The Giving of Ourselves

“It has always seemed strange to me…The things we admire in men, kindness and generosity, openness, honesty, understanding, and feeling, are the concomitants of failure in our system. And those traits we detest, sharpness, greed, acquisitiveness, meanness, egotism, and self-interest, are the traits of success. And while men admire the quality of the first, they love the produce of the second.” | John Steinbeck

I wonder how many people see this statement as true.  

It Takes So Little

Appreciation.  I cannot imagine that anyone would deny the importance of gratitude.  I could be wrong, but I just can’t imagine it.

It would seem logical that every one of us likes receiving the occasional pat-on-the-back.  It seems appropriate that recognition for a job well done be a regular occurrence.  

Yeah, I know.  Blah, blah, blah.  This observation is so ordinary as to be inconsequential.  Apparently, I have depleted my store of wisdom, assuming there was a time when the shelves were full.  I now have only the ability to regurgitate what we all know so well.  A Google search for ‘gratitude’ yields 181 million returns.  Already done.  Move on. 

I wish I could.

Save The Date

For the past 14 months, I have succeeded in spending time every week conveying my spiritual thoughts through writing on this platform. For the most part, I think it’s been a great way to spend time with God, while recounting things I’ve seen, experienced, and learned.

These forays into the mind that directs the fingers have also been a source of forced self-reflection.  Behaviors, reactions, and internal self-talk are examined.  Laser pointed beams reveal shortcomings while I struggle to live (well lean towards is a better description) a Christ-like life.

But as of late, it seems I’m becoming a bit overloaded with my own advice. It might well be that my current work-life is oppressive.  Maybe some of this is generated because this season of the year creates long stretches where making the trip back home is impossible.  Perhaps there’s some exhaustion playing around the corners of daily life.