The Road to Diamond, Day 255: 89 Seconds

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Historical, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 10, 2025- The Doomsday Clock was shown at today’s presentation on the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It stands at 89 seconds until midnight (the marking of doomsday). The two bombings, which contributed towards the end of World War II, remain both the most horrific single attacks on civilian populations in our history (procedural genocide involves serial attacks) and the only attacks, to date, involving nuclear weapons.

The presenter, who has made several visits to the cities, showed graphic, if faded, photographs of the victims and of the damage to the cities. The effect was every bit as jarring as the scenes of the Holocaust of Germany and eastern Europe. It underscores the urgency of renewing a commitment to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.

Some people at a meeting last night took the view that it is counterproductive to keep harping on the tragedies of the past. I disagree-those who forget the horrors gone by are doomed to repeat them. We do well to both honour the victims and forge a path that will make weapons of mass destruction, both nuclear and conventional, unnecessary. Eighty years afterward, let Hiroshima and Nagasaki stand as examples and cautionary tales, not as harbingers or precursors.

The Road to Diamond, Day 254: Roblox

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, impediments, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 9,2025- I will be something of a “helicopter” grandfather, to the extent my little family needs my services in the care of a little angel, sometime early next year. We have, as a species, always had to protect our children from harm, whether from the forces of nature-or from those who mean to hurt them.

In the past few months, three rather high-profile cases, of intentional murder of young girls, have taken place in Arizona. More common, are cases of less than lethal abuse and neglect of children and teens, as those around them tell themselves that life is too complicated, even to the point that the kids are expected to behave like adults, or that adults ought to have room to act like children.

This brings up the matter of Roblox, a virtual world that presents itself as an entertainment universe. It is geared towards children and youth, and is presumably seen by some as a means to occupy their offspring’s or charges’ time, thus freeing them up to do their own business. In other words, it is the new TV, available on tablets or Smart Phones. Roblox has a certain appeal, therefore, to those who do not have good intentions towards children, or who seek an outlet for their frustrations or anger, by harassing or harming the vulnerable. It is not, in my opinion, suitable for anyone under the age of 16, or maybe 18.

I will do everything in my power to educate my granddaughter, and any siblings she may have, in the ways of discernment and self-protection. I expect that my role in that regard will be secondary. Son and daughter-in-law are sober and mindful adults, who have a clear idea of their responsibilities.

By extension, I continue to hold the same ethic regarding any young person who crosses my path. Whether in the remaining weeks and months of my time here in Prescott, whilst abroad, or in whatever new Home Base to which I am brought next year, the welfare of our rising generations is at the core of my being.

In any case, I steadfastly oppose those whose view of children and youth-or of other people in general-is that they are playthings, or trifles to be used-and discarded.

The Road to Diamond, Day 253: Relevance

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Family, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 8, 2025- Today is seen by some as a portal. Being the eighth day of the eighth Gregorian month is seen as conferring connection to other energy realms. I can’t say that I understand it all, but I have felt some extra spiritual strength today. Things that may have bothered me yesterday no longer have any bearing.

Well, there’s that. On an entirely different note, a young lady whose worldview is at variance with those of her contemporaries has stated that she believes a woman’s place is in the home. Now, I happen to hold the view that a person, regardless of sex, is free to pursue whatever calling that appeals to her/his strengths, interests and dreams. That means that a woman can pursue a career in astrophysics, truck mechanics, accounting, medicine-or homemaking. A woman could serve competently as President of the United States, or she could serve competently in raising eight children. She could also do both. Indeed, this same young lady is currently seeking election to the Arizona State Senate.
Now, she is still figuring things out, so it is perfectly fine, in my book, for her to express a desire to follow two different career paths. She could, alongside a dedicated partner, be a career government official AND an exemplary parent. Conversely, I have a good friend who raised an exemplary young woman, without any help from a partner. That may be the exception to the rule, but she is there for others to note. That same young woman, in turn, is raising two wonderful children-albeit alongside a devoted husband and father.

Family will always be a basic building block of society. Parenthood will never be irrelevant. Neither will following dreams, based on one’s innate skill sets and personal dreams, so long as those are beneficial to society, and not detracting from the upbringing of any child(ren) one brings into the world.

The Road to Diamond, Day 252: Unrequested

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Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, impediments, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 7, 2025- In a well-appointed room, at a resort along a prosperous coast, a young man stretches and prepares to enjoy a summer’s day, on his break from University. He didn’t ask for good fortune, but it follows him. Perhaps he will someday go through equally unrequested heartbreak and suffering, but for now, all is well.

In a rock-strewn, hollowed out gulch, along a desolate, impoverished coast, a young girl tends to her two younger siblings, feeding them biscuits and a few leaves of spinach. They didn’t ask for this ill fortune, but it follows them. Perhaps they will someday see prosperity, as a now elusive peace settles on their homeland, but for now, survival is all that lies in front of them.

