Think About It

It seems like we have weeks designated to honor all kinds of occupations, but this one is pretty special to me.   This week is National Corrections Officers and Employees week.   While those who work in our nation’s corrections systems may not be in glamour positions, they provide an incredible service and do it, mostly, behind the scenes.   While many of the people in the criminal justice system balance their time with prevention, those in corrections focus on detention.   They are the guardians who serve as a barrier between society and those who have violated the norms it established.   For some people who are incarcerated – they are being punished for what they have done and others, they are being segregated to help keep people safe. Due to what I have been able to do over the last few decades, I have been privileged to know a lot of corrections officers, and I have to tell you that I admire what they do and the way they do it.   They voluntarily lock...

Happy May the 4 th .   Now, if you are out of the sci-fi loop this may be lost on you, but amongst the Star Wars aficionados, today may be a day set aside for watching movies from that franchise.   So, if you haven’t heard it already – may the fourth be with you!   (If the preceding doesn’t make sense to you, check your favorite social media page for an explanation.) I have to admit that I have only seen one Star Wars movie and that was the original one that came out in 1977; however, I have spent a lot of my life with the phrase, “May the force be with you.”.   Interestingly, even though I don’t know all the nuances surrounding this comment, I like the phrase because it can be a reminder of the power that we have available to us.   No, not in some jedi way, but a spiritual force that can help us get through life safely and confidently.   Long before George Lucas introduced us to the likes of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo or Princess Leia, the Apostle Paul com...

          Several of us grew up with various commemorations based on May 1, but how many of us are familiar with it being “Law Day”?   According to a document that cited the American Bar Association, Law Day is, “A national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law.   Law Day underscores how law and the legal process have contributed to the freedoms that all Americans share.”.   That sounds good doesn’t it?   However, while we seem to value the rule of law, how easy is it to try to skirt it?   We like the idea of the equal application of law – until it comes to us.   Now, let me explain myself – I am not saying that we live in anarchy, I just think we have to be careful that we give credence to voluntarily following the law and, if necessary, accepting responsibility when we violate it.           I believe this is important in our republic democracy, but I also think that Christia...

When someone says something we don’t appreciate, what do we do?  Whether we think the statement is a personal attack or just in violation of something we believe to be correct, it is tempting to come back with a retort.  Now, while there might be a time and place to correct facts stated in error, we must be careful not to allow the discussion to become personal.  It is awful tempting to feel compelled to straighten out another person, but what is our true intent?  The problem with this type of logic is that as soon as we make our defense, the other person might take issue with what we say and the conversation can deteriorate into an argument.   Before too long, anger is applied, logic is lost and things heat up.  We don’t always have to argue our point – even if we are correct.  If it is bound to end up in conflict, we might be better off to let it go.  When I was younger, I was encouraged to be insightful when I was advised not to get down a...

A lot of people are quite familiar with the witticisms of Yogi Berra; but how many of us are familiar with Casey Stengel?  Charles Stengel was around the game of baseball for generations. While he may not have been as humorous as Yogi, he was quite insightful on his own.  The other day, I came across a couple of Casey’s quotes – the first one was, “Finding good players is easy.  Getting them to play as a team is another story.”.  In a sports world filled with talented athletes, this is as true (or maybe truer) today as it was in Casey’s day.  Now, as insightful as this observation was, the one that really got me to thinking was, “All blame is a waste of time.  No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you.  The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for … reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration.”.  (As I went back and researched the quote...

One of my favorite verses is James 1:19-20, “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”.   When we are looking for a life lesson on how to get along with people, here we go.   Recently, when I was reconsidering this passage, a couple observations came to mind.   First, did you notice that James almost seems to refer to this as a firm grasp of the obvious?   He didn’t offer them anything groundbreaking; in fact, he prefaced the statement with “this you know …”.   These principles of humanity shouldn’t surprise any of us!   Yet, the other observation is almost as insightful – why in the world do we still have trouble following these guidelines?   Understanding them isn’t rocket science and we teach them to children, so why haven’t we mastered them?   I don’t think the problem is that we d...