Searching wrote:
When the news came (some almost 9 years ago) that I was about to become a grandmother for the first time, since I dabble in clay, I crafted a father sitting with his newborn after one that I had seen that was such a pleasant visual, and in the shadow box that father and child nestle in, I placed a printed copy of the following by Forest E. Witcraft. entitled "A Hundred Years From Now",... "A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drive but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a CHILD." As each of my three sons became fathers, I presented them with one of the shadow boxes, because the message is one of such importance.
This last month, much soul searching have I done, along with a lot of "looking in" on the OPP community, sometimes with hope as I see some obviously choosing a lighter tone, even in their rebukes of others, and sometimes in despair over the vitriol and mistrust displayed. During this time of looking in, introspection and "catch up" of things not necessarily ALL OPP, I came across my copy of "The Hundred Years From Now.." and it kept intruding in my thoughts when I read the threads on OPP, leading me to attempt to visualize the "real" people beyond the computer screens of vitriol and mistrust --, what "had" they, what "would" they, pass on to their children. In the past, from time to time, I have caught glimpses of kinder, gentler souls than what most who post present as on OPP. I can only hope that this is the legacy passed on to their children. Lest anyone wonder, toward the end of my introspection, someone very kind and unconnected to OPP helped me to see that when I am angered, I have an inability to "let go" of it, sometimes past all rational thought. I can only say I have thankfully NOT passed on to my children this lovely trait. This less than attractive side of me is something I intend to seriously work on, because I have come to discover the enemy IS me. Perhaps, even if the negativity of mistrust, vitriol, and anger, has not been passed on to our collective of children by all of us individually, the ripple effect out into the universe of the same that we project may well still be able to reach out and touch our children -- a thought worth pondering before hitting the "Send" button. Somehow, I suspect that none of us wish this to be our legacy to our children. Righteous "anger" feels "good" for a nanosecond, and then what....
When the news came (some almost 9 years ago) that ... (
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Excellent post. Miss you.