Tag: explore

Where Are the Answers

It is not that I’m a doubtful soul. It’s just sometimes I look at some of the news that is run, and I begin to wonder why? And, what are they trying to hide? Something happened a year ago, and it was taped, why wasn’t it brought up then? Especially if it was devastating are degrading to a large group of people.

I understand that sensationalism is often saved until the book is ready to debut. And sometimes, national news is the greatest advertising one can obtain, not to mention that it’s free. Yet, how truly meaningful and caring is the writer if they sit on the knowledge of wrong-doing until the book is written and they can make a buck off of it.

I canot entirely blame the writer. After all, money is money, and without income, it’s hard to buy the groceries. What really bothers me is professional news organizations with limited airtime, choosing to sensationalize tell-all books when there is news which goes unreported. It almost starts to feel like the standard government plan of ancient Rome. Keep the people entertained and fed.

Truthfully, I cannot even blame the news people. So many viewers watch shows where people are invited to discuss their personal problems. When two or three are on stage the screaming, cursing, and name-calling commence. If the audience is lucky somebody throws a punch or chair. Then the host opens an envelope to reveal a paternity test, or drug test, or the results of the lie detector. Then, the show is over with a few lives better and most lives even more devastated. It makes me wonder, is this the modern-day video Coliseum, although I’m told people watch these shows so they can feel that there are people worse than they are.

Do we want to make our decisions based on the fact that there are people that are worse than we are? Or, do we want to make our decisions based on something good that we can strive for? It is up to each of us, and the answers are not within mass distribution. The answers are within ourselves. If others won’t turn off the conspiracies, the hatred, and the false entertainment. Maybe it’s up to us to turn off the sensationalism and find something better to do.

Making Luck

Ever wish you had more luck? Ever hope that things would go your way? Ever dream you could just find that edge? The truth is, you can. It is just that the actions to get there are more straightforward and more accessible than you think.

I worked with a great Boy Scout troop in California once. We would go on about three camporees a year where the troops would participate in a set of games to show their camping skills. It was always a lot of fun.

About two weeks before the Camporee, our troop would have a campout of its own. Everyone would train on the skills that would be tested during the jamboree. This was an excellent sharing of knowledge and helped the scouts to know and understand what they were doing. Because of this, our scouts would almost always place well in the competition. I don’t believe it is because they were smarter, or better than any of the other kids. I believe it was merely the fact that they had explored those skills and the best practices to actually make the skills work.

This is a fantastic set of actions I think we can all learn from. If we want something in life, we should explore it. Understanding and knowledge can always go far. I remember once a veteran telling me about a time he was on a field exercise. He was a very young soldier newly enlisted in just through technical school, and he was driving a deuce and a half on the exercise.

During a stop, he was little bored, and he was reading the information plate on the inside edge of the door to the driver’s cab. He closed the door, and within a couple of minutes a general came by and talked to him. Because he had just read the plate from the door, he could tell the General that he was driving a fantastic truck that could do haul up to so many pounds, the type of drivetrain, and even that the tires were self-inflating. The general was very impressed and shook the soldier’s hand before walking on.

I am not sure I would go out of my way to look for luck. There are many positive experiences all around us. Rather than grasping at the intangibles that seem to continually evade us, be curious. Explore things that you want to be known for and share that knowledge freely. For that is when the intangibles will come.

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