Category Archives: Consider

Consider

Lament for Jacob Marley

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Why is that Jacob Marley, the true hero of A Christmas Carol, is so oft unappreciated by readers or the viewing audience? While Scrooge may be the central character of the story, can there be any doubt that the hero of the story is Marley?
The dictionary defines hero as: A person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life.

While subsequent plays, stories and interpretations have Marley’s soul being saved by his actions leading to the redemption of Scrooge; in the original Lewis Carol tale there is no evidence that Marley received any benefit from his actions in saving his old partner and friend Scrooge.

Indeed the last we see or hear of Marley is: “The spectre, after listening for a moment, joined in the mournful dirge; and floated out upon the bleak, dark night.” The only comfort the reader is left to imagine is that even though Marley is condemned to walk the Earth bound in his chains of greed for eternity, his spirit can take some comfort in the knowledge that Scrooge will not share his fate.

Scrooge’s action, of allowing the light into his dark life and soul, led him to joy and friendship. Marley’s action, of securing “… a chance and hope of escaping my fate. A chance and hope of my procuring, Ebenezer”, still leaves Marley’s ghost wandering the earth with “’No rest, no peace. Incessant torture of remorse.”

Is this not the embodiment of nobility of purpose, to save Scrooge from sharing his own fate with no gain for Marley?

Why this concern for Marley? Because it is in Marley’s words the true lesson or principle of A Christmas Carol is found. A lesson often lost in the joy and happiness of Scrooge in reclaiming his humanity and letting the light back into his life.

Consider Marley’s words:

“I wear the chain I forged in life, I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.”

“’It is required of every man, that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men…”

“Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

Marley forged his chains, link by link, dollar by dollar, possession by possession, and girded them on of his own free will. It is our choice whether we let the spirit within us walk among our fellow men or hoard it to ourselves. Focusing, as did Marley, on accumulating possessions, property and wealth for no purpose but the amassing itself. As far too many today focus on the accumulation of possessions and dollars, rather than upon letting the spirit within walk among their fellow man.

In locking his spirit within Marley became possessed with his worldly goods letting them become the entirety rather than “…but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

Whereas in truth “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business.”

The common welfare, charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence are all of us our business. Mankind. No qualifiers or limitations, simply all of Mankind. Not those we judge deserving, not those who agree with us, not those we approve of, not those we go to church with, not those who profess the same faith. Simply Mankind in its entirety, no ifs, ands, or buts.

The welfare of every single person is our business and to him or her we owe charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence to help in achieving wellness; in order that we may achieve our own spiritual health and wellness.

Wishing All a Joyous and

Consider

“Are you spending Christmas with family?”

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With my sisters in the Toronto area and my brother in Newfoundland the answer would appear to be “No”, but is that true?

I had breakfast with the homeless and volunteers at Resurrection Life. I had my Christmas turkey dinner at Seven Oaks Alliance with hundreds of other dinners. Both halls were well populated with people I know and with whom I exchanged meant wishes of a Merry Christmas.

In between I got to visit, play bingo and carol with a diverse group of homo sapiens, most of whom I have shared the past several Christmases with. This custom started when, in the knowledge that I had no place to go or share Christmas with, I was invited to come and join the celebration.

Although my recovery and activities have resulted in other opportunities for visiting and celebrating the Day, it would not have been Christmas without attendance at this special celebration.

It was sitting there, in a in a moment of quiet reflection between bingo games, that I found the true answer to the question of family and Christmas. Yes I was celebrating Christmas with family and friends.

For family, friends and community are terms that we each, as individuals, get to define for ourselves. Not with words and rules but with our hearts and spirits.

Consider, Homeless

Please remember the Food Bank

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I read in the papers that for Food Banks this is the time of year a major portion of their funds are raised and that it is also an important time for food item donations.

From my observations and knowledge, in Abbotsford we are seeing an increasing number of people relying on the Abbotsford Food Bank for their daily sustenance. With an alarming increase in the numbers of seniors and children dependent on the Food Bank.

I share this in order to urge people to be as generous as possible in making cash donations to the Food Bank because I believe that in order to serve the growing population of hungry in our City, the Food Bank will need all the funds it can muster. So, please be extra generous.

