LET'S NOT LET THE WORLD COLLAPSE AROUND US WITHOUT A UNIFIED STAND FOR CHANGE

As I approach my 500th post on Wrights Lane, I have to admit to a degree of reservation.  For several days I have been weighing the pros and cons of this one in particular, with increasingly heavy emotion.  I do not know where I am going to start nor how I am going to end, and that is not good for someone sitting down to commit words to text.

Realistically, God willing, my life span has another 10-12 years left in it and I feel rather limited in what I can accomplish in that period.  In spite of honorable intentions, I question any meaningful impact that I have had on the world, so why should any of that all of a sudden change in the days ahead?  I feel somewhat helpless and personally incapable in a world that is on the verge of collapsing around us.  I have a sneaking suspicion that I am not alone in what I am feeling.  That is why I am tackling this post in the hope that if I am ever to be taken seriously, if my writing ever stands for anything, may this be the time.

I need not elaborate on the immanent collapse of our economy, taking with it governments and countries. There is the very real threat of a new world order taking over our lives.  We find ourselves in the position of  scrambling for ways to patch damage done to our environment, in many cases too little too late.  We look to governments with poor track records, vying for public favor, yet incapable of providing adequate solutions.

In fact, what we need in our world is not more government, but more freedom. If we had freedom, integrity and personal responsibility, we would not be facing the global collapse that has already begun. But alas, the human race is an infant species and it must learn some lessons the hard way, it seems.

The problems are complex beyond our understanding, and it is not only unlikely that there is a single solution but there may be no solutions at all -- if by “solution” we mean a way to continue human existence on the planet at its current level. We need experiments on every front that will help us imagine new ways of being, and sufficient will to carry out the tasks.

We humans have been given a privileged place in a world that is beautiful beyond description, and we are destroying it and destroying each other. Many of us cope with that by building temporary psychological damns and dikes to hold back our concern. But the emotion comes so powerfully from so many different directions that life feels like a process of constantly patching and moving and rebuilding those damns and dikes. Some of this is intensely personal.  The only way to cope effectively is to use some of the energy we have left in collective efforts to try to build something positive.

There is a lot of individual variation in the human species, which means there will be lots of different reactions as the reality of our predicament sets in. I worry that in a society like North America, where so many have lived for so long with abundance and a sense of entitlement, people will not be able to face up to the dramatic changes that are inevitable. That could lead people to accept greater levels of hierarchy and authority if political leaders promise to protect that affluence. In that case, people’s inability to deal with the emotions that arise out of awareness of collapse could usher in an era of even more unjust distribution of wealth and resources in an even more violent world.

The only way to combat that is to talk openly about what we see coming and work to create conditions that allow us to rely on the best of our nature, not the worst.  The eternal life that we are now living will be well lived if we take good care of each little period of time as it presents itself day after day. If we fail in doing this, we fail in everything.

I honestly feel that we need to be more aware of the need for righteousness in our world today.  When we fully realize this truth we see that it makes but little difference what particular form of religion one holds to, but it does make a tremendous difference how true we are to vital principals.  In the degree that we love self less and love truth more, in the degree that we care less about converting people to our particular way of thinking, all the more will we care to aid them in coming into full realization of truth through channels best adapted to them.

A mass, unified unfolding of souls and disregard for differences is our best chance of fortifying against the threat of collapse in our world today.  We need to put form aside, tear down the fences and reel in prejudices that keep us from coming into the realization of universal truth.  Time and attention must be given to bringing people into a knowledge of their true selves and an understanding of relations with others and of oneness with the Infinite.

No form of government, no corporation, no special interest group, no one world leader, will ever solve all the problems facing us today.  But right thinking people, speaking out and acting in concert, can be a powerful force in bringing about change that is so desperately needed.

Yes, we have our work cut out for us all right.  A lot of soul-searching is required and many changes must be made.  Sacrifice of certain expectations is inevitable. We are all in this together regardless of race, religion, politics or sexual persuasion.  Each one of us has a role to play in our destiny and it is up to us individually to reach out and grasp it before it is too late.

So there you have it.  A start and an ending...And in between idealistic words that some of us may be more capable of accepting and acting on than others.  If nothing else, I hope that at least I've got you thinking. Everything begins with a thought, right!?

United, we stand!  Divided, we fall...And the world collapses along with us, sorry to say!  I can't put it any other way.