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Thread: Disturbing times or over-reaction?

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    Disturbing times or over-reaction?

    This one is for all those doom and gloom experts who predict South Africa's imminent collapse into a state of total disarray.



    Disturbing times? by Peter Carruthers

    Why is it that we each see life from so varied an angle? A fellow is walking along the pavement and stumbles. (This could be the sidewalk beside the roadway, or the pavement of life, as it were.)

    Some of us don't even notice. Maybe we're en route to a first date. Maybe we're in a rush to get to work because we're late. Or because we can't wait to be there.

    Some of us notice, and make a note to avoid that brick sticking out the next time we walk down this road.

    Some of us take umbrage and our minds are filled with dark thoughts about the people who should be fixing this kind of thing. And if, for instance, the pavements are failing, then what will be next? These folk can progress a simple stumble to the apocalypse in a few seconds.

    We each know a few folk like this. Nothing is ever good enough. And each bad thing that happens must be the fault of some person not doing his job.

    I have a simple rule in my life. Shyte happens. For no reason we can fathom. And some folk get buried a little deeper than others. Mostly, like winter, shyte comes in seasons. Maybe that's because we lose our sense of humour during these winter periods. But, like mumps, adult nappies, and the other joys of the human condition, it all passes.

    Helen Keller had a tougher life than most of us. She was deaf, mute, and blind. One of the comments she made about this life thing has always stuck with me: "I rejoice to live in such a splendidly disturbing time." What a glorious way to approach life.

    My point is simply this. No matter how badly life is going right now, tomorrow will not be the same, and, we hope, better. No matter how well life is going right now, tomorrow will not be the same, and, we hope, better. But the key thing is that life is, in fact, going. The rest is just our perspective.

    In a month or so I reach my 40th year as an injection wielding diabetic. If I had been diagnosed before 1921, I would have died within months. Each day since June 1971 has been a blessing, even though a during a few I have stepped into various depths of squishy stuff, and a few times I had a swim a few laps in it. But, that's life. The mere fact we have it should be reward enough.

    I raise this because when I tell folk I am coming back to SA for a six week tour, a few folk share with me how bad things are, how costly it has all become, and how the apocalypse is nigh.

    I don't know about that. I work with business owners from all over the world, and South Africa remains a joy compared to many countries. (And no, while I lived in Joburg, Durban and Cape Town I did not believe that either.) I do now.

    Have an outstanding Easter break. I hope that you don't spend too much of it worrying about the bills at the end of the month. You cannot change those by much. But you can change the way you think about the holiday.

    reproduced with the permission of Peter Carruthers.



    I have to say that about sums up the way I feel when I read all those predictions of doom and gloom. My expectations are a lot higher, and for the most part life seems to work out fairly well as a result of it.

    You can read more of Peter's musings on PetesWeekly and if you enjoy getting a pleasant kick up the butt in your inbox once a week, there is a subscribe option.

    ps. not sure that the politics forum is the best place for this, but frankly that's where most of the shyte and over-reaction seems to come from, so I'm putting it where the need is most
    Last edited by Dave A; 20-Apr-11 at 09:57 AM.

  2. Thank given for this post:

    KimH (20-Apr-11), wynn (20-Apr-11)

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