Time to do the right thing...

Everywhere I turn, I see jealousy, complaint, accusations, excuses and demonization of those with whom we disagree. Our public conversation has devolved into a name calling, blame throwing slugfest where there is little interest in finding truth and actually solving problems. Instead, we see a burning fervor to show the world that we are right, and if you don't stand with us, you stand against us, and we will bury you.

Well, ummm, if I don't stand with you, it is not necessarily true that I stand against you. It means that we may disagree on the route to an objective, but not the objective itself. 

I've got an idea...as we enter this season of goodwill, starting with Thanksgiving, let's all take a few deep, cleansing breaths and think about the vastness of things upon which we can be thankful for, such as:

• We (well, I) live in America at the dawn of the 21st century
• Should we choose to do so, we can eradicate hunger in the world
• We are a free and open society, able to speak our minds and worship as we please, witrhout the fear of repression
• We are creating technologies that have the potential to inform, inspire and heal at an ever increasing rate
• We are blessed with abundance
• We really do want to do the right thing.

Then let's realize that those with conflicting views share more than we care to admit...

• We want peace
• We want a home 
• We want our kids to do well
• We really do want to do the right thing.
• What we share far outweighs that which divides us...
• John Boehmer doesn't really want to through Gramma into the street
•  Bernie Sanders doesn't really want the government to assume owneship of everything.

All they really want is do is the right thing.

So, let's do the right thing. Let's start listening. Let's find common ground and build on it.

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A charming, delightful surprise

It's been a long time, really.
Weeks? Months? Years, perhaps?
Since the sunshine warmed my soul, the music lifted me up, the flowers saturated my surroundings with sensual scents.
I have been longing, searching, yearning for the latch to open my soul to the sunshine,
Wondering if I would find it.
Or if it were forever gone.
Then, a chance email, a phone call, a lovely lunch,
An afternoon spent as teenagers on a damp, grey day.
A smile, a killer smile, really, an impish grin, a tender touch and a twinkle in her eyes,
Shared experiences, tragic and not so, a shared desire to know everything
In that minute.
But the wisdom says wait, savor, anticipate, practice stillness, and
The sunshine warmed my soul, the music lifted me up, the flowers saturated my surroundings with sensual scents...
I am savoring
I anticipate
I am still
I am smitten.

curiouser and curiouser

They say that you cannot remember pain,
And that it is a good thing,
Because you remember just enough
To keep you from causing the pain again.
But I never believed it,
Nor heeded it,
As I bumped and scraped my way through life.
But, I recently discovered a new pain.
Devastating
Debilitating
Excruciating
As my heart was ripped from my body,
My soul bared to flame and flood,
Both pounded into the ground,

Unwittingly.
Mercilessly.

And yet, here I stand, ready to dive in again.
I remember the pain:

Devastating

Debilitating

Excruciating.

But!

The joy is greater than the risk.

So, here I go.

Let me play among the stars

Curious, the meanderings of the heart.
So vulnerable, yet resilient.
So delicate, yet stalwart.
So surprising, yet steadfast.
So willing, though bruised and battered.

She is delightful, really.
Concerned that she accepts more than she gives,
Like me.
Offering apologies where none are warranted,
Line me.
We are completing sentences for each other.

She is cute.  Much more than cute, really.
A real Surfer Girl,who is
Witty
Bright
Beautiful,
.
She is generous and genuine,
And there is an electricity between us.
Is this love?  Too soon to tell, really.
But I know, as I write this, 7 miles over Albuquerque
That my heart skips a beat when I think of her.

I am eager to be home, so we may continue that conversation,
Probing thoughts, values, ideals and dreams.
Searching for that chemistry,
That intimate conversation
That lovers know
That I have known,
That I know I will know,

Again.

As the balladeer sings:
"Fill my heart with song,
Let me sing forever more,
Please be true."

Are you all I long for?
I don't know.

But it sure feels that way.