World in major crisis! What has gone wrong? A lack of peace, with an intense increase in the presence of war is plaguing various corners of this space we call the human home. Mother earth is baw…
Source: World in Crisis – Oh Easy-liver
World in Crisis – Oh Easy-liver
World in major crisis! What has gone wrong? A lack of peace, with an intense increase in the presence of war is plaguing various corners of this space we call the human home. Mother earth is bawling from the deepest recesses of her belly complements the wickedness of humanity itself. Interestingly, everyone who perpetuates, and or promotes the violence believes he or she is acting justly, rightly and is pleasing the self and his or her god.
The confusion is inexplicable to the average easy-liver. The Easy-liver is someone who just wants to be allowed to live his or her life without fear and threat of being cut down innocently by some extremist. This type of individual pursues tranquility in the simple things of life, consciously avoids complications, and would like to travel the world, simply to behold the splendor of its creator.
The easy-liver wants to dine tasting various cuisine, is curious about the languages spoken in distant lands and is itching to try their own tongue at conversing with the natives of those lands. The easy-liver is curious, and is hungry for the sublime. After all when life was less advanced, and industrialization was null, the sublime was the real deal. Has sublimity been completely eradicated from this crazy world?
Supposedly, the easy-liver is unrealistic, seemingly even prehistoric. To desire such old-fashioned lifestyle seems crazy in this chaotic world in any case. Many travelers may say it is no longer fun taking an airplane from one country to another. The security measures are demanding, the mere fear of sitting in an aircraft with an undiscovered lunatic is lurking, and then the hassle of getting through some immigration officers despite owning clean slates are inescapable.
Speaking of violence and wars – one may be tempted to look at distant shores. Lately, our close neighbors are daily under fire. The stories of shootings are horrific; the anger being perpetuated by some fractions of that US Society is scary, because cliche has it that when the US sneezes, we in our region catch the cold. Hopefully, we can vaccinate our region utilizing created and existing tools, including a strong regional bond. Nonetheless, we must remain aware, and pray for the lands which surround us.
As if we are bringing to reality the known fact that “history repeats itself”, there is a feeling of anxiety among easy-livers; because systems of the past which caused mass murders in the world are now front and center page issues. Racism, religious differences and disrespect for human freedoms are upfront. Who would have thought that in a world so technologically advanced that is it now seen as a global village, people would be seeking to build walls of destruction? As if the world has totally regressed, and that regression is showing its ugly face through the anger and violence being displayed by various sects and factions. Arguably, maybe the world never advanced from its state of confusion, but was just band aiding some deep wounds for centuries as if hypocritically.
Today, the world itself is yearning for the ability to grasp a sigh of relief from all that drama. Sadly, man seems unwilling to allow that woman to breathe freely. For the easy-liver, the resolution should be to keep living as best as possible within the existing chaotic world, for to stop living is to die emotionally and physically. To all easy-livers, keep living as best as you can. Besides, easy-livers must defy these deadly odds.
TS Erika’s Lessons – I Am Learning!
In an instant – change! Lessons in Life
Tropical Storm Erika has certainly struck our nation beyond anything one would have fathomed prior to its arrival over Dominica. The shocking evidence of its mischief is vivid. Things will be so for a long time via the various memorabilia which will emerge, and those which have already emerged. Without decreasing the impact of the monstrosity of this weather system which has battered my homeland, I feel obligated to highlight some lessons that I am learning since Thursday 27th August, 2015.
- Life is precious – relish every moment
- In a split second, everything can change and alter the rest of one’s life
- Really, we are nothing – treat all people with dignity (as hard as it may be sometimes)
- Live every day with Psalm 23 in mind – We do walk in the shadow of death
- The majority of Dominicans are peace-loving people
- Forgiveness is possible, and peace is powerful
- In sickness, death, disaster and crisis there is no such thing as enmity
- Dominicans care about their neighbors, but don’t always express that concern
- Show more concern for neighbors in and out of season (crisis / no crisis)
- Treat volunteers with dignity and gratitude (they don’t have to serve, but they choose to)
- Volunteers have needs too, sometimes they share similar crisis with those they serve
- Volunteerism is still embedded in the fabric of our nation
- Some people are blinded – no crisis can clear their eyes, nor wash their enslaved minds (stay focused on the goal to make a positive difference, and avoid / ignore the negativity)
- Some folks are selfish – they will push their agendas regardless of the pains of others (pray for and forgive them)
- Survival warrants personal decisions to rise above the pains and obstacles – daily
- Faith in a supreme being is like gravity – it grounds the soul when trauma strikes. – Keep faith!
- Press on, because life persists – don’t forget to distract yourself from painful thoughts
- Life keeps teaching – keep learning, keep applying
These lessons I hope to remember as days go by. Meanwhile, efforts to continue the contribution being made toward Dominica’s reconstruction will persist as best as possible. What have you learned from Erica? What are you learning? Feel free to share with me.
