When you identify yourself as a person who loves kindness, you will notice opportunities you hadn’t noticed before. You will always feel that it’s up to you to do as much good as you can in your life.
-from Rabbi Zelig Pliskin’s book Kindness.
Author Archives: James Pyles
Be Kind – Everyone You Meet is Fighting a Hard Battle
Image found on Facebook
Today, Monday, September 10th, is World Suicide Prevention Day. I found that out on Facebook when it was associated with the television and film franchise Star Trek, and the original series debuted on September 8, 1966. That anniversary was only two days ago.
I hadn’t realized these Star Trek related actors had all committed suicide, including TV and film icon Brian Keith. Most people know that Robin Williams committed suicide, and I think I recall that Get Smart actor Ed Platt (“the Chief”) took his own life.
I’ve been wanting to write about something today, but the topic eluded me until just a few minutes ago. Decades ago, I worked for a suicide prevention hotline in Berkeley, California, on the “graveyard” shift, so, as you can imagine, I’ve talked with many people who had been having tough times.
The Maker’s Daughter
Image of Selina Kyle/Catwoman (voiced by Adrienne Barbeau) from the 1992 Batman the Animated Series episode “Tyger, Tyger.”
The solitary Leonine was lying, concealed in the tall grass near an acacia tree watching what she assumed was a frumpy, blinkered woman crossing the broad savanna as she carried her basket. She didn’t so much walk as bounce, as if she were treading upon a sponge or the vast skin of some overly ripe fruit. Her costume reminded the female adaptoid of those worn by puritans, except her robe was a bright crimson, while he coif, shift, and apron were canvas white. With her large handbag, the amused humanoid lioness thought she looked like “little red riding hood meets “a handmaid’s tale.”
Her pale, compact body approached a coppice, which apparently was her destination. Leonine didn’t have to restrain herself, having recently dined on a gazelle, but she was curious, so she rose and silently circled around the open grasslands, padding through the trees, and finally approaching her target from the right. Too late did she realize her mistake as the woman, now appearing much younger than she had thought, turned her head, removed her ancient spectacles, and gazed directly into her feline eyes.
Quoting: Use Events for Character Building
Every event and situation in your life is designed as a test of your character. For example, both poverty and wealth are tests. A wealthy person is tempted to become arrogant and forget the Almighty. A poor person, meanwhile, may be tempted to steal or commit fraud. Whether life is going smoothly, or whether it has suffering, it is all part of God’s plan to strengthen our moral character.
This perspective will change our response to any event that occurs in our lives. Knowing that something is a “test of character” will make it easier to past those tests with flying colors!
Today, think of a recent event in which you may have mishandled the situation, or responded inappropriately. Then work through what can you now do to correct that and transform it into a spiritual victory.
Sources: see Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto – Path of the Just, ch. 1
Quoting: Take a Relaxing Break
Regardless of your physical condition, your present state is determined by your thoughts. Your emotional reality depends upon the focus of your mind.
Today, think of five places, either places you have already visited or would like to, that you can go to for mental vacations. Mentally go to a place where you will automatically experience the state you wish to be in.
Remember: Since we are dealing with your mind, no place is too far away. And the transportation costs are always free.
Sources: see Rabbi Yeruchem Levovitz – Daas Chochmah Umussar, vol. 2, pp.6-7
Quoting: Remodel Your Anger Mistakes
Realize that even the greatest people make errors of judgment when they are angry. Moshe was on an extremely high spiritual level and had profound insights. Nevertheless, when he became angry he erred in understanding the Almighty’s will.
Think of three incidents when you made mistakes because you became angry. Right now, mentally “relive” those situations and imagine yourself handling them instead in the best possible way. Let this serve as a resource for the future.
Sources: see Ralbag – Shaar hasavslanus, no.10
Mother Goddess of the Three Realms
Summon going on: An Chinh, a medium, in a performance of Hau Dong at the Viet Theatre in Hanoi ( Reuters )
The mother goddess swirled in the clouds above Hanoi. It had been many years since she had been summoned, but for months now, she could hear the calls.
“At last, my children have remembered me.”
For moments, she considered the various mediums who invoked her.
“Yes, she is the one. Her followers give great offerings, and her soul is devoted.”
