Blog 2569 – 11.10.2022
Above All Be Kind
They who would pay any price to win should count the cost of such a plan. Patience, persistence, and determination are all very fine but need to be tempered with kindness. Compassion has a cost too and it can be a dear one involving reassessing some of the compromises one is willing to make to achieve their goals. The writers of the United States Constitution knew there were great obstacles in the way of the “more perfect Union” that they envisioned, the institution of slavery being a big one.
The Founding Fathers agreed to include “All men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable right among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Slavery made this untrue for millions of persons in the thirteen colonies/states. But the framers of our Constitution, many of them hoped for that more perfect Union to resolve this flaw in the fabric of our nation. The scars of that tear are still there. There is an opposing few to the quote above and it is the belief that a few are born to rule and the rest to serve.
I have watched the Netflix series The Crown and am about to conclude the fourth season and begin the fifth. It is a somewhat dramatized version of the reign of Queen Elizabeth the Second who most would agree was a benevolent monarch. I have heard it expressed by many that probably the best form of government would be a benevolent monarchy. The problem is that even if a country is fortunate to have a good king or queen they are usually followed by a very bad one. It would seem that good kings and queens often make poor parents. That is what I have gotten from watching The Crown and reading the Old Testament account of the kings of Israel.
This myth that one family was destined to rule, that they are of royal blood is one we in the U.S. stopped believing in over two hundred years ago. The monarchy has survived in the United Kingdom due in large part to its former beloved Queen staying out of politics and walking a very straight line. QE2 was not a perfect mother nor the most affectionate of persons but she tried to be kind. The scene with the down and out British house painter/decorator breaking in on the Queen just to talk to her about how his life had fallen apart after Margaret Thatcher had introduced austere programs that resulted in high inflation and unemployment and a cessations of many social services causing many like himself to fall through holes in the social safety net showed a scared but still caring sovereign.
The theme song from the movie Alfie comes to mind:
Are we meant to be kind? Indeed, Yes.
Your friend and fellow traveler,
David White
DIONNE WARWICK-WHATS IT ALL ABOUT ALFIE
theencouragingword 