Let It Begin With Me

Confusion rules today.

I don’t know how to start this one. I don’t know how to flesh it out. And indeed, I’m not sure how to close. Well then, I’m just going to dive in and see what happens.

Sunday, 7:30 AM CDT.
Last Minute Insertion:

This one is preachy. You are forgiven if you stop here. If you continue, I hope that there is some worthwhile takeaway. There is for me. I wish not to be judgmental - not even towards myself, but this topic has been on my heart for a long time. I encourage any comments you wish to make because that will only serve to help both of us understand.

Chaim Topol was an Israeli actor who died just weeks ago. It’s weird, in a way.  I never knew him personally. I knew him only as Tevya, from The Fiddler on the Roof. But I still feel sad.

Of course, if you’ve been around for a while, you might realize that this movie was/is one of my favorites.  There’s a lot to learn about living in Ukraine as a Jew in 1905. There’s a lot that translates well into life examples for today.

Maybe because I am grieved by some of the things that have changed so much since I grew up, I remembered this part of the movie. There are several interesting, laughable, and even serious moments in this seven-plus-minute clip. 

But today, I'd like to focus on the section that starts five minutes into the video. 

“And among ourselves, we always get along perfectly well,” says Tevye. He continues with, “Of course, there was the time when he sold him a horse and told him it was only six years old when it was really twelve.”

So here we are then.

We will center the rest of the article on this lesson.  

I think most of us want to get along with each other. But we continually do things that disrupt this goal, the lie being one of our primary instruments.

This seems to begin at birth, so parents everywhere (I think) instruct these tiny people as to the reasons for being truthful.

But throughout our lives, we apparently forget these lessons of early childhood. We lie:

• To protect ourselves from the harm of being exposed.
• To protect ourselves from embarrassment.
• To be creative manipulators in efforts to obtain what we want.
• To puff ourselves up making us appear more than we are.
• To get out of situations or work.
• To sometimes spare the feelings of another.

There are things that serve to prevent our tendency to fib as well.

• To protect ourselves from the embarrassment
• To protect our self-image.
• To honor the teaching of our parents.
• To take the high road.
• To be responsible members of society.
• To be trustworthy.
• To proclaim that our word is our bond.
• To be respected for our integrity.

There are probably many more 'to-statements' in both categories.  

Update: So far, the track consists of hearing about the death of a favorite actor, remembering the lines of the movie in which he starred, reading the news, and now trying to figure out what happened that things seem so different now from when I grew up.

The 'stories' we now tell seem to be void of personal responsibility, red-faced embarrassment, and most importantly, respect and love for others.

It seems that we've reached a point of enriching ourselves at the expense of everyone else no matter whether the story we tell (or that others tell us) is true or not. (Harsh).

Not only are we willing to ignore what could be the truth, we purposely fail to consider a moment's time in research to discover what may or may not be true. We take the word of our preferred actors without any intelligent discourse to determine how right they (we) may or may not be. 

We rally around those who think like us and loudly announce that disagreement will result in complete rejection. You will be shunned. (Canceled is our current word for it.)

I wish not to make this a personal judgment but will instead choose universal wording. 

I am not negating the idea of firm opinions. I am not suggesting that we are all taking part in this intentional misleading of others. I am not implying that we are too lazy to consider the opinions of others. 

But I am thinking that we cannot exhibit a belief in the goal of harmony if we accept that the lie has no consequences. I am convinced that those being purposefully deceitful should be called out. To acquiesce, to absolve, to ignore, and to treat these acts as inconsequential is encouraging divisive behavior. 

Our moms would be mightily embarrassed - well, mine would.

It seems as though, culturally speaking, 

• Our embarrassment is dismissed and we just double down on the prevarication. 
• Our integrity is left hanging off a cliff.  
• Our trustworthiness becomes torn fabric to be discarded or used as rags. 
• Our responsibility as a person ceases to be considered a virtue. 
• And our bond - well, was that ever important anyway?

This certainly can't be the path to peace on earth. 

I pray that we have not reached the point of acceptance that decrees, "Everybody lies so who cares? Expect it, move on, and if it works for you, do it!"

I pray that we, as a society, can resurrect the concept of truthfulness. 

Therefore, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. Ephesians 4:25

Let There be Peace on Earth - A dad and his daughter.

When looking up this song, (Yes, a Christmas song but perhaps a good time for it anyway), the most prevalent videos were of children. Makes one wonder why that might be.