Posted on by BWThomas

Taking the long view, time can heal a lot of hurts.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

Most evil comes from the belief that one is a victim, or one’s group is a victim. Dennis Prager

I watched a YouTube video with a U.S. Marine convicted of something he didn’t do and he said he came out of prison a better man. He learned how to get along in prison, the other prisoners, Warden, and guards believed he was innocent, and he helped other prisoners with their legal problems – with the Warden’s blessing.

Even if we are convicted, there is dignity in innocence, which is evident in real-life stories and movies. When we accept hard things in life and become better, not bitter we might see situations and people in a new light, one we could not have gained any other way.

With all that is going on in the world, there is a lot that has made people bitter and hardened to the other’s story. So much injustice has been done on all sides are we best to see it as a fact of life? Some of us hate to hear that wrong has been done on all sides, and also hate to hear meddling in other country’s politics has created situations we don’t know how to solve.

We can take a smaller view and look at meddling in other people’s relationships – that doesn’t work well either. Is it possible to live in a live and let live world, to agree to disagree? Have we ever lived in that world? Catholics and Protestants fought to the death but now we live side by side. There was a time not too long ago when a Catholic president of the United States was a big thing.

Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision for the limits of the world. Arthur Schopenhauer

Are we expecting groups in parts of the world to live beside others with different ideologies and beliefs that took the West hundreds of years to come to terms with? A thousand years ago The Hundred Years War between England and France was waging, it started in 1337 and ended in 1453, and England and France both survived.

We might be expecting instant results that can only come with time. We in the West have carved out our place and might think we have the right to meddle in disputes that aren’t our business. Jockeying for position in the world is messy and everyone has a view that makes sense to them, and few acknowledge they are in the wrong even if they are, and often meddlers make things worse, not better.

Why can’t we all just get along? We can’t do it in our families, or our communities, why do we think it is so easy to do it in countries? We don’t only want everyone to get along, we want them to get along so we benefit, and this is the real problem. Dwight Eisenhower warned against establishing a “Military-industrial complex” but the warning wasn’t heeded. So here we are and I for one am trying to take the long view that in a thousand years, the Middle East will live in peace.

For a thousand years in your sight, are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night. Psalm 90:4

A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they shall never sit. Greek Proverb

Perspective is the way we see things when we look at them from a certain distance and it allows us to appreciate their true value. Rafael E. Pino

Thank you for reading this post. Please return and read more and have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Inspiration, perspiration, and determination shape our society.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

What you do today can improve all of your tomorrows. Ralph Marston

The world wasn’t simple during my childhood, we had the Cold War going on but it seemed like a wonderful safe place. Living in this world is safe where I am, but listening to the horror other people are going through I wonder what is it for? What is the end game, I understand some of it, but some of it I don’t understand. But, perhaps war to some is an economic driver and not the horror others see it as. Do we have competing interests, some wanting peace, and others wanting war, and we can’t always understand who is who?

We say our people are our strength, and people from other countries are giving us strength, but what are the people leaving their countries doing to their home country? Who will build and rebuild Haiti with so many people leaving?

Even in my household, we don’t agree on what is going on in the world, who is best to lead America, and what policies will heal our society. But, even if we don’t know how to heal the world, (and who does) we get along building our life.

What a job it would be to run a country. Knowing what policies to bring in and what the consequences down the road will be. There are always unintended consequences it seems. Things we mean for good don’t always work out that way because the hardest thing to figure out is what help that heals looks like.

Yesterday I was listening to a YouTube talk and someone had money they were giving to help a community and someone representing a church group spoke up asking if the money had been allocated. People erupted in anger because they didn’t like how religious charities operated in their communities.

You can dream, create, design and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it requires people to make the dream a reality. Walt Disney

We need to talk about what is happening in our societies and what we want to happen in them. But, we have such diverse views, that we think help should look different. We think some help is enabling, some is too harsh, and some gets gobbled up by those who don’t need help.

I’ve wondered for a long time what real help looks like, and how to build a good society. How were cities, towns, and communities built? How did we manage to have towns that worked? What principles are behind building them, and were the people different? Could we build the National Railroad now, and why not? If we built a good society, we should be able to sustain a good society, and if we can’t, why can’t we?

One of the problems we have is looking at everything we’ve done, and everything we’ve built through a negative lens. I don’t think the Canada we’ve built is perfect, but it’s pretty good, maybe we can make it better, but we know we can make it worse.

Personal responsibility was one of the things that built Canada, America, and probably everywhere that is good. Are people responsible for the lives and societies they build? If not, why not?

It is necessary for us to learn from other’s mistakes. You will not live long enough to make them all yourself. Admiral H.G. Rickover

The most powerful force ever known on this planet is human cooperation – a force for construction and destruction. Jonathan Haidt

Brick by brick, stone by stone, every great thing was built by those who believed they could. Tom Mitchell

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more and have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the purchase price through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Self-expression, being part of a group, finding our voice, and helping others to find theirs.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

Self-expression must pass into communication for its fulfillment. Pearl S. Buck

On Saturday I attended the Mississauga Writers Group, it was a lovely day so we didn’t have a huge attendance but members trickled in throughout the morning. Being part of the writer’s group helps push us forward as writers. We listened to members talk about what they disliked about some of the books they read, and what authors did the same thing, but did it well.

