Aquinas is one of those over-achieving saints who makes me feel as though I can never make the grade. But I once read that a saint is really just a sinner who keeps trying. I have no proof to offer, but I certainly hope that's true.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
St. Tom's Day
On the Catholic Church's calendar, today is the feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, one of the 33 Doctors of the Church. He wrote the famous Summa Theologica that contains "The Five Ways," proofs of God's existence that have been taught in seminaries and universities for many centuries, right up to the present day.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
What I’ve Learned
I collected my sixth zero this week. No one with a functioning brain cell gets this old without learning at least a few worthwhile truths. I’ve learned “The Five Be’s” that I thought worth sharing.
Be Open to Life. It goes by fast, so try not to get stuck in the slow lane. Shake up the routine once in awhile—do something different, go someplace new. Be willing to accept surprises. If you are, you might find yourself on a limosine ride to wine country with all of your kids and several of your dearest friends on your 60th birthday weekend. I know, because it happened to me.
Be Grateful. No matter what’s going on, we’ve all got a lot to be thankful for. I’ve lost a few jobs over the years, but I’ve kept my health. My husband died too young, but my children and friends are the best comfort and support anyone could hope for. I used to think that “an attitude of gratitude” was just a sappy catch phrase. Now I know it’s the key to being satisfied with life.
Be Prepared. People will never fail to disappoint. Friends I thought were true blue dropped me like a hot brick when crisis struck. True colors show under pressure, and pressure shows up in every life. I don’t exempt myself; I’m sure I’ve let some people down, too. But there can be good surprises. I discovered new friends I never knew I had during hard times, people who stepped up to help me and my family and then stayed to be part of our lives. It’s impossible to predict how people will react under stress, so keep expectations low and be ready for anything.
Be Calm. After my husband died in 2006, I found myself becoming much more mellow about leaky faucets, car trouble, lost invoices, noisy neighbors—just about any annoyance of life. My motto became “EEUD”—Everyone Ends Up Dead. If it sounds morbid, it’s not meant to be. It’s just a statement of fact. Nobody gets out alive. Keeping that reality in mind puts life in perspective. There simply isn’t anything worth getting hysterical about.
Be Aware. I’ve heard it said that everything goes back in the box at the end of life. For me, it’s important to note that everything I take out of the box during my lifetime comes from God. Since everything’s going back to Him in the end, I try to avoid breakage and to pack carefully. This is especially true as the calendar reminds me that my shipping date is drawing ever closer.
If I had to capsulize all my life’s wisdom into one sentence, I suppose I’ve learned that life is good and meant to be lived as joyfully as possible. It doesn’t take 60 years to figure that out.
Be Open to Life. It goes by fast, so try not to get stuck in the slow lane. Shake up the routine once in awhile—do something different, go someplace new. Be willing to accept surprises. If you are, you might find yourself on a limosine ride to wine country with all of your kids and several of your dearest friends on your 60th birthday weekend. I know, because it happened to me.
Be Grateful. No matter what’s going on, we’ve all got a lot to be thankful for. I’ve lost a few jobs over the years, but I’ve kept my health. My husband died too young, but my children and friends are the best comfort and support anyone could hope for. I used to think that “an attitude of gratitude” was just a sappy catch phrase. Now I know it’s the key to being satisfied with life.
Be Prepared. People will never fail to disappoint. Friends I thought were true blue dropped me like a hot brick when crisis struck. True colors show under pressure, and pressure shows up in every life. I don’t exempt myself; I’m sure I’ve let some people down, too. But there can be good surprises. I discovered new friends I never knew I had during hard times, people who stepped up to help me and my family and then stayed to be part of our lives. It’s impossible to predict how people will react under stress, so keep expectations low and be ready for anything.
Be Calm. After my husband died in 2006, I found myself becoming much more mellow about leaky faucets, car trouble, lost invoices, noisy neighbors—just about any annoyance of life. My motto became “EEUD”—Everyone Ends Up Dead. If it sounds morbid, it’s not meant to be. It’s just a statement of fact. Nobody gets out alive. Keeping that reality in mind puts life in perspective. There simply isn’t anything worth getting hysterical about.
