The Bearable Rightness of Being

Okay, so a few readers were upset by how upset I was in the last post. It is rather laughable that I should find intolerance so intolerable. I could easily know better.

They have a right to think their way -- and so do I.

It is the bearable rightness of being. Everybody gets to have it. To be glad for what they believe whatever it may be.

A reader sent me this response which finally makes more sense than getting all riled up. Here is what he wrote:

We Live, We Judge
This brings to mind my take on a vivid passage in the Gospels. Mary Magdalen weeps at the empty tomb. She sees someone and supposing him to be the gardener, asks "Do you know where they have taken my Lord?" He calls her by name and she understand it is Jesus.
So, the person she has spent years traveling with and loving and respecting is in front of her and she does not recognize him. Really? Her powers of observation and judgement are that poor?
My take is that Jesus is alive in the gardener... and everywhere we least expect him. Our pre-conceived notions of who is salvageable and who is right with the world, and the worldly way we judge people... is all wrong.
The experience of meeting Jesus disguised in lower state is repeated many times after the resurrection, with good reason. It's a tough lesson to learn.

Too true.

Conservatives In The House

So...we're here! The FIRST 100 DAYS. Hand your projects in kids, we're celebrating 100 days in office!

I could not let the moment pass without an acute observation that the bloggy world corroborates.

The Obama's are the most traditional, indeed most CONSERVATIVE family to occupy the White House in a long, long time.

I nearly came to blows the other night arguing this very fact with a neighbor.

Those hell-bent on vilifying the entire family as socialist, liberal, racist (yes, you read correctly) freak-a-zoids have not been paying attention these past three months. In fact, I was so disturbed by the conversation that I wondered how I could be stuck in this waste land of fear, ostrich-like stupidity and un-evolved humanity. But I have come to my senses.

I have the sense to see that the traditional values -- yea, call them conservative, are the values I share (and so do my dumb neighbors if they would pay attention). They are the values that cause us to haul the brood to church each week, keep them clean behind the ears, force them to make their beds, sit up straight in the chair, eat with a fork and knife, clear their plates, and be kind to one another. We want them to enjoy one another and be the kind of people whose company we want to share.

Everything I have heard from Michelle Obama as she has traveled around the country, and every interview I have read tells me that these folks have deeply rooted values that are as classic the cardigan and the kitten heel (is it any wonder why Mrs. O loves both).

We have spent a lot of time wowing or worrying over Michelle's arms -- but it is their CORE, hers and his that is most impressive. The strength that comes from the center of who they are has not wavered and I believe will not waiver weather they're in it for one term or two.

I believe with all my heart that the only reason anyone can say otherwise is because they never expected this from America's first Black First Family. Period. End of Story.

Overnight Sensation Sings For Us All

Apparently, I was not the only one who was moved to share the video of Susan Boyle's success on Britain's Got Talent. Here is an article explaining that she became a YouTube sensation as well.

Many readers wrote me that they had tears in their eyes while watching. One reader said:

I think she sings (speaks) to all of us who have felt left out, judged or told we weren't quite "good enough".

And maybe that it is: in the end, our love, our pain, our common humanity connects us.

Thank you, Susan.

We Live, We Judge, We Limit

Every day our lives are filled with making decisions based on our beliefs. We do the best we can according to those beliefs -- and yet sometimes our judgments do limit us.

From personal experience I can say that we make conclusions about people based on how they look, what they wear, what is in their shopping cart at the grocery store, their accent, how they speak to their children...and, in fact, how their children behave in the playground. (and the list goes on...)

When we become aware that our lives are filled with these pre-conceived assessments, we realize how limiting they can sometimes be. I try to help my children understand this, in an effort to encourage them to be more loving, more accepting of difference and generally more open to the world around them.

The point is not to eliminate our judgements of the world around us...only to be aware of how they may limit our experience of life, and the people we may meet along the journey.

I am going to show them THIS VIDEO as soon as they get home from school. As you watch it, ask yourself what you think of this woman BEFORE she opens her mouth...it is quite a surprise.
___________

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” Luke 6:37

She Came, She Hugged, She Conquered

This article from the London Times says it all: The British and most of Europe for that matter was enamoured of OUR FIRST LADY, Michelle Obama.

I find myself refreshed by the news of what she is wearing, who she is hugging and who she is NOT hugging. It has been a long winter and I am tired of the emotional and physical hibernation. Time to come out and focus on growth, budding, and new life!

To keep my perspective balanced, I daily read the news headlines along with my favorite fashion site Mrs. O.

Why? To remind myself that in spite of the gravity of our current economic situation -- there is still life and hope and reason to celebrate!

I can think of no better role model to bolster our confidence AND our consumer confidence than someone as poised, intelligent, loving as Mrs. O.

She came, She Hugged, She Conquered.

I love that!