Rip Van Winkle

So I know that I have been preoccupied with this transition called retirement but what did I miss in all the pathos filled goodbyes and celebrations?  I feel like some Rip Van Winkle who has awakened into another world.

A man who yells all the time and is famous for the "you're fired" way of defining people is up for President of the United States.  He loves to build towers with his name imprinted on them and he seems to wants be in the wall building business in order to keep all kinds of people out.  He appears to love the sound of slamming doors in the faces of whole groups of people especially those who define themselves by praying five times a day.

He quotes scripture but does not know what it means.  It is not "two Corinthians Donald." But even so Evangelicals are lining up behind him and not turning the other check but turning off their vision so that they will not truly see him or through him.

One observer of human behavior states that our brains are that which processes information but our minds are that part of us that ponders the meaning of information.  So I simply state that many of us seem to be the product of a reality where our brains have lost their minds.

And by the way where are our souls?  Our soul is that part of the human being that realizes that we are of one substance and the product of one maker.  Soul is a unifying element that recognizes the dignity of others in spite of the surrounding atmosphere of fear and anger.  Have we lost our souls and our minds?

Yes, I know the other major candidate seems to arouse suspicion and mistrust but what are our choices going to be when it comes to the mind and soul of our country?  The ring of "everything changed after September 11" has in part drowned out the reality that some things should not change.  Fear cannot be our ruling master.  Categorizing people and then demonizing them in order to gain some kind of control is both shortsighted and mean spirited.

We need soul and a mindful kind of thinking in the face of complex issues.  In the movie, "Avatar," the indigenous people have a deep relationship to each other and the very soil upon which they walk.  When they want to be known and desire to know one another one person says to the other, "I see you."  To see is to acknowledge the kinship to nature and to each other. 

Have we lost our ability to "see" each other.  We now see categories and labels.  I hope we can regain our minds and take care of our souls so that our vision will allow us to see a hope filled future.