Be Aware. I’ve heard it said that everything goes back in the box at the end of life. For me, it’s important to note that everything I take out of the box during my lifetime comes from God. Since everything’s going back to Him in the end, I try to avoid breakage and to pack carefully. This is especially true as the calendar reminds me that my shipping date is drawing ever closer.
If I had to capsulize all my life’s wisdom into one sentence, I suppose I’ve learned that life is good and meant to be lived as joyfully as possible. It doesn’t take 60 years to figure that out.
Friday, January 20, 2012
A Generous Patriot
There are much better things that Obama's much-maligned "billionaires" can do with their money than fork it over to the government. The $7.5 million contribution to restore the Washington Monument, an amount that matches the congressional allocation for repairs to the damage caused by last summer's earthquake, is but one example.
The donor is billionaire David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group (gasp! A capitalist investment executive!). Much gratitude to this rich and generous soul from a regular working gal, one of the "99%," who appreciates the innumerable opportunities that private wealth can offer to do good in the world.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Technology Tea Party
Isn’t it great to have Wiki up and running smoothly again?
I really enjoyed yesterday’s Internet blackouts. It was the spirit of 1773 all over again. With search engines and websites going dark and offering petitions against regulating the Internet, along with easy links to complain to elected representatives, millions of American citizens gladly stood up to excessive governmental authority by logging on and cyber-screaming “No more!”
The force and magnitude of public reaction to the proposed SOPA and PIPA legislation certainly shocked our ruling oligarchy in Washington. They were probably wondering, can the torches and pitchforks outside the Capitol be far behind? Perhaps they had good reason for such concern. Americans are sick and tired of being regulated and legislated at every turn. We are beginning to draw our line in the sand, and the perfect starting point is Everyman’s Internet.
If there is one place—and there may be only one place—in the economy that has grown and thrived during this prolonged recession, it is technology. Now, why is that? Could it be due to the fact that the bureaucrats haven’t gotten their power-hungry paws on the Internet yet? Might it be because entrepreneurial, hard-working, creative people find the Internet to be the one unfettered haven of freedom and opportunity for expression and achievement?
It appears that the entertainment industry will have to find another way to deal with piracy. Politicians, always a beat behind the grassroots they supposedly represent, are slowly catching on to the reality that the American Internet surfer is holding the mouse that roared.
I really enjoyed yesterday’s Internet blackouts. It was the spirit of 1773 all over again. With search engines and websites going dark and offering petitions against regulating the Internet, along with easy links to complain to elected representatives, millions of American citizens gladly stood up to excessive governmental authority by logging on and cyber-screaming “No more!”
The force and magnitude of public reaction to the proposed SOPA and PIPA legislation certainly shocked our ruling oligarchy in Washington. They were probably wondering, can the torches and pitchforks outside the Capitol be far behind? Perhaps they had good reason for such concern. Americans are sick and tired of being regulated and legislated at every turn. We are beginning to draw our line in the sand, and the perfect starting point is Everyman’s Internet.
If there is one place—and there may be only one place—in the economy that has grown and thrived during this prolonged recession, it is technology. Now, why is that? Could it be due to the fact that the bureaucrats haven’t gotten their power-hungry paws on the Internet yet? Might it be because entrepreneurial, hard-working, creative people find the Internet to be the one unfettered haven of freedom and opportunity for expression and achievement?
It appears that the entertainment industry will have to find another way to deal with piracy. Politicians, always a beat behind the grassroots they supposedly represent, are slowly catching on to the reality that the American Internet surfer is holding the mouse that roared.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
On the Reading List
I heard Mark Levin interviewed on the radio during my drive home tonight. Having read his previous bestselling book, Liberty and Tyranny, I know that Levin is an extremely smart, educational author and was immediately intrigued.
From the discussion, it sounds as though Levin's Ameritopia goes far deeper into the source of today's American troubles. It goes all the way back to Plato's Republic to help explain how we got into our modern governmental straitjacket.
Ameritopia: The Unmaking of America has the potential to be a true game-changer come November. I definitely plan to read it. Considering the fact that as of today it's ranked #3 on Amazon's bestseller list, I think many of my fellow voters will be doing their own homework, too.
UPDATE: Today, Jan. 18, the book is #1 on Amazon.
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