Today's Wonderful Thing - Dec 2

Remembering Mr. Rogers' neighborhood

This morning, that one Mr.Rogers quote popped into mind without provocation…something about, “look for the helpers…”

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” - Fred Rogers

So, how are we going to help?…because I’m seeing some scary things in the news and I’m sure our kids see it on TikTok. I see a lot of people trying to help, but we are disparate. We need leaders though - leaders to help coalesce the helpers. I’m still so disappointed that we walked right past the leaders who were in position to help and handed the keys to destruction disguised as disruption.

Who’s going to help? Some people think that the rank and file, and the civil servants will hold the line. Right…the people on worker bee salaries that keep them busy at work, juggling home/family life, and surviving each day? Difficult. Some people are trying to encourage us by saying, if we stop being engaged - we’ll lose everything. Discouraging.

I am not currently in the position to move to Portugal (where the coastal climate is almost as amazing as where we currently live), England (where I would create a summer coastal retreat), or Spain (where we could do a deep dive in the depths of our complicated ancestry). So, I will stay here and I will look for the opportunities to help. If you want to help, come with. If you want to lead, I will help you. Whenever/however you have the time and space to be involved with our little circle of community, here is a suggestion for our basecamp:

First, give yourself time to slow down enough to think. There is a lot to think about and with a little reflection, your path of action will show itself. Just follow your heart and take the time to learn a little more about the things you are thinking about. My current swim is Eddie S. Glaude Jr.’s “Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and its Urgent lessons for our Own.” Come read with us - let’s club it:

Second, nurture time with the people we trust. There is only so much time in the day so if you have to pick - and no one likes to miss out - trust your gut. Hang with the people that feel good in your space.

Third, release what you can’t control. Robert M. Sapolsky, in “Determined: A Science of Life without Free Will,” shares extensive scientific research to demonstrate that our decisions and choices in life are largely out of our control - but it’s not a reason to worry. Let’s put this on our book club list but in the meantime, trust yourself. Only think about the things you can engage without a shot of tequila.

So, we the people - not the people we elected to lead all of us, not just some of us, have the option to push back. That’s how we can help in our own way. By the way, Gen Z will have no idea about Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood so, we’ll have to figure out how to make the help quote relatable…any thoughts?

“You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices can come from a deep sense of who you are.”
― Fred Rogers

*Begin Again book selection is an affiliate link