Fear NOT – Quit Not Yourself!
“Fear not, for God is with you, Fear Not!” — Isaiah 41:10
The fear of pressing on amidst life’s many questionable challenges always tends to show its ugly face, when we would prefer otherwise. For some people, God is an abstract being, so a statement like the above may not stand nor hold any substance to them. For those of us who believe in a higher power, whom we call God, we hold on to this reality, that fear is never bigger than HIM.
Whatever you call HIM, if you believe in a higher, and supreme being, when fear knocks at your door like a thief, remember you are not alone. It is easy however, to feel like you are alone, like all is lost, like nothing works, or that all is falling apart. Let me remind you to steer the course because it is worth pressing on against fear and its relations.
Believe me, I have thought about quitting on so many things and individuals, and some in my lifetime I have actually quitted for good. There are times when it is necessary to quit entirely, and otherwise, there are times to quit for a moment. In my second book – “Moving Out of the Crowd”, I encourage movement when it is necessary. The truth is often, we find ourselves in places, and spaces where our well-beings are more at risk, than the adverse. So, move we often have to.
Still, we must learn to hang on tightly when it is necessary. That may mean that we must look fear in the face and say: Not Today, I am NOT Quitting on myself, I Will Press on, I will Endure, I Will Succeed. Press on Today and trust in God, whom ever your God is, for He is with you! A great way to start is by repeating these expressions as often as necessary. So here goes: “Today, I am NOT Quitting on myself, I Will Press on, I will Endure, I Will Succeed – I am NOT a quitter.”
Curiosity!
Have you ever felt the need to challenge yourself? Of course you have felt that way before. Well, for me, I more than feel to do so, I intend to give a challenge a shot. Today, I prepare to embark on a new journey, one that will allow me to explore new life’s possibilities. A great level of curiosity is what I intend to take with me to that new “classroom” of life.
To attempt anything new requires that we utilize a level of curiosity. As if contradictory to this, the famous adage that “curiosity killed the cat” comes rushing through my mind with a plan to sabotage my new enthusiasm. Thinking aloud I shout to the top of my voice, – “Oh thief of fear and doubt, get the heck out of here.” This thief forgets that I am aware of the other adage that “Cats have nine lives”? It is with this knowledge of “nine-lives” that I am going to press on toward my new challenge.
Employment of the nine-life effect will hold my curiosity just where it requires to be. Snooping, questioning, reading, researching, listening, writing, and exploring will be some tools at use during the next 13 weeks of my life. A sense of hope rushes through my psyche as I prepare to mentally dig deeply towards the commencement of this new intellectual challenge.
If you have a curiosity, if you are thinking about attempting a new challenge, give it a shot. Life happens, but not like guesswork. Rather, life happens by the seconds, constantly, unstoppably and requires that we engage it, more that exist in it.
At this stage, I choose to withhold information as pertains to my curiosity, except to call it a challenge, a new dimension. I hope you can wish me well as I embark on this one in which I intend to fully engage myself.
Meanwhile, give your desire to challenge yourself, an opportunity to do so. I will share a quote from a friend who was struck by it once it was shared with her by a wise elder: “If you want to get into the arena, you must get into the corridor.” I am heading toward a new corridor starting tomorrow, hoping to get into a new and exciting arena. Hopefully when success strikes, I will be more than happy to share it all with you. :)
God bless.
Faith – the ammunition!
Faith and hope!
The old 2014 is closing, giving us two more days to consider what we will plan for 2015. The reality is that the world continues business as usual. Certainly, once 12:00am occurs on Thursday, the wicked regimes of the world will still be planning mayhem, conspiring their next torturous acts, the Western world will continue its celebrations, Christians in some parts of the world will still be suffering great persecutions, the girls of Nigeria will still be hurting from the loss of their education, innocence, pride, and familial safety, and world leaders will probably all be seeking new ideas for their nation states. Man this world is so chaotic, it is with great apprehension many humans are looking toward 2015.
So what is in all this Happy New Year Wishes? Is it really going to be starting off as a happy new year? Will it be one that brings great joy, prosperity, peace and all the good and wonderful things we speak off during the euphoria of the break of a new day and year? Forgive me if I sound pessimistic, but the truth is it feels selfish living as if all is well in this world of great sadness. Even today, some 160 plus people plunged into the abyss of the unknown, have left loved ones and relatives looking for their answers as to their way about; then we cannot forget the over 200 lost at flight, who left family and friends with a void unable to be filled by human words to date. Oh world of Crisis! What then is in all the NEW YEAR wishes?
We remember the bereaved who stopped to remember their loved ones who were swept away, stolen and or buried by the great tsunami of 2004. I wonder whether they will have a happy new year. To chronicle all the bitterness that 2014 has pasted on our lips would be impossible internationally.
