Musing

-2C/29F, clear except for a band of gray on the horizon as another perfect day arrives; Gusta
enjoyed her romp around the lagoon & her visit with a little show dog, while the Scottie's owner declined to so much as grunt a Good Morning or a nod; sometimes dog & owner behaviour seems incongruent

when I was much younger I would blame others when things were bad, when the news was bad or my mood was bad or if someone wanted something other than ‘my way’ – I was the victim, someone else was the cause, full stop; the notion that something was caused by me or simply by circumstance was nowhere in my brain – I was the victim with a need to fix blame

two people who know me really well laughed till milk came out their noses (actually there was no milk involved, but you get my point) about my piece the other day about sleepovers; someone who knows me scarcely reacted differently - judged be, thought I was writing about her, got horribly offended & ended what was looking like a nice beginning – it now seems I’m going to be free Friday night instead of cooking dinner

I try to decipher the mystery of unexplained behaviour; if it matters to me in some way I’ll spend energy on it, if it does not matter I am more likely not to bother; regardless of the scale, source or subject, it makes me curious

cause remains a mystery much of the time, effects vary; I’ll discuss & debate it for a while, not for long, but for a while

every day I react, as we all do, to what is going on around us; every day we listen to some, tune out others, focus on some, dismiss others, show extreme curiosity or obliviously ignore

what makes the difference between the things that make us sit up, take notice, take action?

is it the subject matter, or the source; is it how information is presented or something else?

I can ignore drivel no matter my mood; even if the drivel is delivered by someone charming, drivel is drivel, but something important, something real, compelling & valuable usually leaks through no matter how bizarre the behaviour of the source

meeting new people, exploring people we know a little & drilling deeper with ones we know a little better yet – great mental gymnastics sometimes, surprising sometimes, always enlightening – sometimes fun, sometimes not, sometimes real, sometimes far removed from real

getting older, hopefully a little smarter along the way, I have no way to alter what comes my way – bad news is bad news, problems are problems; rarely any one person’s fault, no error by me or anyone else being the sole direct cause

the effect, these days, is to recognize that it is someone else's little drama - not mine; what cause, what effect can make my day? what will wreck it?

the next conversation, the next meeting may yield surprises beyond our imagination - sometimes we are the cause, sometimes we are just seeing the effect

effect, my friends, rests solely within our grasp

Mark

339,700