Hopeful message to our city council
It's been a long time since I posted. I've been busy. But I wanted to pass along some good thoughts.
I was asked to do the inspirational moment for the Eureka city council last week. It always causes me to think. I figured I'd share it. Hope you enjoy.
I am - we are - very fortunate to live here; in a city sur-rounded by the natural beauty of cloud-scraping redwoods, majestic mountain ranges, and breathtakingly stunning rocky shores.
When I forget, and periodically complain about being stuck in traffic for five minutes as I enter Eureka from 101 by the Red Lion, or can’t find parking close enough to the store I want to visit in Old Towne, or grow weary of the endless damp and gray weather, it’s vital to be reminded that mil-lions upon millions drive tedious hours to work to afford a lifestyle they have no time to enjoy. They watch helplessly from behind a steering wheel as the minutes of their lives evaporate. Dinner is fast food on an evening commute, and the only family connection they get is via cell phone while stuck namelessly behind an endless row of taillights stretching into gasoline vapors of an asphalt horizon.
We are indeed fortunate and it is the responsibility of those so gifted to share with those who lack.
So, with respect, I ask:
What could happen if each of us, upon arising, asked of our-selves, “How can I help make this day’s end better than its beginning - for every person I meet?”
What opportunities would suddenly be made known if we asked ourselves “What if” or “Why not” more often?
How much would we accomplish if our aspirations were to serve without resentment, share our passion lovingly, and do all we attempt with excellence as an objective?
How much good could we do in a mere 24 hours if we lived by such standards? How much better would the lives of all we touched be enhanced because of it?
These are questions worth asking, leading to actions worth trying.
As you guide our city, please remember three things:
1) Behaviors are generated by positive intentions. Seek out the intent of those with whom you disagree. Reserve judgment. Finding common ground is a badge of strength, not weakness.
2) There is always another choice. It might not be obvious. It might not be easy. But knowing it’s there can open locked doors. Ask “how do we find it,” not “why do we have to?” Be silent long enough to hear the answer.
3) We are not broken. We have everything we need to ac-complish our noblest objectives. The same force that created the most beautiful works of art, magnificent ar-chitecture, and even the majesty of the terrain in which our city rests, created us. It is infused within, filling every breath. Recognize it in yourself; seek it in others.
You serve our city - and every person in it, whether in this room or not. You are in this place and time for the correct reason - as is each person who addresses you tonight.
Know that. Know you have the wisdom to choose well. Then please do so, always seeking the greatest good.
Thank you.