In a small Midwestern town, a father shops around for enough food to bring to his wife and four children. He stretches his dollars, as his father did before him, and Grandpa before that. None have asked for ongoing ups and downs of the local economy, but it has long settled among them. Perhaps someday there will be a return to locally grown food as a standard, rather than as a set of anomalies, but for now, he and they push forward, day to day.

On the roof of an apartment, in a hardscrabble Caribbean neighbourhood, three young men sit and discuss how they might respond to news of a wealthy man taking charge of their country. They didn’t choose him, and though he offers hope of stability, they have heard it all before-as have their parents and grandparents, going back eight generations. Perhaps someday, there will be a true and honest consultation among the people, but for now, the young men will follow whoever seems to have the power on the streets of their city.

I think of these people, and others, as I sit in an apartment which I chose, in the city where I gladly chose to live, eating food that I prepared myself, from ingredients also freely chosen. It hasn’t always been a life of choice, at least outwardly. Yet, the changes that have taken place in my life have been influenced by my preferences-even when those choices are small, limited and not the most optimal.

I hope and pray, for each person finding self in harrowing conditions, or in debilitatingly privileged states, to ponder the options that may be available-and take the ones that will bring beneficence, even if it starts out as a few more morsels, or a bit more conscientious self-restraint.

The Road to Diamond, Day 251: Hope and A Semi-Recluse

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 6, 2025- I’ve largely stayed in, the past two days, both because of heat and because my schedule is not that busy, this week. I have focused on things like culling my e-mails (2011-2020) and household things-and reading. It almost feels like a throwback to summer in Phoenix, but this is only for few days. The weekend, and next week, will be back to busy-ness.

I have thrived, the past fourteen years, on empathy and commitment to communities, near and far. Some who are in the ascendancy have said that empathy is a weakness of our society. Hope is seen as for suckers. These tenets might work for them in accomplishing short term goals, but I think, deep down, they know that the gig will be up, sooner rather than later.

Empathy and hope are what drive communities. They are what keep families and larger social units together. They are what make even time alone feel less than empty, knowing that humanity is just outside, waiting. They are strengths, not flaws.

The Road to Diamond, Day 250: “Every Story is A Treasure”

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, Education, Fiction, Historical, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 5,2025- I watched a remarkable 2015 Canadian miniseries, “The Book of Negroes”, based on novel by Lawrence Hill, which in turn was based on an actual British Naval record of 3000 freed African slaves who were brought to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, after the American Revolution.

The story is told through the eyes of an African woman who is also a polymath, at a time when most Africans were seen as illiterate savages, worthy of no treatment better than brutality or manipulation. Aminata Diallo is a fictional character, somewhat inspired by Phillis Wheatly, who was an actual African-American poet of about the time Aminata’s story unfolded. Phillis lived in colonial Massachusetts, while Aminata’s story unfolds in what is now Guinea, then to South Carolina, moving by turns to New York, Nova Scotia, Sierra Leone and London. Actual historical characters General Guy Carleton, Samuel Fraunces and George Washington appear in the New York segment of the story, with Fraunces presented as a mentor and protector of Aminata.

Aminata tells her adult daughter that every story is a treasure, and that even the losses (of which she had several) are worthy of gratitude. Her story does not spare any of the principal forces in the slave trade, yet she faces them all with a life force born in honour. Her fortitude is showcased throughout, and most clearly when she humbles a young slavery advocate during a meeting of the British House of Commons, leading up to the vote to end the slave trade.

A childhood friend remarked to me, about ten years ago, that everyone our age has been through a fair amount of hardship. This is a man who has known quite a bit of success in life, so for him to come forward about the rough patches is quite a revelation. It underscores what Lawrence Hill addresses in his novel, and puts my own highs and lows into perspective. I stopped wallowing in self-pity some time back and can see exactly what Hill’s protagonist is saying.

Those of us who are fully alive have amassed many treasures.

The Road to Diamond, Day 249: Passages

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, Family, impediments, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, service, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

August 4, 2025- Another cancer patient of long-suffering winged his flight to the Spirit Realm, this morning, as I was preparing for a day of service. Like my friend who died yesterday, this man had been receiving the emotional, spiritual and material support of many, who were hoping against hope for a cure. Like my friend, he was simply suffering too much and called to the Divine for release.

Each day brings a passage of sorts to each of us. One either gets stronger, or weaker, or holds the line, in the course of the passage. Each change in body, mind and spirit happens according to which life lessons have been absorbed by the soul. Sometimes, as the body has earned its rest, the spirit goes on to a higher realm. Other times, as there are still life lessons to be absorbed and actions that must be taken by the individual, physical life continues. This is my limited understanding of the process.