In groups, we get inspiration from what others are accomplishing, and we learn about what is happening in the community. We share the struggles we face. We are encouraged and we encourage others on their creative journeys.

Writing is a solitary journey but if we are too hidden away, what will we write about? The stories happen out in the world, and even if the world of our story comes only from our mind, we need to people it with characters others can relate to. It must be relatable or readers will not connect with the story or its characters.

Finding our group is a bit like finding ourselves. Finding a group that resonates with us is a different experience than when we don’t quite fit.

Finding mentors and being a mentor is part of life and maybe we don’t take advantage of enough, at least I never have. When I look back over my life there are a lot of changes I would make in some areas and in other areas, not so much. Maybe the areas I’m proud of are good because I didn’t spend the time on the areas I’m not so proud of. Life is all about choices and being a creative person as we age may be more important than focusing on it when we are young. I see what it gives to people as their life changes and they have creative pursuits to pour themselves into.

Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways. Sigmund Feud

I saw how good it was for Mom to have her quilting, and she didn’t start quilting to a big degree until her eighties. She could lose herself in her quilts and forget to eat. When we still have busy lives we don’t have that many days to lose ourselves in creativity, we sandwich our creativity with the busyness of everything we need to do. But one day that busyness will be gone, creativity can fill the empty hours, and bring joy to our lives we may get no other way.

Some of us are writing about life we’ve lived to get what has been bottled up inside out where we can look at it. Some of us write to understand the world and ourselves. Some of us dream of becoming famous writers, and some of us write because we must, and what form that writing will take will be discovered along the way.

Writing and painting are connected for some of us. We paint what we cannot put into words, and write what we cannot paint. It isn’t the world that needs our writing, paintings, or quilts, it is us, we need to find a way to express what is in us. If everyone found a way to express what was inside in a way that didn’t hurt anyone else, would we all be better off?

Writing is a minefield, we have to watch what we say and how we say it, but a painting or a quilt, who can know the inspiration behind it? What if self-expression plays a role in improving our mental health, what if it serves as a bridge between what is on the inside and our outer world, what if expressing our thoughts, feelings, and experiences is what we need to do? We don’t need it so other people understand us so much as to understand ourselves and make peace with our place in the world. We can choose to change the things we can and make peace with those we can’t.

Finding a way to help others express themselves may be one of the ways we help ourselves. Being part of a group and helping others may help us in ways we can’t imagine. We may find helping someone fulfill their dream is even bigger than finding ways to fulfill our own. I look at the leader of our group and others in it as midwives helping us as we give birth to the stories within us.

He who seeks truth shall find beauty. He who seeks beauty shall find vanity. He who seeks order shall find gratification. He who seeks gratification shall be disappointed. He who considers himself the servant of his fellow beings shall find the joy of self-expression. He who seeks self-expression shall fall into the pit of arrogance. Moshe Safdie

Self-expression is always a right, but it’s still not there to be abused. Isaac Hayes

I think any form of self-expression is half confidence, half sheer hard work and, maybe a bit of talent thrown in. Kate Winslet

Thank you for reading this post. Please return and read more and have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives, or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you to everyone who reads my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Staying positive, choosing a good attitude, and being the person we were created to be.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so. William Shakespeare

Do we have faith we can deal with the challenges ahead of us? No one knows what is ahead, but we all know it will be different than it is now. We see the changes coming and many of them we don’t like, but what if changes weren’t coming? Would life be better? Better for whom?

In the game of life, there are winners and losers and no one minds being on the winning side, but when we think we might not be on the winning side, we’d like to see no more change.

My parents lived through a lot of change, some good, some not so good, but they rode the roller coaster of life to the end. My parents lived through one world war, and my grandparents lived through two. We will live through the changes coming, some we may fear but never face, some we don’t worry about but they will hit us.

Is faith what will get us through? Faith in ourselves, our countries, our fellow citizens, and our governments, and what helps most of all in my opinion is faith in a higher power. We often don’t know what the ignition point of a powder keg will be, and we feel a powder keg building up with inflation, immigration, the rich getting richer, wars, and rumors of wars.

Is it possible to live in a precarious world with faith to deal with what comes? Hasn’t it always been a precarious world? What can we do in our own lives to make our lives less precarious? Being part of a strong family is a safe harbor in times of trouble. If we are resilient and able to see what is still possible and make the best of what is, life will be better than if we feel we are victims of circumstances.

A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart. Johann Wolfgang

Victimhood does not build a good life, what is the difference between facing hard challenges and feeling like a victim? When we face hard challenges do we have to find the courage to deal with what is, and when we feel we are victims, do we not take advantage of what we can do to make our lives better?

