Day 149j: Another newfound Neufeldt … (September 25, 2019)
The walking today – first along Old Chattanooga Pike SW, and then along Old Alabama Road – was incredibly pleasant; ever smooth and mostly car-less and often shaded by stands of older hardwoods. And yet what this way had in beauty and walkability, it certainly lacked in available hydration; a steadily concerning fact that had me soon weaving dizzily down the roadway – at least until Ed Neufeldt came by on his bicycle and stopped to graciously offer me the very sustenance that he had brought along for his cycling trek that day. And so it was that a couple of bananas and a long cool drink of water later, we finished our kind conversation and concluded our fine meeting and both headed back to our respective ways …
“While it is true that prudence can indeed guide us away from efforts futile or in vain, no truly caring deed is ever wasted … So let us remember that we are each warriors of our own times. Yes, when we step out of our protective shells, we each will encounter forces much more powerful than we are, and yet what we learn through testing ourselves in such zones of psychological combat is what becomes the textbook protocol for how we will live out the remainder of our lives in their less trying moments. Indeed, the glorious skirmishes and daunting conflicts that we encounter along life’s more arduous routes & byways, and what we learn from choosing to boldly & vigorously engage with those battlefield of place & time, ultimately inscribe the story of our lives … In essence, whenever we take the focus off ourselves – especially in those moments we are least inclined to do so – and move it outward upon others, we and all nearby benefit equally & greatly. In truth it is one of life’s most fortunate ironies that what’s best for the long run is also best in every now, and that sincere selflessness always ends up satisfying our own greater interests far better than any selfish strivings ever could. Indeed, the wider we expand our circle of consideration, the more stable we make the world and the more potently we announce the core message of each such successive widening: We Are all One – and must ever act accordingly.” ~ inspired by Kilroy Oldster & Carl Safina
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