raid,
my response has two components: one is to try to address what you are experiencing and to try to give you some reassurance and hope. the other is to share my thoughts on how each of us might respond to others in need whether we know them or not.
i don't know that any of my thoughts on your troubling introspection will be of any help or solace. i hope they will be.
by doing so, you are reflecting your love for your family in a very profound manner. it requires a good deal of inner strength and integrity to do so. you are showing the depth of that concern by looking inward and by loving and holding your family close to your heart. you are doing something positive in the face of all that cannot be done right now.
some thoughts on what i think can be done...
it seems there is little that can be done to stop the evil that affects our world. however, i think there is something each of us can do. each of us can reach out - like many have done on this thread - to someone in need of help.
thankfully there are many, many organizations that do make a positive difference in the world. they have the resources and experience to accomplish the endeavors they undertake.
on a person-to-person level, we can respond directly to the survivors of terrorism, insurrection, war, and other acts of violence. that response can be a letter to them, or a letter or hundreds of letters to major newspapers. it can be a peaceful gathering like a candle-light vigil, it can be reaching out person-to-person, a mass e-mail campaign to various media and talk-shows, a community relief effort, a phone bank campaign through your church, synagogue, temple, ashram, or mosque. it can also be through a social or business association. those are just a few ideas. thankfully there are more creative and affective people out there than myself. i have to fight a sometimes over-powering sense of helplessness and that there is little , if anything, i can do to make a difference in the world. there is always hope.
hope is the driving force that sustains my efforts. knowing there are other people who have the same belief reinforces me. if we don't have hope, tomorrow is just another day.
just by trying to help, we are making a difference. whatever that difference is, it is far better than allowing indifference to overpower us and numb our hearts.
throughout the history of the world, the will and the heart of the individual has settled vast wildernesses, overthrown corrupt governments, survived countless wars, natural disasters and everything else. there are many factors that contributed to those sucesses. i believe the primary one is hope. people committed to a course of action is another one.
alright, off of my soapbox. thanks to all that took their time to wade through this ramble of mine. i hope what i have shared here will be of some help to someone.
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smile, breathe, relax and enjoy
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hasta la vista, voyez-vous plus tard, daskorava,fino al prossimo tempo, auf wiedersehen, vedali piu sucessivamente, la revedere, sai jen, and ... later y’all !!
kenneth lockerman
NEVER FORGET BESLAN
www.neverforgetbeslan.com
www.neverforgetbeslan.org (under construction)
kenneth@neverforgetbeslan.com
"...patience and shuffle the cards" miguel cervantes "nothing can be learned" herman hesse
"everybody knows everything" jack kerouac
"some memories are realities and better than anything" willa cather
" doo-wacka doo, wacka doo" roger miller
"we have met the enemy and they is us !" walt kelly (pogo)
