Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours from the Hoplins.
Both Carol & I reached the 3/4 century mark in 2022 and have grandchildren in college, so it becomes challenging to claim we are anything but … mature. But all in all, we find ourselves quite well and with much to be grateful for.
As you may not have noticed, I've gone dormant on the blog front. I have some writings but mostly from the POV of my cheerless alter-ego, so those musings must remain on the shelf. It's hard to keep positive thoughts. And after all, blogging is so .. 2008. I may have to accept that I've lived past my expiration date. It's now a TikTok video world with its limitless excess. And I will not surrender my dignity to that bumptious crowd. No one seems to have time to read ... or think. It may in fact be time to put all social media in the rear-view mirror.
So I humbly yield to the insight of the recently passed, much admired columnist, Michael Gerson. “... ultimately, <life> is a lesson in humility. The very best thing about your life is a short stage in someone else’s story. And it is enough.”
So do the hard work to remain positive and toward that end I offer you Christmas Best Wishes to you in Wendell Berry's translation of the golden rule: "Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you."
And a splendid Christmas offering for civility that applies year-round from Maria Popova: "Be generous. Be generous with your time and your resources and with giving credit and, especially with your words. .. Always remember there is a human being on the other end of every exchange. .. To understand and be understood, those are among life's greatest gifts, and every interaction is an opportunity to exchange them."
No act of kindness is wasted.
Copyright © 2022 Dave Hoplin