We are told we always have a choice, sometimes the only choice is our attitude, sometimes our choice is between two goods, and sometimes we have to choose the best of the bad. Sometimes our choices are for our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Is what we stand up for, rail against, and support, for the greatest good? Do we even know what the greatest good would be? We always come up against the unexpected consequences of our decisions. Sometimes we get good consequences from bad policies and bad outcomes from what we thought would be good policies.

Policies are in place and many were made with the best of intentions. When we see those policies not working, do our governments have the strength to turn things around? Will there be unexpected consequences for every change we try to make?

We might think we know the obvious direction we need to go in. But we don’t know, we can’t know what the unintended consequences of our best intentions are. For instance, won’t it be great when everyone is driving an electric car, and we don’t have gas emissions anymore, but we need the infrastructure to support the electric grid, with all the challenges that entails?

We’ve often heard to be careful what we wish for, and one of the things we’ve all wished for was to be richer, but we didn’t know when we got here, we wouldn’t feel any richer, because life is harder than ever affording our rich lifestyle.

What changes do we hope for, and can we think of unexpected consequences if we get it?

Never let a bad situation bring out the worst in you. Choose to stay positive and be the strong person that God created you to be! Unknown

No one else can choose your attitude for you. Your perspective and choice of attitude gives you the power to be in control. Irene Dunlap

Choose the positive. You have choices, you are master of your attitude, choose the positive, the constructive. Optimism is a faith that leads to success. Bruce lee

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Thank you for your service, what if thanking people for what they’ve done instead of reviling them for what they haven’t done, works better?

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us. Albert Schweitzer

What if we made thank you a bigger part of our lives? Do we thank people enough who make a difference? My sister-in-law hosted a birthday party for her granddaughter and she invited extended family my husband and I haven’t seen in a while. If no one hosts these events we lose touch and years can go by without seeing people we love and care about.

How thankful are we for our politicians who we love to revile, criticize, and condemn? Of course, they have clay feet, we all do. We don’t always make the best decision, we don’t always put other’s interests ahead of our own, and they don’t know what the unintended consequences will be for their hard choices.

It surprises me people are willing to run for public office, it seems a thankless job, and all the skeletons in their closet get trotted out for public ridicule. None of us have led a perfect life, and as we armchair quarterback elections and argue with loved ones over the shortcomings of our preferred candidate and policies, are we missing the big picture? Democracy is messy, capitalism has inherent faults and the rich do seem to get richer, we hope the poor get richer also but the pace is so slow and the rich are so rich it feels like three steps back to every forward one. Throw in the fallout from covid, rising prices, environmental concerns, and people across the globe migrating to countries they feel are more successful, safe, and secure than their own, without asking if they can come, and you have what we have in countries across the globe.

Gratitude is, however, more than just an emotion. It is also a disposition that can be chosen and cultivated, an outlook toward life that manifests itself in actions – it is an ethic. Diana Butler Bass

We are the lucky ones if people want to migrate to our shores, it means we are one of the prosperous, safe, and secure countries. We are victims of our success, and hard decisions must be made. If we had to choose between being the people looking for somewhere to go, or living in a country with opportunity, safety, and security I think we’d all choose opportunity, safety, and security.

Being a good steward of what we have, and choosing our leadership is one of the big responsibilities. No leader is perfect; each leader will be better in one area, and worse in another. We will be impressed by some things they’ve done in their lives and maybe even horrified by other parts.

Life is not about perfection, there are unintended consequences to our best intentions, and nowhere is this more apparent than in politics. Mistakes will be made by those we least expect to make them, and trying to help others, and make things better is our biggest challenge, but also where we find the most unintended consequences.

Experts are often only experts when their expertise is an idea, when the idea is put into operation we see the weaknesses, and the unintended consequences. Some of the greatest governments we never had loom large in our imagination, because reality didn’t tarnish their vision. Some ideas are looming large that have been tried and failed, but the vision still lives on. The thinking is that they didn’t do it right, but if we do it, we’ll do it right, and we’ll end up with a fairer and more just society.

Can we be thankful for the visionaries, those who talk and write books about what should be done, and those who have to try to run our countries the best way they know how?

Anyone who is a parent knows there are theories, but once we have children the theories go out the window. If we’ve run a business we can scheme and plan and be millionaires on paper but real life often doesn’t work out that way. My parents always said, “Anyone can be a millionaire on paper.” I’m pretty sure it works the same in politics.

Are we thankful for those willing to dedicate their lives to public service, those who build a life to be envied, and willingly set it aside for public service? If we get the politicians we deserve, then we all have to work together to create the society we want, and we can’t blame the society we end up with only on the leaders at the top. We are the ones who choose them, and if we don’t choose, we live with the choices others make. We need to decide whose vision most aligns with our own, what vision will create the best outcome, and who can deal with the biggest issues of our time.

What if, thank you for your service, should be how we think of everyone that makes our society work, from the great to the small?

Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude. Ralph Waldo Emerson

If lack is the root of injustice, then gratitude is at the root of justice. John Pattison

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow. Melody Beattie

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.