It is 64 degrees now in Little Egypt. Just a few days ago we experienced an ice storm. Time changes things. The Campus Woods Path walkers were out in force…they understood their good fortune and hurried to avail themselves of it. Life in the fast lane has never been my cup of tea…and even more so since I have retired. I have my own pace and sense of time. I prefer the minimalist lifestyle as long as I have my vintage toys. Home is a house to live in, a sense of place, and that feeling you get when you are at peace with yourself and all others.

Yesterday Pastor Kerry caused me to think of the ever-present need for positive change in our lives or progress. I have found that the more I attempt to understand my friends and neighbors, the more I grow internally. When I can look through the eyes of others I often can see how the world looks from their point of view. Empathy is vital in all facets of life.

Anger subsides when I understand why a person is angry with me. Perhaps I do not agree with their heated feelings regarding me or my actions…but I understand that it looks different from their point of view. We live in our computers and smartphones and television screens. We live in our heads! Kerry said yesterday that a study found that one in 7 men say that they do not have 1 friend. I do not doubt that at all and wonder if the figure is not greater than 1 in 7…as we are a segmented society by our conspiracy theories and fears and prejudices. Emails have revealed that the primary news anchors of a very popular network, knew that the contentions of the election in 2020 having been stolen were lies along with the assertion that a company’s voting machines were rigged. Their concern was not the truth but the fall of their stock portfolio by a reporter revealing the truth.

Have you ever watched old men preen and posture and glory in their perceived power? The saying is that power corrupts and that ultimate power corrupts ultimately.

‘Lay not up for yourselves treasure upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’ Matthew 6: 19-21. KJV