I, like Robert Frost’s protagonist, in “Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening”, “have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep”. The promises kept today were serving as Blood Donor Ambassador at a Red Cross drive in Prescott Valley and serving at the Monday evening Soup Kitchen. There will be several others, locally, that encompass this month. September and October’s promises go further afield; November’s will be fulfilled back here; December’s will be a mix; next year’s fall between the Philippines, Texas and Arizona. “Promise not that which ye don’t fulfill”.

We essentially engage in passages, so that those who paved the way for us might feel fulfilled and those who are following after us might see an illumined path. If I can do both, this life will continue to be well worth each day. My forebears watch from the next world and my progeny look on expectantly. I feel a lot of encouraging energy.

The Road to Diamond, Day 248: First Responders

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Posted by on in Assistance, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 3, 2025- A friend, who was a First Responder, passed on today, after a lengthy bout with cancer. The circumstances of his job most likely led to a build-up, of toxic materials, over time. This may very well have led to his untimely passing.

Many don’t think of the sacrifices that police officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians give, each day. Their loved ones know, first hand, of both the long hours on the job, and the uncertainty of their return home at end of shift. We, the public, experience these realities on occasions such as the collapse of the World Trade Center, in September, 2001 and the wildfires in Yarnell, AZ and in El Dorado County, CA. (2013 and 2014, respectively).

For so many other First Responders, death is not immediate, but happens as it did with my friend, with a painful slowness. Over a thousand firefighters and police officers involved in the response to September 11, 2001’s horrific carnage have died from the after effects of that incident.

Their loved ones carry their pain as well, and suffer themselves, both along with the victim and long after his/her passing. It is worthwhile, for their sakes, and in honour of the services made, for each of us to be discerning, in our own dealings with First Responders, especially at the local level.

The Road to Diamond, Day 247: Under A Small Tent

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Posted by on in Assistance, collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Service Activities, Social, Spiritual, Striving

August 2, 2025- Half of the large and amazing farm family were gathered under the little tent, enjoying the artificial, but soft, “grass” and managing to stay out of the heat, whilst enjoying the afternoon breeze. They stayed long after the crowds had departed the Market, but none of us on staff were eager to displace them while there was other work to be done. They are avid supporters of the Prescott Farmers Market and themselves run a family farm, about twenty-five miles north of here. They were, therefore, allowed to stay and relax, until “their” tent was the only thing left to put away.

I am one who will gladly give people the courtesy of lingering, so long as my teammates and I are not taken for granted. The family mentioned above would be mortified if they felt that they were being inconsiderate. (I have visited their homestead several times, and they are most gracious.) Conversely, on Monday evenings, I wait long enough so as not to rush Soup Kitchen guests through their meals-but 5:30 p.m. is the limit set by those on the team who have worked since 10 a.m. So, sometimes it means things might get a bit tense, with those who have little sense of time. It is important to show them that courtesy goes both ways.

We have reached a point where those whose primary value is self-reliance and those who cherish achievements as a group have somehow separated from one another. There is what I consider an artificial division between the two, largely fueled by our culture of anonymity, the overvaluing of personal opinion and of course, the wirepullers- opportunists who alternately whisper and harangue. When I go about tasks of service, working with some at various points along the political spectrum, I find that when the goal is understood, the results are the same.

When profit, a worthy pursuit to the extent that it provides for the well-being of many people, is allowed to exceed the public weal in importance, there is an imbalance. When one’s stated opinions, valuable to the aggregate of the community, are given more importance than the views of others, there begins a process of stagnation. I believe that, once views are stated, they belong to the group to which they are directed. They become part of what is hopefully a healthy conversation and ideally contribute to a solution.

I believe that, big tent or small, there is room for many.

The Road to Diamond, Day 246: Toys “R’nt” Us

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Posted by on in Assistance, Community, Personal Values, Social, Striving

August 1, 2025- Sydney Sweeney is not a plaything. The marketing of clothing, using homophonic words that could be construed as subliminal references to their lexicographic “mates”, is unfortunate, and may or may not be intentionally so, or even a source of double-entendre. The last conclusion that should be drawn from this matter is that it is “okay” to cast aspersions on a human being, because of her/his legitimate work. I would hope that Ms. Sweeney would quickly and forcefully stand up for herself, if these advertisements continue to be taken the wrong way.

For the record, I do not personally find any one ethnicity, age group or phenotype any more inherently attractive than any other. I hope Sydney takes pride in her appearance and takes care of her overall health. I hope the same for anyone, of any age. That wish is just basic human decency. I hope each person is also able to realize his/her dreams, so long as these are not hurtful to others.

None of us should be viewed as a toy or object to be manipulated, by anyone else. If that desire to manipulate is a challenge for someone, then it is something for that person to overcome, much like a physical addiction. It is not something for a target or victim to just “endure”. That is my take on all of the physical/sexual abuse allegations and scandals that are current.