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Showing posts from August 29, 2008

Addressing a letter - or a person, or automated machine

I have just been writing a letter to an old friend of my mother's. Well, this lady is the mother of a girl I went to school with (and haven't seen for about 30 years) but the lady goes to my mother's church and betwen them they share family stories and pass them on. My mother came to visit me last week and brought with her a letter to me from this lady and a selection of old journals and magazines from a writing group she attends.So my letter is a one of thanks to her. But how do I address her? My mother calls her by her first name (of course) but to me she always has been "Mrs... " "or Hazel's mam," or even at one stage in our lives, "Guider" when she was leader of the Girl Guide Group I was a member of. Of course, I have addresed her as "Mrs..." and then went on to explain this to her. Should I need to explain to her why I have not called her by her first name ? Maybe not, and maybe when she receives the letter she will find it ...

Embracing a philosophy of goodness

How do those of us who are trying to embrace a philosophy of doing what we believe to be good/right deal with the anger and despair that we feel over the injustices all around us? Would you rather give the world a hug, or a slap in the face? Would you rather get up there and battle, or leave it alone for the sake of a peaceful life? I am sure that many of us can relate to this. It isn’t just my worry, it’s a human question. We all fight with our anger over issues in our own lives as well as in the wider world. Often, it leads us to the depths of despair and we feel any effort on our part is futile. So we give up. But anger is a powerful emotion, and when it is channeled properly, it can be a force used to positive affect. Rather than ranting at the world – or worse, allowing the anger to destroy you inside by keeping it hidden, we need to find a way to use it and work for change. "The reasonable man attempts to adapt himself to the world and the unreasonable man attempts to adapt ...