Week 22

Welcome to week 22. Last week I was talking about Hope. I was prompted to write about Hope because of what was and is going on in my province. The fires in Fort McMurray and the state of our economy are what motivated me last week to write about Hope. Alberta is very contemporary and diverse and our economy has many elements to it but we are largely founded in Energy. There is no mistaking that the economy of Alberta is driven by oil and gas. These commodities have been down and out for 18 months now and it’s the most severe downturn I have seen since I started working in the oil industry , on the drilling rigs , in 1978. Oilfield Service Companies and Oil Companies are going bust every day. There are layoffs every day in Calgary and in cities and towns and communities throughout Alberta. Don’t be offended if someone in Alberta greets you with “You still working?” .It’s a legitimate question today that reflects the state of our economy. Countless good people have been laid off with not many prospects for work in their sights. In what is a typical Albertans manner though, is the Hope that things will get better. All of us in this province have been through downturns in the energy sector and if someone hasn’t been through this before it’s because they’re new to the energy industry and this is just their first downturn, not their last. Albertans are resilient and they’re Hopeful. They are strong and willing. Some of my friends who have been out of work have carried themselves through this slump with a dignity that is impressive and humble. They have Hope! For the past few weeks I have listened to residents of Ft Mac speak with the same dignity. Ft Mac is a city of approximately 80,000 that exists primarily to mine the oil sands. These people have been delivered a double whammy the past short while as many who lost their homes to the wildfires have also been out of work for many months. If they didn’t lose their homes  there was the anxiety they all endured while they were evacuated and living as evacuees. The whole city was evacuated and it was done so quickly and on short notice. No one had time to grab belongings of any kind or sort.  I have listened to these people speak of how the city would be stronger, better and back to work. They have Hope in their voices. Don’t think we didn’t all see or hear their pain but we could all hear their Hope. Yesterday the province started allowing residents to return home. I watched them on the CBC National News last night and could see the Hope as they returned to their homes. I am certain Ft. Mac is going to be different and stronger after this. If you haven’t got a friend from Ft. Mac, then make one. These are unique people. Where there’s Hope, there’s Hope.

There’s a bill being debated in our Senate right now. It was voted on in Parliament and it was 186-137 for the bill, and to send it to the Senate for debate. I’m not really sure why or how or what about this bill because the Supreme Court of Canada has already settled this debate. The 9 jurists of the Supreme Court have ruled that effective June 6 it will no longer be illegal to assist someone to commit suicide. This means any doctor who wishes to help a suffering person will be free to do so without the fear of prosecution. Not that anyone asked but I support bill C-14. I caution though what we in the future define as “suffering”. What if someone is having a bad 6 months, is clinically depressed and sees no hope? For instance the late Robin Williams is an example. Do we support a decision of lonely or despondent or depressed people to end their lives? Does this absolve us from our obligation to care for the mentally ill? What about someone who is mentally handicapped but wants the right to die, for no reason? Most of us know what the intent of this law is and what bill C-14 stands for. But as a community we must be so cautious with this new law and we must be on guard and never neglect our responsibility to care for those who are having weak times. I support bill C-14 but I do not have the right to shirk my responsibility to care for people who need to be cared for.

 

Next Tuesday my daughter Olivia convocates with her Master’s Degree and I’m proud of her and excited to watch her walk across the stage!

 

On Wednesday I fly to California with a good friend to do a little outdoors exploring so there won’t be a post for week 23 and I will resume with a combo 23/24 the following week.

I had a song, new music, all picked and ready for this week and then today I watched a video of Pink singing her rendition of “Me and Bobby McGee” and now, well now I am putting up Me and Bobby McGee by Pink

 

This week’s quote is from one of my favorite authors,poets, mystics, activists and a Trappist Monk, Thomas Merton. I was introduced to this man by my first sponsor, Morley. Morley gave me the book “The Seven Storey Mountain” when I was about a year sober. If you have time click on his name and read his bio. He was a very interesting man.

“Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone – we find it with another.” – Thomas Merton

 

Thanks for dropping by this week. I appreciate your time. See you in 2 weeks……..

 

 

Week 21

Hope is something I started to acquire, to nurture in myself, back in 1993, in a room in a Church basement. This room was a meeting place for a 12 Step fellowship where I would meet some people who were full of life, laughter and energy, things that I hadn’t had for a couple of years by this time and certainly didn’t expect to find in a room of recovery.At first I was surprised by the people as I was expecting a room full of miserable people. Watching them gave me Hope that I too could find happiness, peace of mind and some calmness to the rather chaotic life I was living if I followed their formula. Prior to this I had hoped for “things” but I didn’t live in Hope. As a kid I would hope for a certain birthday gift or something along these lines and as I got older and into my twenties I would hope to win a lottery or hope that I hadn’t caused too much damage to people, places or things the night or day before.

