Newsletter
"The Source"
Reflections:
What is the cost of Freedom
by Shihan Richard J. Van Donk
1994.
What a year! The U.S passed the Global Agreement on Trade
and Tariffs, a 6000 page document that goes far beyond the
purpose of trade agreements as most people were led to believe.
Europe is still trying to make a go with a single currency.
Borders are changing everywhere, not just in the former
states of the U.S.S.R. People are still killing in the name
of religion. We can't seem to get along with each other
in our local communities yet everything is moving toward
a global community.
Life on this planet is full of changes and in many cases
the man-made changes are just as devastating as the physical
changes that happen with weather conditions and other natural
disasters. The world we live in has always depended on our
choices - from where we choose to build our houses ( is
it in a flood plain? on a known earthquake fault? too close
to the sea when it storms? on the side of a volcano? ) to
what kind of government we choose to represent us ( what
is the extent of your participation? do you vote? do you
let your representatives and congress know how you feel
on key issues by writing them? do you attend school board
meetings? do you run for office yourself? do you teach your
children that their voices count and that they have a say
in things or do you teach them to obey blindly, never to
question authority? ) People make choices with every action
they take. Even deciding to make no choice is a choice though
some don't seem to understand this basic fact of life. Our
choices determine the extent of our freedom and our safety
as well as our lack of both. Yet people put the blame outside
themselves when bad things happen that rock their boats.
They fail to make the connection that their choices had
something to do with it all, that just a little of the responsibility
lies with themselves and their choices. It's easier to put
the blame elsewhere and expect to be taken care of by our
overloaded government. Why not, every one else does. The
problem is we've forgotten how to take care of ourselves,
so what do we pass on to our children? When everyone is
willing to do their share to take responsiblity for themselves
and their actions things run a lot smoother and there is
plenty left over to share with those who truly can't take
care of themselves and need help.
If I was given the power to change just one thing, just
one little thing on this planet to make a difference, I
know what it would be. It's very simple yet it would change
the face of this world. It has to do with a very basic,
very fundamental concept - respect.
If suddenly every single human being on this planet woke
up in the morning and had total respect for life, starting
with their own and then naturally extending to all others,
think how the world would change. Immediately senseless
killings would stop. The former would-be killers and abusers
would have too much respect for themselves to throw their
own lives away so easily, not to mention the lives of their
victims. And the former victims would not be such easy victims,
valuing their lives and taking steps to assure their ability
to live in a safe, worthwhile manner. With respect for all
life comes the knowledge that we are all different , all
unique. Respecting life would naturally extend to the other
living things we share this planet with and we'd find a
way to coexist in balance. People would definitely respect
the earth as their means of sustenance, as their home, in
fact as if their lives depended on it, because our lives
do.
Life and death are part of nature but the quality of our
lives while we live is up to us. And it all starts with
a little respect.
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