EPISODE 42

Here I stand! – Martin Luther.

Is it our moment? When do you accept you have a core value, and cannot just go along with that which seems to be accepted as “normal” all around you?

We have all come to crossroads along the way. How many of us have suffered the indignity of a relationship being cheated in? Or maybe we have been guilty of not being accountable in our lives? There comes a moment when you step back and an inner voice says ENOUGH. I crossed that bridge when I was lost in my values some 20 years ago and found myself wondering what I stood for. I was drifting, as my accumulated losses (divorce, children, business down the drain, and unsatisfying random relationships) put me in an indifferent mood! This indifference was a malaise, wherein my existence was just that. An existence.

My turning point arose when my daughter decided she wanted to come and join my life, and suddenly, I needed to actually return to responsibility and accountability. After some 10 years of some days hoping I could be involved in an accident to remove me from my life, I realized I was letting down the very essence of who I could be! A true friend, and someone who could return to helping anyone to become their best selves along the way. Back then, I did not see it like that, but I do today. The actual journey was a little more complex, much as my journey to full health, outlined in my last blog!

Back in my student days, I read Martin Luther’s edict of Worms, where he closed with HERE I STAND, and although I let it recede, during my dark ages, it has remained a lingering thought in my synapses!

Why do I write about it today? You may have noticed in my writing that I try NOT to be political but more in line with ethics, civility, and moral values. Also, as you see above, I am far removed from perfect and am hardly justified in throwing the first stone. But I was awakened by the following reality. To supply Honey for Healing®, I purchase supplies from an American Company. Our order was for $10,000 of supplies, the goods imported last week cost me $24,500. Suddenly, the blindsiding effect of tariffs was real. When I placed the order, months ago, this cost was not a factor, so life continues as normal, no longer.

I hear Alcatraz is in the conversation to be reinstated. The cost of this will be borne by us, the citizens, and the tourism jobs in SFO destroyed, not a mention. All the agencies we as a nation depend on overnight become less efficient, instead of a transition, so we as a nation can adjust. Meanwhile, I see the supposed guardians of our nation enriching themselves while hardship is being thrust upon the citizens.

Unfortunately, as written before, neither party is free of responsibility for this behavior, and Citizens United certainly is a Millstone, which is drowning democracy. However, it would seem it is time to find our moral compass and ask: Where do I stand?