A Bit of Reflection | Video

Tonight I became aware of a speech that Jimmy Carter
gave in 1979. When I read it, it was clear to me
that there were many facets about it that would
still apply today - almost 33 years later.

In some ways, it makes me consider how much a nation
is much like an individual. Carter outlined certain
things - like the "crucial goal" of having the US at
20% solar powered by the year 2000. I can not find
what it currently is, but in researching, I saw a
headline that said we could be 10% by 2025!

How many times do we say we will do something, only to
do something else? How many times do we say something
is important, only to look back and see how we never
did anything to implement something new, or at least
cease to do the "old" things that weren't working?

Of course there will be people who will explain with
great logic why things are as they are, and will spout
great intentions for the best, but how often does the
logic of the "best" actually equate to "the" best?

I heard recently how we have enough of a resource for
100 years. Well. That's wonderful. But...what happens
in year 101, provided the prediction holds?

Why are we so short minded sometimes? Possibly out of
our need to stay in territory that is comfortable and
familiar. Remember that familiar is only comfortable
because it is familiar, not because it is necessarily
truly comfortable in how it affects us.

Another thing Carter spoke of was how he was spending
time with US citizens, and he quoted some of them who
said, "We've got to stop crying and start sweating,
stop talking and start walking, stop cursing and start
praying. The strength we need will not come from the
White House, but from every house in America."

How many times are you aware of those - including,
gasp! yourself - who will look outside of themselves
for answers and/or to assign blame. While some are not
religious, and may find "praying" a difficult piece of
the above quote, consider that the word could stand for
whatever it is that one has faith or belief in. We all
have something, even if it is just the faith that we
will somehow get through the day.

Carter's speech is called Crisis of Confidence, and it
is the thing we need most to light our way as individuals,
as a city, a state, a country, a world. Without confidence,
there is nothing to draw on internally to help guide the
way. It is what can make the vulnerable even more so.

Someone also suggested that Carter was managing the
government, instead of leading it. It is something
that I think could hold true for many people in their
lives. How often do you "manage" what occurs to you
instead of leading the way to an outcome that you
would prefer?

I know I am guilty of this more often than I would
like to admit. It takes extra effort to be able to
move forward in a way that is ACTIVE and PROACTIVE
versus REACTIVE. Oddly enough, I think as I write
that, it only seems to take extra effort and energy,
as how often do we find ourselves in an uncomfortable
place - expending more of ourselves - as a result
of a reaction to our circumstances?

In the last few days I have been learning about
something called xenoestrogens. While I would like
to explain what it is to you - I am still learning.
At the same time, I can tell you that it is something
that it would seem we should all become aware of, in
the same way that we become aware of how other things
can potentially be detrimental to our well-being.

It seems to me that we need to be educating ourselves
in the things in life that we interact with, instead
of taking another's word for it. It seems to me that
the things we are educated in - including our belief
systems (religious, or otherwise) - aren't always
going to be "true" or "right" or "best." People were
once taught the limiting belief that the world was
flat, and it took those who were willing to interact
with that knowledge in a different way that allowed
us to see there was more to the world than what we
perceived, based on what was taught.

You may think you have learned many things, and maybe
some have been more than helpful. However, it seems
to me that sometimes progress comes from our ability
to un-learn, and to be willing to explore new horizons.

The only way that we can do that is to be willing to
make some noise, upset some people, and potentially
be willing to be uncomfortable. And in the process
we might just see the world in which we live make some
progress.

In the end, we were born and we will die. The only
part we seem to have any say in is the part that lies
in the middle, and if we want to spend those years
in some sort of repetitive place, then it would seem
almost too easy to do. At the same time, what might
the world - YOUR world - be like if we were willing
to be comfortable enough with the unfamiliar and be
willing to take the kind of chances that could actually
have the possibility of creating the kind of world
that more often than not lives only in the precipitation
of conversations about it.

I am not sure what I can personally do for the world-
at-large, except perhaps continue to work on myself and
ask questions and do what I can to shake up my own
environment in a way that works for me and reverberates
for others.

As I say that I think about the film, Fat, Sick, & Nearly
Dead. In it, a man who takes his own journey in regard to
his health and well-being helps to make a difference for
another. What is a personal journey has bigger ramifications
as the person he helps winds up helping others.

It would seem the best way we can help the world (should
we have the desire to do so) is to do all that we can to
help ourselves. As I write that, it occurs to me that
it could be the recipe also for the problems we have.
So where does the line get drawn?

I think that might be a discussion for another day. However,
I would suggest that it may, in part, be due to one's intent.

Ok. Enough reflection for now. LOL.
Have a great day!

PS If you'd rather hear/see the speech than read it,
I found it on Youtube:


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