Life On A B-I7

The Letter Part Deux

In my Journal Entry titled “The Letter” on November 13th, I provided a translation of the thoughts of a young man I ran into. He graciously gave me a letter he had proudly composed. It was a confusing composition because the man is developmentally disabled. Despite that handicap, he wrote a stirring piece that was obviously intended to relieve his own burden while at the same time changing the minds of those fortunate enough to read his words.

The translation was provided by Grammarly’s AI copy-editing feature. The AI engine did a good job of taking a difficult-to-read piece of writing and turning it into a coherent work. While this demonstrates the power of AI, it does not reflect my own interpretation, which I humbly present below:

There are many people in the world who have been mistreated, even hated. One could not blame them if after having repeatedly endured this abuse, they begin to feel hatred toward their abusers. This pattern has to be broken for the world to become a safer place for all of us to live. When others feel pain because of our actions, we are moving in the wrong direction. Turning the table, and sharing pain back is not the answer, even if it is understandable on a primal level. We should be, we are, more evolved than that. The answer has to be, to find a way to show empathy and compassion to those who are suffering in some way. Even those whom we may find ourselves disagreeing with deserve this effort from us. With practice and patience, we can get better at sowing compassion, as individuals, and as a society. It begins with compassion, that is the bridge that fords the river of hate and allows us to reach the other side, the side where we allow ourselves to show love. Love freely given permits those who see themselves as victims to begin to look differently at themselves, and at everyone around them. This will make all of us better humans.

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# 70

“This life is more than flesh and bone.”
—Buddy Guy

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# 69

Remember Armando Galarraga! One out away from a perfect game, the batter hit a slow roller back to the mound, Armando fielded it and threw the batter out at first to complete the perfect game — except the umpire called the batter safe. Perfect game down the tube. After the game, the umpire admitted his error, and acknowledged what it had cost Armando. When asked the next day if he was angry, Armando replied: “I am too happy to be angry.”

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# 68

The secret to life is to live long and ski. Cycling is not too bad either.

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# 67

Thoughts are just thoughts until you put them down on paper. Once you see them, they become real. Perhaps that is why I admire writers.

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# 66

Writing in my journal is like going to church. It fills me with promise. I’m glad I do it seven days a week. I’m like the old maiden who goes to church every morning and then proceeds to go about her business for the rest of the day.

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# 65

What is Thanksgiving all about? Shouldn’t every day be a day of giving thanks? That proposition seems to require a “yes” answer.

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# 64

Reading “Walden” is what inspired this project. My goal is to write more clearly than Thoreau — sadly not as poetically or eloquently — it is safe to say that his eloquence would be hard for most persons (myself included) to match. He tended to often incorporate the use of hyphens in his writing, which I now tend to use myself (and probably overuse, just as he did). Matters of eloquence aside, I admire his use of run-on, but grammatically correct sentences, even though they are distracting to the modern ear… mine anyway.

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# 63

When I can no longer write I want my journals burned. They are not meant to be read. They are simply a form of exercise, a rowing machine for my mind.

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# 62

I suspect history will show the last two decades were the height of capitalism, to the detriment of the wage-earning man.

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# 61

I think my next challenge will be: “A Year of living novelly.” I’m not sure yet exactly what that will entail. I suspect it probably does not include writing a novel — although it could — I think it is more likely to mean a year of thinking in novel terms. Meanwhile, I will continue to live thoughtfully and ask questions of cold-call scammers and fly-by-night insurance brokers. You never know, you could make a new friend… I’m certainly learning a lot about the demographics of telemarketers.

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# 60

“Some times in our lives, we all feel pain, we all feel sorrow. If we are wise, we know there’s alway’s tomorrow.
—Keb’ Mo’

That’s what friends are for.

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# 59

I have no words to express how grateful I am for who I am, where I am, and what I am becoming. I look forward to all that remains in store for me.

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# 58

We are all flawed. The most important thing we can do is recognize that.

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# 57

“Life is more than flesh and bone.”
—Buddy Guy

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# 56

I do not know what the rest of my life holds in store for me. None of us do. That is the mystery. That is the discovery.

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# 55

I love to write by hand…

Perhaps this is as good as my handwriting gets. Perhaps it will never be better despite my desire to make it perfect. Perhaps someday I will write the perfect word with perfectly formed letters.

I suppose when that day comes it will be time to stop writing…

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# 54

I have been looking forward to this day for months, the why is not important. What gives me pause now that the day has arrived, is why have I felt this way. The question unanswered, unanswerable, is where does today take me going forward. This is not a question to be asked on special occasions, it is a question to be asked every day.

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# 53

Thoreau:
Men say they know many things;
But lo! They have taken wings —
The arts and sciences
And a thousand appliances;
The wind that blows
Is all that any body knows.

Self:
The greater of all things are those that nature provides…

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# 52

Exercise is a gift to self. It makes you happier, which also makes the people around you happier.

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# 51

Does everything remain the same? I would like to ask Otis Redding what was going through his mind when he wrote “The Dock of the Bay.” Perhaps we should all sit and “watch the morning sun” and then sit “until the evening comes…”

I find it difficult to imagine that would not be beneficial.

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# 50

The problem with today’s media is there are too many “personalities” telling people what to think — and too many people willing to listen.

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# 49

Entertainment by real artists, musicians, and authors is fine, but that should never prevent you from engaging to the best of your ability for your own satisfaction.

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# 48

Meditate. Each day. It is life-changing. Do not ask for instructions. Look inside. Do what your soul tells you to do.

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# 47

Just because you are different from someone does not mean you should dismiss them. Making the effort to understand them elevates you.

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