Thought for the Day - Before we can lead

Thoughts for the day ---

We must be silent before we can listen.

We must listen before we can learn.

We must learn before we can prepare.

We must prepare before we can serve.

We must serve before we can lead.

~William Arthur Ward

Bye to Anger, Resentment, and Fear

Day #8 of the new world - next in an ongoing series of thoughts on how to make the Nov 4th election transformative on a personal level.

I recently had some discussions with family members who supported John McCain. I was surprised at the level of anger, resentment, sorrow, and perhaps even a little fear about the future that was sometimes expressed when talking about the election. While I don't share those feelings now, I can't be too critical of them because I've felt the very same emotions myself many times over the past 8 years. But I can see more clearly now what an unhealthy situation this is. Decisions that are motivated by anger, resentment or fear seldom turn out to be good decisions. Time to put that behind and move on.

I've decided to let go of any remaining anger at the Bush administration. I'd like to see the mistakes they made acknowledged and corrected, but I don't think we have enough time to be distracted by a focus on punishment and revenge given all the other pressing issues. And of course, there's absolutely no benefit to holding any resentment against McCain supporters, though I'm not sure I ever did at a personal level. Time to focus on win-win solutions and move forward.

Bye to Rush and Sean

Day #5 of the new world - next in an ongoing series of thoughts on how to make the Nov 4th election transformative on a personal level (it's already transformative on a national level)

A confession - I used to occasionally listen to Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity out of curiosity just to see what they're saying. I know a very progressive friend who listened to them for several hours on the day before and the day of the election. He has more strength and stamina than I do.

I have decided to end this practice now. I get essentially no real benefit for the time I spend on it. I find it somewhat toxic to my spirit and emotional well being. And most importantly, unless they change their divisive and polarizing ways, they no longer have any relevance to what direction this country will decide to take. Well, at least that's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.

I want to point out that they've also come under criticism from Daniel Larison of the American Conservative:

... that audience is part of what’s wrong with the Republican Party. Part of what has been wrong with the GOP is that its rank-and-file members take their political advice and insights from radio entertainers who seem to understand little about political reality and even less about policy, and who substitute bluster for understanding....

Goodbye to hate radio, and on to more nurishing uses of my time.

Making this Election a Transformational Event

It’s Saturday evening, Nov 8th, or as some of us call it, the 4th day of the new world. Now that I'm able to focus on something other than an uncontrollable compulsion to check the latest poll numbers every 2 hours, or to read the latest episode of "The Miss-Adventures of Sarah from Wasilla" (man I'll miss watching Tina Fey), I can finally write some blog entries.

The election on Nov 4th was certainly a transformational event for our political system. It was more than just a change of administrations; it was a change of direction for the country. Changing directions means the immediate impacts may be small, but the long term impacts can be enormous.

Clearly it energized and empowered the progressive movement. There is a true sense of hope, optimism, and even renewed pride in the air. There is also a growing consensus that now the hard work begins if we really want to make this election a transformational event for the society. In that spirit, I would like to exploit this opportunity and make this be a transformational event for myself too. But how to best do that?

There is a “Coming of Age” class for teenagers at my congregation that is meant to help them in the transition from childhood to the next stage in life (not quite young adults yet, but no long a child). As part of the process, they bring in something from their childhood that is relinquished and taken away during a ceremony to symbolize leaving that prior life behind.

I thought that was a neat idea, and wondered if I could do something like that to symbolize leaving the pre-election Bush years behind, and moving into the new era symbolized by Obama’s election. The first act I’ve decided to do is to remove from my browser the pointers to all the political blogs and web sites I obsessed over before the election. I’ve wasted way too much time on them with no benefits to show for it. Time to put that behind me and move on now. Instead I'll limit myself to tracking a very limited number of web sites and blogs that I get some true benefits from. More steps to follow….

Morning Affirmation from Mahatma Gandhi

A morning affirmation from Mahatma Gandhi. The first line in particular really struck me as something profound if you were to actually follow it.

- I shall not fear anyone on Earth.
- I shall fear only God.
- I shall not bear ill will toward anyone.
- I shall not submit to injustice from anyone.
- I shall conquer untruth by truth. And in resisting untruth, I shall put up with all suffering.

- Mahatma Gandhi

Morning Affirmation from the Dalai Lama

This is a good one for the morning:

“Everyday, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.” - Dalai Lama