Last night I met this lady at SOS (Standing On Stone, a non-profit organization I run that helps with the homeless) for the first time, rape victim at the age of 7 (she’s now 48). All she wanted was a sleeping bag but we ran out, luckily we had a tent and as soon as we gave it to her, tears started running down her eyes. She said she has all sorts of medical conditions not only because of the rape but because of the physical abuse she got from her dad when she was growing up. The brokenness comes from her past.
Drugs have been her friend since her teens, she’s tried all of it she says. She’s been sober for the past 13 months but from the looks of things, it might be a struggle to keep going. She looked desperate and out of hope.
Then there was this one guy who just last week asked me for $40 because he wanted to buy weed but last night was proclaiming to everyone that he has been sober for the past 13 years. I didn’t really know what to say. He was so into himself claiming that his sobriety was all because of him and his own will power. He says its all in the mind.
There’s so much brokenness around us. People talking just for the sake of talking, there is no peace so they try to affirm or get some happiness by getting someone to listen. People having waves of emotions out of no where. It’s like nothing is guiding their lives so whatever they feel, they act.
We adjust our beliefs to accommodate what is comfortable for us at the current stage of our life. So much so that we adjust the meaning of “good” or “being good” so that it fits our current limitation of how much good we are willing to do or how much “bad” we are willing to accept.
When the center of a humans life is themselves and for themselves, everything around that human being is pointed toward him or her. The moment it doesn’t make him or her happy, the human reacts, throws a tantrum, uses drugs, alcohol or whatever fits the moment. And reality dictates, you are bound to come across many disappointing moments in your life.
So why not live a life that’s not about us? How about we shift the center of our life so that the Focus is on something else other than us? What do you think? What’s guiding you?
I think we still need to focus on ourselves to improve ourselves first since in order to change the world you first need to change yourself. I think your point is not to bend “good” and “bed” to fit your world but try to be honest with yourself and except that “yes, it was bad what I did, I will try not to do it again”.
Yes thank you…the ingredients that define good or bad shouldn’t be flexible. At this point of our human history, we already know what is good and bad as a Society – we must simply now apply the same concept Morally. Thank you for sharing your thoughts…God bless always.