Today's Vibe is ...

 By VIBE, I feel like I need to say what society is going through, but that's from my high school days, when we used to ask people we meet, "What's the vibe?" (How are things going today, physically, emotionally, situationally, etc.) ... or "I don't like the vibe in this room" (a feeling of tenseness or anger). 

Well, this week I have been contemplating Juneteenth and all the emotions and opinions surrounding it in my area. Mostly people around here don't like it because, 1. It's a new national holiday, so no mail, no bank, etc. and 2. It doesn't pertain to them much. 

But I disagree. I'm glad we finally have a holiday that commemorates the ending of the American Civil War and the ending of legal slavery. 

What a horrible time that was in our history, so much hatred, so much strife, so much death, so much destruction. I hate to say it was worth it, but a lot of good came out of it.

And we should celebrate the good.

So, my five minutes of thought on VIBE is how I choose to use today. I will do my responsibilities in gratefulness. I will work toward freedom in all its forms for myself and for those around me. I will celebrate the unity we have in our country in all its forms and strive to live in unity with all those around me, especially my family. 

And I will work toward peace in my heart, in my home, in my family, and in my community. 

That's more than enough work for any human being. 

Today's VIBE is positive!

Five Minute Friday is the place to be today. Go check it out.

Just a part

(truck piston)

the way I part my hair

the way I'm a part of the whole in this peaceful place of healing

the part where you tell me something and ask for my opinion and I give you my opinion and you accept it, but you don't necessarily agree, and that's okay

my part in the problem - to be recognized and fixed if possible

I am a part of the landscape, walking around with a grocery cart, choosing what I want to consume, what I am willing to pay for, what I will take responsibility for ...

I sit at my desk which is a central part of this room, which is a small portion of this house, which sits on the property we bought years ago, which is a portion of 175 acres of farmland, which is part of Morrow County, which is an unimportant, but still growing portion of the state of Ohio, which is a part of the United States of America, which is an uneasy brother of the countries of the world, which is a tiny rock in the universe God created years ago to move in harmony by the power of His Might.

And this is just a part of the vast amount of thoughts swirling in my brain.

Five Minute Friday - the place to be today!

Blessings!

Don't criticize

 

Those words still ring in my ears to this day. "Don't criticize," my mother used to say to me when I found something wrong with a person, a musical performance, a piece of art, or the way someone was dressed.

The problem was she set the example of criticizing. When she got on a roll, we knew to just let it ride out. She used words like "frumpy", "glaring", "not right", "inappropriate", even "common". She could be brutal. Each time I felt horrible for the person or thing she was running down but kept my mouth shut.

I don't think she realized her hypocrisy. She usually started verballing tearing something apart when she was angry, hungry, confused, tired, or afraid. It took me many years to find the understanding of what was really happening.   

And I find the same weakness in myself. I catch it and stop it when it is brought to my attention, hopefully by God, privately, in my head. But my most recent employment pulled me back into the cycle of ragging on something or someone and then apologizing. It is difficult to be in a culture of criticism and stay away from the practice myself. 

Very difficult.

But lest we forget, there is a positive side to criticism - evaluation, rebuke, disapproval, analysis, review, assessment, appraisal - all of these have positive and negative connotations. 

Criticism can make us better.

And so, it was with my mom. She was right about a lot of what she criticized, and in a way, it taught me which direction to go. Dress nicely while in public. Do not cuss or swear in public. Pay attention when you are moving about in a crowd. Use your directionals while driving and when in doubt, let someone merge. Pick up your trash. Leave the space better than when you found it.

Boy, could I write more! But we will leave it like this for Five Minute Friday.