How often have we heard that statement or something akin to it? How often have we been told to "Be good". Be it at school or visiting a friend or greeting a relative or some kind, any kind of garden variety of a situation where behavior, making an impression, is important, at least for the one who intones that order. Be good. Often, a parting injunction from one person to another, but what does that mean in actuality, in a reality moment? Think about it. Is the implied injunction actually the same to all within ear and interpretative distance?
I sincerely doubt that would be true in many instances, much to the detriment? disappointment? of all concerned. The consequences arising from that differing import can be amusing, serious or even tragic. Thus, the question arises. What does it mean to 'be good' if the original command is not clear and is not followed as meant by the invoker, Then can we indeed expect to have any right to discipline or chastise the one who was not 'good'. I think not, unless we are absolutely sure that the command was understood and then deliberately ignored or purposely countermanded.
What I find most annoying is when adults use that phrase to demand that another adult should be good. Or a nation should be good, or even we should be good to another nation. What does that mean and in precise terms, not vague words which escape any degree of precise intent, absolutely nothing other than more hot air, useless, unless meant to catch one in a compromising position, one of benefit to the issuer of said command. Kind of nasty, but then again, that is the game of politics, be it personal, statewide or national.
Is there not another way to conduct conversations and negotiations? Is there no way we can actually use that most ignored trait of honesty, to engender productive and meaningful outcomes? Of course there is, but that would require too much work, too much sincerity. Even should a leader, as unique as that might be, choose to conduct conversation, national discourse, international discourse with honesty forefront, that leader will inevitably be negated, neutralized as the subordinates then twist the words as per their own needs and desires and there it goes again - any possibility of true meaning, of honesty, of compromise and achievement. The lies, the ignored injunction to 'be good' worthless.
Much of the conversation in the world today can be considered combative in nature. We worry if we are being one upped. We worry if we mean one thing and it is interpreted as such, or misunderstood, on purpose or not and then one must prepare for all the Plan B's and C's so as to be prepared for all possibilities. By the time the conversation ends, no one is quite sure why they first entered into this conversation in the first place!
This has been so down through the ages. Pick any period of time in history, any era and there's a constant shuffling of sides. Nation A allied with nation B. There is a wartime status with nation C. Suddenly, A and C are buddies and B is out in the cold. It is the real 1984 or Brave New World. We, the people who sit in the nosebleed seats, are of no matter, no consequence, our needs discounted if even been noticed at all. We live in a world of angst and uncertainty. Difficult to pin down where we are, how we got here and where is our next designated point of arrival. Does it make a difference?
One would have hoped that by now we would have learned better, with bitter experiences, but we have not. We simply ignored the truth and continued on the same rutted road on which we get nowhere. If one needs proof, all one has to do is pick up a paper. Pick up a paper from 20 years ago. Pick up a paper from 40 years ago. Pick up tomorrow's paper. And it is the same old same old. This politician is crooked. This one is dangerous. This one is a pervert. This one is a sexual molester. This one is incompetent. This one is a liar. This one beats his wife. Or, that one beats the husband. That one is totally incompetent and the other is deranged. On and on and on. And yet the re-election stands. They are cheered by those who willingly do so for whatever reason they are comfortable with.
And so here we are reliving in our todays all our faulty yesterdays, and our tomorrow will be as polluted. We must wake up and smell the coffee or the hot chocolate or whatever your drink of choice be, for we have overslept, our alarm broke down. and we are in for another replay of mayhem and tragedy, of grief lit rarely with moments of goodness. love and kindness. We must make the most of them. They appear to be an endangered species.
Speaking of which, scientists today have said Earth is quickly approaching the point of no return. Perhaps so are we. In fact, have we already gone past that point? For that answer look back at our
Yesterdays.
Look to our
todays.
Any discernable difference = at least for the good?
Try to look ahead to the future and see where our
tomorrows
will be. Anything better?
I hope tomorrow is a better day than today, for our besieged troubled world needs help. It needs it now, and it needs us.
Where are we?
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