21st Nov 2011 I Want To Believe ...

It's election time in Spain, now my home but not my country. I am really not sure which is my country, having lived in several at different periods of my life. I believe feeling 'at home' is far more essential than going by one's birth place anyway. In my case, by circumstances, necessity and destiny, the birth place - China - is just that, where I happened to be born and not much more than that. Nevertheless, even though not familiar with China's many and very varied aspects, I love it with all my heart.

But then I have made my home in Spain. At this particular point, I almost feel like being Spanish, as everything happens here affects me now. I am not at all political minded, but I can't help wishing, wanting to believe that the new Government elected will be free to take and make decisions, willing and responsible to pact with the oppositions for the good of the whole country, not just their own political divisions.

 

I want to believe that the socialist opposition will find the way to offer the society something more than words, and capable of giving up the power game with voices of discrepancy, to fight for justice and equality.

I want to believe that we still need to defend democracy, that the value of the old Europe are not going to be reduced to deciduous metals in the hands of the banks. That we can avoid yielding to the blackmail of fear and ego.

 

I want to believe that the Government will listen to the voices of those who are disillusioned, the expelled, the defenceless, the invisible; that we will continue to feel the pain and suffering of those far away in other corners of the world, that we won't concede our well-being in the name of pragmatism.

I want to believe that we are capable of opening a gap of light in this dark times, that the beginning does not always claim an ending, that there are still ears for dialogues, space for friendship, silence for thinking and a destiny selected and decided by the citizens themselves.

 

I want to believe ... because if not, I don't know what to believe any more.

Tags: tobelieve

Prev: 21st Nov 2011 Obituary Of Mr. Common Sense

Remembering Mr. Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:

• Knowing when to come in out of the rain
• Why the early bird gets the worm
• Life isn't always fair
• And maybe it was my fault

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Aspirin to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realise that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death, by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers:

1. I Know My Rights
2. I Want It Now
3. Someone Else Is To Blame
4. I'm A Victim

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Tags: obituary

Prev: 21st Nov 2011 Thought Provoking Quotes

21st Nov 2011 Thought Provoking Quotes

• Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth. - Hindu Prince Gautama Siddharta, the founder of Buddhism, 563-483 B.C.
• I don't know if there are men on the moon, but if there are they must be using the earth as their lunatic asylum - George Bernard Shaw
• See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence ... we need silence to be able to touch souls. - Mother Theresa
• Man is now able to soar into outer space and reach up to the moon; but he is not moral enough to live at peace with his neighbour! - Sri Sathya Sai Baba
• Reach for the moon, because if you don't make it you'll land among the stars. - William Cullen Bryant
• Hope is a waking dream. – Aristotle
• For cowards the road of desertion should be left open; they will carry over to the enemy nothing, but their fears.

Tags: moon, sun, coward, truth

Prev: 21st Nov 2011 Things I Try To Keep In Mind

21st Nov 2011 Things I Try To Keep In Mind

• When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.
• You can conquer almost any fear if you will only make up your mind to do so. Remember, fear doesn't exist anywhere except in the mind.
• Fear less, hope more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Hate less, love more; And all good things are yours. - Swedish Proverb
• You can do what you have to do, and sometimes you can do it even better than you think you can.
• Poverty is no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient - Sydney Smith
• Our hours in love have wings; in absence, crutches.
• Well done is better than well said.
• The opposite of bravery is not cowardice but conformity.
• Champions know there are no shortcuts to the top. They climb the mountain one step at a time. They have no use for helicopters!
• Without this playing with fantasy no creative work has ever yet come to birth. The debt we owe to the play of the imagination is incalculable.
• Beauty of style, harmony, grace and good rhythm depend on simplicity.
• Seize the day, trust not to the morrow.
• It is man that makes truth great, not truth that makes man great.
• Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.
• If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun.
• Wise sayings often fall on barren ground; but a kind word is never thrown away.
• If you are rich, be the one to have the humility of the poor, and if you are poor, be the one to have the magnanimity of the rich.

 

Tags: things

Prev: 20th Nov 2011 Hilarious But True Medical Notes

21st Nov 2011 Things I Try To Keep In Mind