These are the times that try men’s souls, Thomas Paine wrote in “The Crisis” (1776). The American Revolution was happening all around him. He understood because he was living through it that “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered.” Paine could easily have been talking about today – and about what Vladimir Putin has done to Ukraine and to the world. These are times that try everyone’s soul. That is if you have a soul. Let’s assume you do since you’re here. How does a soulful person cope with times that try their souls?
Our original intent with this conversation was for it to be a kind of helpful “how-to-hold-fast-to-your-values” pep talk in mind-blowingly challenging times. We have no idea where this madness will end. It’s truly out of our hands – like the pandemic. And, is there anything more frustrating than the utter impotence one feels watching good people suffer live on TV while the world seems to respond with the speed of a glacier. What kind of world will this leave us in? Will there even be a world when all this is over?
One’s goal in life should always be to be a better and better person. As part of being a better person, we also should aspire to being better at the things we’re good at. Good luck finding a data set that says stasis is good for anything. Life is a little like a shark that has to keep moving to stay alive. People get rich writing books or holding seminars on how to be a better parent, a better boss, a better this, a better that.
We’re climbing onto that bandwagon here before it’s too late (we better!) How can one be a “better Christian” or a “better atheist” – aside from “believing” more devoutly in whatever one believes? Is there a do-able, repeatable process that one can follow like software instructions? Let’s start by dealing with the eight megaton gorilla in the room. The one named Vladimir…
Or, if you’d prefer to watch…