Week 42, 2023
Week 42 of 2023 has arrived. We drove to St. Louis and back this week... there was more fall color in the trees along the highway on the trip back. This is one of those times of the year where things change pretty quickly... If you don't stop and look around... you just might miss it.
Time to walk over to your 4K Weeks poster and fill in another square. Done?
I just got off a phone call that caused me to think this:
It's ok to just acknowledge that something sucks...
...And when a friend is in a tight spot, you don't have to always provide a solution... I think we often don't act because we don't know how to "fix" it...sometimes it's ok to just sit with them and the "this sucks" of the moment.
Nothing has a "happy ending" at the very end, and all day, every day, the universe is being desperately unfair to someone or another.
I always want to find solutions. But... not every problem can be solved... and that is the heartbreaking part about being human.
Thanks for being here and reading! These blogs help me "Sharpen The Saw" and hopefully help you to sharpen yours!
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The 4K Weeks Brightsider-A Multicolor Extravaganza!
The 4K Weeks Long View-A Different Horizon
Remarkable Weeks
Week 42 of the year 2021, William Shatner flew into space aboard a Blue Origin sub-orbital capsule. At the age of 90, he became the oldest person to fly in space and one of the first 600 to do so. He was 4,725 weeks old (90.6 yrs).
Week 42 of the year 1973, Dolly Parton released her single "Jolene". According to Parton, it is her most-covered song. She was 1,447 weeks old (27.76 yrs).
Week 42 of the year 1986, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Auschwitz survivor Elie Wiesel, for his efforts to ensure the Holocaust was remembered. He was 3,028 weeks old (58.1 yrs).
This Week's Quote
We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. -Elie Wiesel
Hmmm...
I have a strange habit, occasionally... of imagining how any situation I am in could instantly turn into a crisis, and then thinking through what I would do.
My friend calls it my "Alpha Male Patrol". I suppose that isn't totally off the mark... there are people I care about and want to keep safe at all costs... and chaos is always around the corner.
But, one thing that is clear through lots of "imagined" and a few real crises... acting in a "hot" conflict is sticky.
It is very hard to tell who is at fault when the elbows and fists start flying. Except it's also easy. The answer is everyone.
Ghandi said, "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."
But then... the hard truth of how to stop leaving the whole world blind is to be blinded and not seek retribution. Easy for me to say... no one has ever stolen everything I love, and my father didn't bestow any multi-generational grudges upon me.
Only a few humans in the historical record have lived this truth. Most have paid with their lives.
Maybe this is too Pollyanna, maybe sometimes you just need to punch someone in the mouth... IDK. I do know... every time I have done that, I have felt terrible after, regardless of how it started.
What I am Consuming This Week
This performance of "Emmylou" by First Aid Kit. (A long time ago, one of my kids asked to hear them, misremembering their name as "band-aid box".)
This performance of "Carry Me" by The Secret Sisters. Thinking about the safety a loving father can provide... Thanks to my dad, and to all the dads trying to make the world a safe space for all children.
This live, acoustic version of A-Ha's Take On Me. Beautiful.
No Hard Feelings, by the Avett Brothers. One of the more perfect songs ever written, and a good reminder this week.
Planet Money: Maria Bamford Gets Personal (about) Finance. This is to great... #1 she is hysterical, and I have always loved her comedy, #2 This is the kind of radical honesty that we need to level up out of this late stage capitalism spiral.
Planet Money: Why the Price of Coke didn't Change for 70 Years. Lesson: never sign a contract just to get someone out of your office, and maybe go lighter on the billboards!
Cautionary Tales: Double Bill. A Screw Loose at 17,000 feet. Love this podcast.
The City Museum. We took a short trip this week to St. Louis to see the musical Beetlejuice and took our 3rd trip to The City Museum. It is impossible to capture it with words or images, or video... I tried. It's a treasure.
Time with friends. We went with our friends and their kids to STL... a few moments into the trip I was struck by the absolutely essential and refreshing nourishment of the company of friends. Love is sharing time.
What I am Thinking About This Week
This Parable.
I can't remember where I heard this, and I did some googling and I couldn't find it... If you can track it down, let me know and I will mention you in next week's newsletter.
I think it was a tribe in Africa, and I think it was murder.
A man was murdered by a fellow tribesman. The family of the murdered man brought the injustice to the Tribe's elder council, whereupon it was agreed that the accused man had, in fact, murdered the family's relative.
The sentence was this: The convicted man would be bound with heavy stones, and placed out at low tide. As the tide comes in, the family of the murdered man has a choice.
They can watch the man drown, and have justice. Or...
They can cut the man from the stones, saving his life, and have peace.
I don't know how to sum all this up, except to say...love doesn't always "win", but it's always the right choice.
Have a great week!
Thanks for being a part of the journey with us! Please tell me if you liked/disliked the blog this week. Ask my wife... those are the only emails I like to get!
Dad Joke O' The Week
Why are skeletons so calm?
Because nothing gets under their skin!
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