I also want to urge people to be extra generous in their food donations now and in the New Year. I had a recent conversation with a friend about what to donate or how to find out what to donate. As a service and to provide an expert opinion on this matter, I contacted the food bank which (or is that who?) said:

“Virtually anything for food works…as you know however high protein items like peanut butter and fish are always good and breakfast items like pancake mix and syrup…our clients here all like KD (Kraft Dinner) of course and pasta’s of any sort…we virtually get no dairy and little produce so that would be of great help.”

A simple guide from the horse’s mouth.

Dairy? Produce? I do not have clue as to how to address this. So ladies and gentleman, boys and girls let us put on our thinking caps and come up with ideas on Dairy and Produce. Remember donations can be also be a good idea or volunteering your time.

In my pre-homeless, pre-poverty days it was a regular habit with me to drop a food item into the food bank boxes that the grocery stores had, at that time, prominently displayed near the check out area. These days the only generosity I can show to the Food Bank is to not use it (I can eek by without) leaving a little more on their shelves for those who, without the Food Bank, face hunger. I can also ask you to be generous – and I do.

Please be sure to take time at this hectic time of year to remember those who need our help to put food on their tables. Support our Abbotsford Food Bank and please, be generous.

Consider, Homeless

Government/Big Business Conspiracy?

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I want to be a little careful here because I was speaking with some classmates the other day, in a mental health context, about people who see government conspiracies everywhere and about at what point they become delusional. Still …

In a later conversation, on the webcast the Fred Factor, I touched on the point that the current welfare system tends to beat you up, beat you down and abuse you.

The system strips you of your dignity, self-confidence and self-esteem. It hammers you into a little box, makes you dependent on the system and places multiple barriers to you getting off of welfare.

Having beaten you down it inundates you with all these messages about how much better your life would be with a minimum wage job. Despite the fact that in Abbotsford the minimum wage is not a living wage. That is to say – you cannot live and pay your bills working a 40 hour work week at or within a few dollars of minimum wage. Do the math and you will find that you need to earn $13.00+ an hour to afford housing and food in Abbotsford.

Consider the screams, moaning and carrying on that business does at the mere suggestion of raising the minimum wage even $0.50. $13.00+ is apoplexy range.

Many businesses, many big businesses, are built on low (slave) wage rates set by the current minimum wage rate as well as their ability to use and abuse employees by labelling them “part time”. Business needs a supply of people willing to accept this abuse and wages that do not pay the bills or enable employees to make ends meet – in order to make their huge profits.

Where is business to find such a desperate labour pool of compliant worker bees?

Enter big government with their “Income Assistance” system who also, conveniently, just happen to set the minimum wage rate.

They have a system, the welfare system, which takes people in need and transforms them. It strips them of dignity, of their confidence, abuses them, habituates them to jumping through hoops, renders them totally dependent on the system and then bombards them with advertising that extols the virtues/advantages of even a minimum wage job to escape the clutches of the fiends at Income Assistance.

Voilá! You have the labour pool so needed to run business and fuel the continuing transfer of wealth from those people who actually do the work and build the wealth to the wealthy business/ruling classes.

One would almost think that the Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance was a branch of business, not of the “people” government. Or one could see a conspiracy among the ruling politicians (and their bureaucrats) and the wealthy/business rulers (and their bureaucrats) to provide the needed cannon fodder fir business to thrive, earn undeserved, excessive profits and continue the transfer of wealth to the wealthy and ruling classes.

But that would be delusional – or would it? Keep in mind that you are only paranoid if they aren’t out to get you – and there is no conspiracy. But you might want to be careful – Mental Health is under the control of the politicians and their bureaucrats.

Just a little something to ponder.

Consider

Which wolf do you choose to feed …

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A friend sent me this and somehow it just seemed so appropriate after I had just read that a new national study, titled HungerCount 2007, says 720,231 people, a number just shy of the population of New Brunswick, were forced to turn to one of the country’s 673 food banks in March to feed themselves or their families.

A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, ‘Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.’

The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.

In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man’s mouth water. The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished.

They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.

The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The Lord said, ‘You have seen Hell.’

They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man’s mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking.

The holy man said, ‘I don’t understand.’ It is simple,’ said the Lord. ‘It requires but one skill. You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.’

We live in one of the richest countries of the world. On Canada’s table is a large pot of wealth and food. There is no material reason that so many are famished and thin, or living homeless and sick.

Another word for pot is crucible, but crucible also means: a severe test, as of patience or belief; a trial. Canada is the crucible; the hungry, the homeless and other neighbours in need our severe test, our trial. Is you soul well nurished and plump from having learned to feed others or is it thin and sickly because you think only of yourself?