that – you have to clear your mind, you have to not let these trivial things affect you. yes, you still need to be social but you can move past any grief that social pressures cause. this is a battle in your mind. you have to convince yourself that these things don’t matter in the grand scheme of life. you have to be happy with the choices you make. you have to understand that if you have less desire to be social, then less social activity will come your way – and vice versa. also, if you decide to stand against social pressure, then keep that stance – don’t back track or waiver. life is about choices and choosing which choices are most important to keep your life going the way you want it to go. if you have to spend more time working, if you want to spend more time with your family, if you don’t feel like doing the extra work to gain new friends – then do all of these things to make the life you want to live. forget about what others are doing, forget about what others are saying – these things do not matter at all. what matters is living with your mind free of these trivial issues – which are not even issues at all – they are roadblocks put up in your own mind – preying on your own insecurities – making you feel bad – about really nothing at all.
change and purpose
change occurred today – Trump was sworn in. there is a feeling now that more obvious changes are coming to America and the world. i don’t know if that has to do with my age now – and how i can reflect more on life and how i want to know what life is all about. as we get older, we do start to reflect and we start to ask why are we here – what is our individual purpose here on earth. is it to help ourselves or is it to help others. is our purpose not to see how far we can go but how far we can help others go. everyone’s destiny is predefined – we just need to follow the signals to stay on the predefined path. this will help eliminate worry and fear. but we still do not know what we are here for – what we are really here for. we will only know in the last hours of our lives – we will then know what we did and this will tell us why we were here – individually. if you as an individual do not achieve “greatness” – then you will help others achieve it. everyone is linked to some great purpose one way or another. some are easy to see – like being President of the US. but for most it is harder to see what great purpose we have achieved. but it is there and that is why change is there – change is driving all of us to our greater purpose for being on this earth. you have to know that you are here to achieve a greater purpose. you have to look deeper and deeper into your life to see the greater purpose that you have achieved. do not leave this earth thinking that you did not achieve a greater purpose. you did achieve a greater purpose and if you keep looking, you will see it. don’t stop reflecting and looking. change is a way to your greater purpose.
give
we all give to people we know. we give gifts, we give love, we give hugs, we give time, we give work, we give effort. we do give. it is a natural part of life. but we rarely give time or money to others that are not our friends or family. we rarely donate time or money to charities. we all need to give to charities. we need to look at local charities first. we need to help those close to home. we need to help veterans, we need to help the homeless, we need to help the sick, we need to help the less fortunate. we need to pick a charity every month and we need to donate time or money to that charity. once you start to give in this way, you will realize how wonderful it is to give. don’t expect anything in return. but if you do get a thank you, it will be a powerful thank you. give only to give. it is very rewarding. do it and you will see.
hitting someone
you must never hit someone when it is not in the case of self defense. for self defense – after you have been hit by someone – you do have a right to hit back and defend yourself. but to hit someone when not provoked physically is not acceptable in a civilized society. this you must learn when you are young. this concept must be enforced by your parents. do not hit people. men often are the ones who hit other men first – and sometimes they hit women – all unacceptable. also unacceptable is when a woman hits another woman or man first – unprovoked. you must not hit anyone. you must not allow verbal provocation to cause you to lash out physically against someone. this is crossing a line you should never cross. this action does not have any rational explanation. this action should shock a civilized person. everyone thinks about physical action sometimes -but you must not act on these thoughts. do not hit someone. do not get physical. this is unacceptable and can cause great alarm to friends and family. seek professional help to get you out of this very bad area.
Election 2016
November 9, 2016
To My Girls,
I know you must be confused with the election results that has put Donald Trump into the White House. I know that you did not like the things that Trump has said about women and other groups. I too did not like these things he said. I was confused by what to do and who to vote for in this election. I was also confused by the results of the election. Why did a man like Donald Trump get elected to be President? Many Americans are asking this question today. The answer is not a simple one, but one can begin to understand why change occurs in society. Change occurs in a democratic society because people are not happy with the current state of affairs – in their own lives and in the country. When enough people are not happy, change will occur. This is what happened in this election. People wanted change.
There is at least one thing you can be proud of in this election. You had the first female presidential nominee in American history – and this is a powerful statement to all women and girls in America. It tells women and girls of America that it is possible for a woman to rise up and take on the male dominated arena of politics. It is possible for a woman to one day lead this country. With this election, women have taken a big step towards being in the White House. Even though a woman did not get elected to be President this time – a woman did get nominated by a major party to run for President. This is a big step, and one day a woman will take the final step into the White House. You can feel proud and more confident as you grow up in this world.
We must now do the right thing and stand behind the person elected President, even if we do not agree with all of what they stand for and what they have said in the past. As Americans, we must come together and support this new President – this is the way of democracy. We must support our President and have hope that he will do the right thing for all Americans. This is our only choice now because we must respect what the people have decided. This is the American way. If we do not follow the American way, then we abandon all that America stands for from the very first day that George Washington took office. We must stand together now. We must come together and support our new President.
Love
Dad