Wednesday, June 18, 2025

2002-10-18 Of Trees, Rain, and Wind

 

In the grand scheme of things one voice does not seem very loud, nor to some, very important.  At this time I am at a cross roads in my life.  I have made the top of my perceived mountain, my focus in getting there resolute.  My personal bubble, closed to outside distractions.  I am 36 years old.  I have obtained the American Dream.  Now what do I do?

            Not all persons can see beyond their dreams.  Most obtain the dream or closeness to the dream and are happy to have made it that far.  I cannot do that.  I thought I might for an instant but something else happened to me.  Something I cannot believe.  I am now afraid.

            In my pursuit of my goals I put out of my mind all the worries that accompany you in the world.  I did not worry about politics, nor foreign affairs, taxes, insurance, employment, the economy, or much that did not affect my daily existence.  I was in control of all that affected my realm.  I was in charge of my life.  That has changed now.

            The cause of this change is multi-fold.  The realization that I have entered a part of my life where people that I know and love will start dying was the first cause.  The next was the birth of my daughter.  Next are my employer’s actions during a down turn in business.  Attacks on our perception of daily life security sure did help shake up my world.  Another is the local law enforcement community’s inability to prevent crime.  Or, once a crime occurs, to judicially resolve the offense.  The rational that allows school books to be assessed on weight instead of content.  The removal of governmental controls on services that are needed for daily life while digging deeper into my personal interactions with others mystifies me.  My inability to purchase insurance because of my weight but not by my minimal high blood pressure was an adventure in wonderland.  How much of what controls my future is beyond my control is frightening.  It scares me that a populace (not to be confused with individuals), ignorant of many necessary facts and manipulated by the media (remember the group that makes more money when they have higher ratings.), is allowing changes in how the Government perceives my Rights.  Thus mass ignorance fueled by mass media now controls the collective minds of my pears.  My voice seems might small in that vast forest.

            I initially tried to find now focuses to resolve my fears.  I started teaching others in an area I felt was important and that I enjoyed the subject.  I refocused on secondary goals and projects that I had undertaken.  I tried to ignore the areas of my fear.  None of this has worked.  Every time I see my daughter, every time something terrible happens that I cannot do anything about, my resolution crumbles like mud wall in a rainstorm.  It cracks, dissolves into its self, and then flows away.

            I guess this is when religious people throw their faith into God or what they believe in.  I do not have that faith.  I cannot see the reality of placing it all in another’s hands.  It is just not my way.  My faith is that you live your life.  Then, if there is something after your physical death, you will have to justify your actions.  Perhaps the judge will not be anyone but yourself.  Most people are their own worst critics. 

            So, my defense against my fears is to speak and ensure others hear me.  One lone voice yelling in the forest against the wind and rains trying to be heard.  My rational is that if one does not speak, shout, or yell at the top of their lungs that they are afraid, then we stand no chance of being heard at all.

            How will I live with my fears?  Daily, with determination that helped me obtain the American Dream.  It is now time to suffer the storms, watch my walls crumble and know that I will get hurt.  For when I fall, I will yell into the rain.  For if I do not, who will? 

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