I have loved the Olympics since I was a kid. The vision of people from across our planet competing with all their strength while being at peace with each other is inspiring. The sight of swimmers paddling for all they are worth then hugging each other at the conclusion is awsome! Simone Biles is a magnificent example of someone who did not let a setback stop her quest for excellence! Having been on the banks of the Seine and watching the athletes compete in the triathlon is exemplary. Paris is a magical place. We visited in 2012 and I hope to return.

I have not heard a mean word spoken by the Olympians. There is no name-calling or ridicule. No body shaming or misogyny. No bastardization of the fellowship of man. Instead, I see a community enthralled with the magic of living on Earth. There is joy in the journey. There is hope for the future. A recognition of humanity!

The Olympics gives me hope. Hope for the future of our species. Hate is holding us back from realizing our full potential. Recrimination and retribution are not seen in this blessed event. Art is lauded. Peace is proclaimed. Politics doctrine dogma takes a vacation for the two weeks of young inspiring people demonstrating their craft.

We are all on the same stage of life. ‘All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts.’ William Shakespeare

Listen we do to vile and evil rhetoric. We are left disheartened and depressed. Public discourse has become coarse and defeating. The person with the outrageous verbal attack is lauded as a fighter. Perhaps those who admire mean speech and hate speech have been among the potsherds. We pine for the uplifting speech of leaders.

We long for the sextant compass to give us our latitude and longitude. We are in troubled seas. We need a Captain with her/his eye on the horizon. The sextant compass does not need electricity to work. We need to relearn the Celestial Tables.

‘Hope deferred maketh the heart sick but when the desire cometh it is a tree of life.’