The Greenie Board in the VF-51 Ready Room in USS Midway.
Words to live by.
##########
Today I'm doing my best to recover from a particularly severe case of crankiness.
There are things that drive me up the wall, and one of those is running into people who crap all over their fellow humans.
One of the reasons this drives me up the wall is that I know that I've spent a great deal of time crapping all over my fellow humans, and that "that guy" is right there inside of me, straining at the leash.
A long time ago a very wise Chief told me that when other people's behavior pisses me off, it's because I know in my heart, where I cannot lie, that that behavior has been, perhaps continues to be, and certainly could be, my very own behavior.
Knowing that little fact about myself takes all the fun out of bashing people. But it's a good trade, because the me that can so easily swell with unearned moral superiority is an absolute monster.
I don't know the best path for others. I have some ideas, but like me, they are flawed. However, I do know with complete certainty that the only way for me to avoid a living hell is to be constantly reminded of my flaws and the awful places they can take me.
##########
Having said that, there's this.
San Diego County is 4,526 square miles in area. If we put the entire population of the country into San Diego County, all 300 million Americans, the population density would be only 6,628.3 humans per square mile. That's roughly the population density of a small rural town.
New York City has a population density of 27,000 per square mile. The Jersey side of NYC ranges from about 24,000 to more than 50,000 souls per square mile. New Jersey has the highest population density of any state at 1,218 per square mile. Rhode Island is second at 1,021. New York State is seventh at 420. California is twelfth at 251. Texas is 26th at 105. Nebraska is 43rd at 24. Alaska is 50th at 1 person per square mile.
Scale, context, perspective.
I can believe that you can do ugly very well; however, at base you are a very good person/man. Thank you for what you are and what you do ( i.e.: help to feed the rest of us ).
ReplyDeletePaul L. Quandt
My inner beast is never far from the surface. I've learned, well, most of the time, to keep things in perspective. I try not to let things unbalance my wa. "Serenity now" as Frank Costanza might have said.
ReplyDeleteSwell post.
ReplyDeleteI have to remind myself, on a regular basis, I have a part in any situation where I am not comfortable.
Once I determine what that part is I can usually deal with it.
I love to gripe ...perfected it at NTC San Diego over a period of 13 weeks in the summer of '61.