I have had some posts floating around in my head for a while. I wanted to at least get one done and then I can attack the others. I will admit, sometimes when I go to do a post I look and I have done something very similar a while back. That prevents me from writing. I am not sure exactly what I have written on the subject of perspective as I did not look. I did want to get one done. So, without further ado (too much ado is not good!)...
The ability of a human to accept something that would have been unacceptable in another time, place, or situation, is profound. I recently wrote something concerning views of the past, in light of a portion of the people wanted to get rid of any reminder of anything uncomfortable.
Our view of the past will almost always appear distorted when viewed through the lens of the present.
"THE" 8/23/18
This is a statement on how our perspective of what remains of another day can be radically different than the perspective of those that were there and may have left those remains. Times, opinions, attitudes, laws, etc. change. For good or bad, they change. There are things that were very common and "normal" in other times that we would find abhorrent today. On the contrary, there are many things that we take as "normal" now, that would have gotten one arrested, shot, or banned in another day. That was not what I wanted to talk about however. This was to be more light-hearted. So, if you made it past that, congratulations. On to the light-hearted.
If you are carrying some extra weight, as it seems most humans are now-a-days! (If you are not one of the "heavy" masses - CONGRATS!) and you would like to feel better about yourself, just go to a buffet restaurant for a meal. I happen to love buffets. Do I eat too much? Well, yes! I am an American! However, I like them due to the fact that I can get exactly what I want and sample things I am unsure of without getting an entire entree. However, evidently there are those that go just so they can devour vast quantities of foodstuff. I just ate lunch at a Chinese buffet. Now this is not meant as a criticism of any person or group of people. Heck, I have at points in my life been so large that I have had a gravitational pull. There was a time that I blamed myself for the downgrading of Pluto as I was afraid I had grown larger than it! This is just a commentary on what I saw.
Thea average weight in the dining area was somewhere between wildebeest and rhino. Even though I am almost 100 lbs lighter than my largest, I am still a large man. However, in this setting I felt almost emaciated. Again, I am not judging, just commenting. In perspective, I was a fit, slim guy. It felt odd, but quite enjoyable.
This reminded me of another time where the perspective was off from the reality. When my wife went back to school to get her RN degree later in life, she earned some stipends and scholarships. One such award was from the local chapter of a veteran's group. We were invited to their monthly gathering for a meal and for my wife to receive her award and recognition. If my memory of the time is correct, my wife would have been just shy of 50 and being one year older, I would have been close to the same. So, we were no spring chickens. Maybe not winter chickens either, especially from my perspective (see how I did that) now. We walked into the room and was met by a specter of death. You might could have convinced me this gentleman fought in the Civil War. As he shuffled us into the dining area it was like entering heaven's waiting room. The average age was two weeks past death! (again, this is not a criticism. these were WONDERFUL people. I am just commenting on the fact that they were OLD) I had not felt that young in decades. By perspective, my wife and I were young-uns. We were calf among the cattle, lambs among the sheep. We had some great food, some great stories, and my wife got a well-deserved and much needed award.
There are two examples of perspective. Remember, there are always different ways to look at almost anything.
OH! A commercial. If you have not purchased my book, please consider it. "Living With A Snow(wo)man" is available at Amazon for Kindle or in paperback. A portion of the proceeds goes to help people afflicted with the disease that killed my wife - Multiple System Atrophy. I have not been able to donate a lot as the book sales have not been up to my expectation. I did not expect a best-seller, but I had hoped for more. So please look into it! (when searching, leave out the (Wo))
The ability of a human to accept something that would have been unacceptable in another time, place, or situation, is profound. I recently wrote something concerning views of the past, in light of a portion of the people wanted to get rid of any reminder of anything uncomfortable.
Our view of the past will almost always appear distorted when viewed through the lens of the present.
"THE" 8/23/18
This is a statement on how our perspective of what remains of another day can be radically different than the perspective of those that were there and may have left those remains. Times, opinions, attitudes, laws, etc. change. For good or bad, they change. There are things that were very common and "normal" in other times that we would find abhorrent today. On the contrary, there are many things that we take as "normal" now, that would have gotten one arrested, shot, or banned in another day. That was not what I wanted to talk about however. This was to be more light-hearted. So, if you made it past that, congratulations. On to the light-hearted.
If you are carrying some extra weight, as it seems most humans are now-a-days! (If you are not one of the "heavy" masses - CONGRATS!) and you would like to feel better about yourself, just go to a buffet restaurant for a meal. I happen to love buffets. Do I eat too much? Well, yes! I am an American! However, I like them due to the fact that I can get exactly what I want and sample things I am unsure of without getting an entire entree. However, evidently there are those that go just so they can devour vast quantities of foodstuff. I just ate lunch at a Chinese buffet. Now this is not meant as a criticism of any person or group of people. Heck, I have at points in my life been so large that I have had a gravitational pull. There was a time that I blamed myself for the downgrading of Pluto as I was afraid I had grown larger than it! This is just a commentary on what I saw.
Thea average weight in the dining area was somewhere between wildebeest and rhino. Even though I am almost 100 lbs lighter than my largest, I am still a large man. However, in this setting I felt almost emaciated. Again, I am not judging, just commenting. In perspective, I was a fit, slim guy. It felt odd, but quite enjoyable.
This reminded me of another time where the perspective was off from the reality. When my wife went back to school to get her RN degree later in life, she earned some stipends and scholarships. One such award was from the local chapter of a veteran's group. We were invited to their monthly gathering for a meal and for my wife to receive her award and recognition. If my memory of the time is correct, my wife would have been just shy of 50 and being one year older, I would have been close to the same. So, we were no spring chickens. Maybe not winter chickens either, especially from my perspective (see how I did that) now. We walked into the room and was met by a specter of death. You might could have convinced me this gentleman fought in the Civil War. As he shuffled us into the dining area it was like entering heaven's waiting room. The average age was two weeks past death! (again, this is not a criticism. these were WONDERFUL people. I am just commenting on the fact that they were OLD) I had not felt that young in decades. By perspective, my wife and I were young-uns. We were calf among the cattle, lambs among the sheep. We had some great food, some great stories, and my wife got a well-deserved and much needed award.
There are two examples of perspective. Remember, there are always different ways to look at almost anything.
OH! A commercial. If you have not purchased my book, please consider it. "Living With A Snow(wo)man" is available at Amazon for Kindle or in paperback. A portion of the proceeds goes to help people afflicted with the disease that killed my wife - Multiple System Atrophy. I have not been able to donate a lot as the book sales have not been up to my expectation. I did not expect a best-seller, but I had hoped for more. So please look into it! (when searching, leave out the (Wo))
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