Not too far though within our region we too have had our own blows. Chikungunya has dealt our little Dominica and our region some beatings. Some of us are left with pains from its debilitating effects, some of us have suffered arthritis, and the likes, from a blasted little mosquito bite. Meanwhile our agricultural sector continues to suffer under the black sigatoka disease as if like a plague from the enemy of our food basket. Tohneh, these ills were made to look small by the threat of Ebola which has set all of our region in motion to preserve and protect our populace. The scare of this monster is insurmountable.
Then, there were the election fever flies biting too, with some people still suffering from LOP (loss of power) syndrome. I tell you, it began with PEM (pre-election madness) and unfolded into LOP for some, while others are rejoicing at their gains. Hopefully 2015 will not reveal to us another electoral madness which I will define as TMPS – Too much power syndrome. One cannot forget the great divide created by the election fever flies, 2015 will need to breed some reconciliation strings quickly to save our nation state. Undoubtedly our neighbouring islands who have experienced elections in 2014, to include Antigua certainly will require that reconciliatory pill as soon as possible as well.
Inclusively, some of us suffered the loss of loved ones to the sting of death, some brutal, some realistically expected. All the same, with the void death creates, hurts were inevitably experienced.
In other cases, people quit jobs, to gain new ones. Some of us gave up ‘opportunities’ to seek peace of mind, unafraid of the outcomes. Some of us saw persecutions, rejections, disrespect and ill-treatments from various spheres. In my case close friends and loved ones have suffered from the dreaded monster called cancer in different forms. One thread carried through though for each of these people whom I love, – they remained positive. So, 2014 is leaving, and some of us are happy, but is it because we anticipate better in 2015? Maybe that is really why, – Anticipation!
Anticipation is great, but I want to attest to having FAITH! Faith surpasses anticipation, for indeed, it takes a great level of Faith in Christ, Faith in God, faith in the Scriptures to keep treading through this journey called life. To close ones eyes and ears to the negatives of this life is almost impossible. It is faith then that keeps us fighting, and keeps us hopeful. It is faith that allows us to be able to smile, love, laugh, enjoy friends, family and loved ones, and to keep working for the betterment of the corner where we have been placed in this world.
So as if to topple all the darkness highlighted above, I hereby submit, that we can definitely risk wishing each other a Happy New Year, a better year in 2015, since our Faith will keep us fighting the woes. Our positivity will keep us fighting, like my three friends who in different parts of the world fought and in some cases are still fighting deadly cancers. Their faith keep them going. A page then we can take from these fighters, these warriors – Keep faith alive, keep hopeful, and press on. With this simple encouragement, I urge you and me, to have a Happy, Blessed and Prosperous new year.
For Faith is: “The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen!” – Hebrews 11:1
Blessings to you in 2015. In a special way I dedicate this post to Jim Henson, Alicia Christopher V. and SMS! Three people I appreciate and love!
Mere hurt is nothing!
Heaven give us hope in a world full of conflict. We ask for the hurting souls, some relief oh God!
People will write you off in life. That is just how it is. You cannot do much to change their choice if and when that happens. Notwithstanding that fact, one must do everything within his or her power to continue living a life fulfilled. Besides, to do otherwise is to hand-deliver ones life’s power to someone else who does not care a single thing about him/her.
When I think about the crisis that occurs all around us, the mere hurts dished out to us, are really peanuts. Heck, so many real souls are being lost daily, so many hearts are being literally shattered, so many limbs are being broken by wicked acts of other real people. The small rejections, write-offs, and their cousins are definitely unimportant.
The Ebola victims, the citizens of Gaza, the innocent women and children dying from the wicked acts of men, the hopeless, brainwashed men offering themselves for the selfish benefits of others; when I think about these more concerning matters, my issues of loss, hurt and pains are irrelevant.
To this end, I will take another rejection, I will allow my heart to be broken again, I will humble myself to say “I’m sorry, Please forgive me,” I will be the bigger person in my smallness of honest acknowledgement of my failures. It is worth it I think. Yes, it is worth it, because truly, these are incomparable to the horror, terror and misery of so many hurting souls all over the world.
The losses, the deprivation of our own properties , the disrespect from selfish people, the cold shoulders, the verbal back-stabbings are weightless in comparison to the fears, dejections, injustices and bitter pills dealt to so many around the world. The dreaded photo of thousands fleeing a place they have called home for so long, to go to — “no-real-where,” – that is what matters. These are the things we ought to lament over. That is what we should condemn forcefully. “Woe to the down-pressers…” –Bob Marley would say!
Meanwhile, let me do what I can from where I am: “Say a prayer for the world…” –For the sake of His (Jesus) sorrowful passion, Father have mercy on US, and on the Whole World!