The mother goddess descended to a modest collection of apartments, and one occupied by 24-year-old Le Dinh Hoang who is in the midst of performing the noisy and possibly even ostentatious Hau Dong ceremony, visions of water, forest, and heaven dancing in her mind and the others present.
Then the medium and garage mechanic sighs, shudders, and then she stands. When she opens her eyes, they are sapphire blue rather than their usual brown, and the rest of them know. Le Dinh Hoang is gone. The mother goddess walks among them.
I wrote this for the What Pegman Saw writing challenge. The idea is to use a Google maps image and/or location as the prompt for crafting a piece of flash fiction no more than 150 words long. My word count is 150.
Today, the Pegman takes us to Hanoi, Vietnam. I suppose I could have written about Hanoi Jane, but the celebrity infamous among Vietnam era veterans didn’t pop into my head until I began authoring this afterword.
Actress Jane Fonda sits on an antiaircraft gun during a 1972 trip to North Vietnam (Nihon Denpa News/AP)
However, after looking up Hanoi’s vast history, I settled on the news story Vietnam’s spirit mediums revive once forbidden ritual. Ever since the 16th century, the Hau Dong ritual, which pays homage to the Mother Goddess of the three realms, forest, water, and heaven, has been practiced, but when the Communists came to power, it was banned. Now it is experiencing a revival, and I thought I’d base my wee tale on this bit of news.
To read other stories based on the prompt, visit InLinkz.com.
Things That Make Me Laugh
I know as a conservative, religious person, I’m supposed to have a totally “clean” sense of humor, but I wasn’t always the “Boy Scout” who is now blogging here. I’ve been considering a number of images I’ve collected over the past few days, some of which I’ve peppered all over Facebook, twitter, and here, and I thought I’d share them in one place, with commentary, of course.
Oh, if you’re easily offended, you might want to skip this one.
So, without further ado:
Image found on twitter
Not too many people like Donald Trump, but you’ll have to have read Margaret Atwood’s novel A Handmaid’s Tale or seen the Hulu television adaptation to know why this is funny. I’ve read and reviewed the book, but will probably never watch the TV show.
Why Captain America Reminds Me Never to Give Up
Promotional image for the 2014 film “Captain America: Winter Solder.”
After all the you’re a racist if you don’t believe Colin Kaepernick gave up everything to be Nike’s “Just Do It” 30th anniversary spokesperson garbage a few days ago, I decided I needed to unwind and experience something to restore my spirit. So I again chose to dust off the DVD and watch the 2014 film Captain America: Winter Soldier.
Why, you ask?
I can’t find the quote online, but I recall that actor Chris Evans, who plays “Cap” in the Marvel movies, said something like “Captain America does good for the sake of doing good. He’s everything I’ve ever wanted to be as a man.”
That’s probably not exact, but I’m betting it’s pretty close.
In the film, he says stuff like:
I know I’m asking a lot. But the price of freedom is high. It always has been. And it’s a price I’m willing to pay. And if I’m the only one, then so be it. But I’m willing to bet I’m not.
And…
Yeah, we compromised. Sometimes in ways that made us not sleep so well. But we did it so the people could be free. This isn’t freedom, this is fear.
He didn’t act ashamed of America and, after all, the guy’s uniform is basically the American flag (I’d like to see someone try to stomp on or burn it while Rogers was wearing it). Steve Rogers is a living reminder why it’s okay to still believe that our nation is made up of people who do good and want to be even better.
Quoting: See Frustrations in Perspective
Rabbi Zelig Pliskin – Found at the website promoting the book “The Light From Zion.”
A basic reason we get angry is because we exaggerate the importance of things. When we realize that something is trivial and unimportant, we don’t become angry.
Whenever you feel angry about something, try to see how petty the matter is in the big picture. The vast majority of occurrences fall into this category. Keep in mind that we are in this world for a very short time, and the things that upset us are of minor importance in the entire scheme of the universe.
Sources: Erech Apayim ,p.94; Rabbi Zelig Pliskin’s Gateway to Happiness, p .202-3
This would be another way to tone down the vitriol on social media including in the blogosphere if we could all take a minute to examine our reactions (and this applies to me as well as to anyone else.
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