The people in this room were kind and welcoming and it had been many years since a roomful of people had welcomed me. Most people were happier when I didn’t show up in the room they were in. This evening, in this room ,  there were numerous conversations going on and everyone seemed involved in a conversation.They had smiles on their faces and I could hear laughter. Almost instantaneously Hope entered into my world; my psyche. If these folks had the same problem I had, and they were for the most part all happy, could I eventually find happiness too? My worry and anxiety began to disappear and make room for Hope. Not the hope of a lottery win but an enduring Hope, that life is going to be okay. I had Hope that I too could recover from a “seemingly hopeless state of mind and body” as most of the folks in this room, in a Church basement, seemingly had done . Hopelessness was slowly but surely being replaced by Hope. As time progressed I developed a personal relationship with God which has become a consistent source of Hope for me today. This fellowship and the 12 Steps taught me to let go of the trash that held me back from the light and to embrace my newfound Hope.

Absolute Hope would take some time and Faith, at this turning point, in 1993.Today, I can still get in a funk that I need to pull myself up and out from. But I can do that today and it doesn’t take a lot of time once I recognize it. Feelings of discouragement are today short lived and every morning holds Hope for a great day ahead adding to a greater life. In 1993 I had to begin the process of letting go of most of the false truths I lived or believed in and I had to open my mind to a process that at first seemed so awkward. But by letting go of all these self deceptions, my delusions, I was able to begin to develop a sense of Hope.

I have Hope today for my future and Hope for the future of my children. I know everything is going to work out just as it is supposed to work out.

Where there’s Hope , there’s Hope.

 

The quote this week is from Shakespeare.

“All the worlds a stage, and all the men and women merely players”

 

The song this week is from Jonathan Wilson and is called Love to Love

 

Thanks for dropping by….I hope you’ll drop by again next week

 

Week 47

My blog is an opportunity for me to write about people, places or things that have provoked or inspired me in the week that was.

Well I was certainly provoked by the events in Paris on Friday November 13.I assure you as someone who has committed to blog weekly this was not in my notes for this week’s writing . It was only yesterday that I made the decision that I could not ignore that this act of terror took place or act as if it did not trouble me, greatly. It happened, it’s real and it’s very sad. I am saddened and disappointed in what has happened to Paris on Friday, what happened in Beirut on Thursday and what continues to be the norm in our world. Jihadists’ terrorists wreak mayhem daily on this planet. On the night of April 14-15, 2014, 276 girls between 16 and 18 years of age were kidnapped in Nigeria by Boko Haram, another Jihadist terrorist group based in Nigeria. Just hours ago in Nigeria another bombing took place killing 32 and injury over 100. These incidents are representative on a larger scale of what takes place daily in the places I’ve mentioned and many other locations around the world. I’m saddened, I’m angry and I feel vindictive and I don’t want to feel any of these things. These acts of terror are acts of terror on all mankind and I am responsible to defend the weakest of us all. People in Nigeria, Beirut, Paris and everywhere deserve the protection of the western world.

I don’t want to write about politics or religion in my blog and have no desire to do so on a regular basis. But I could argue every opinion has a political base. I am confident that you understand what I mean though. This isn’t about politics. This is about human rights.

This is my blog and now I get to reset the tone. The second and third paragraph aren’t news to you but only a reminder of how things are today. So let’s reset.

First I want to say thanks to the guys I played poker with on Saturday night. We never once spoke about Paris or Beirut and we didn’t talk to each other about not talking about it. So thanks to Jon, Mark, Doug, Ryan, Peter and Brad for staying laser focused on such a serious game of cards.

Secondly I want to show a couple of videos that appeared this week as a result of the Paris tragedy. These videos show people who have risen far above the agents of evil and show the resilience and hope and faith that I know most of us can aspire to. Even if it takes more time for some. I know I am still deeply fixed in anger right now and it will take some time for me to be able to feel as these two men do. They both strengthen my faith in mankind.

The first video is a priceless conversation between a father and his young son in Paris.

flowers versus guns

 

 

The second video is a statement from Antoine Leiris, a resident of Paris, to the terrorists. The man’s wife was murdered in the Bataclan theatre on Friday. He posted this video response to the terrorists on his Facebook page.

Antoine’s Statement

I am motivated by both these men to manage my anger. To realize that I can do many things but I cannot undo Friday night and I cannot, alone, rid the world of terrorism. But I can defeat evil by not allowing the fear of terrorism or the anger towards the terrorists infiltrate and control my life. These groups will be dealt with by powers much greater than myself.

 

The song this week is of course the masterpiece by John Lennon ,   Imagine

Anyone who knows me well won’t be surprised by the song choice this week.

 

 

The quote this week is actually a prayer that I know and I probably repeat 25 times a week.

 

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

The courage to change the things I can

And the wisdom to know the difference

 

I hope to see you next week………….