“One moment can change a day, one day can change a life and one life can change the world.” – Buddha
It is so funny how some things work out, at least for me, especially with this writing business of mine. I decided I wanted to write a piece called, The Empire Strikes Out, about the in-your-face decline of America. By the way, I still do, but I was interrupted by an uncomfortable idea, like what the hell qualifies me to be the author?
Well, I thought I had my credentials figured out, because I was going to only be sharing my opinion and not misrepresent it as some factual treatise. Yesterday afternoon, I saw some guy on what I suspect was his YouTube channel. Then, it dawned on me that there were so many people with their own channels, religiously followed by millions of people, who relied on them, helping to ground them in this quicksand of a world we are now living in. I wondered how you get to be an expert and what that feels like?
So, here I am, on the verge of writing to you about why this country has had its run and what qualifies me to share it with you? Here is the deal for me, from the day I started writing, I never thought of myself as special in any way. When I stumble over trying to tell my stories, I am telling yours. I swear to you that I am telling our stories, the everyday kind, devoid of any traces of pretense. Words are just my tools and every now and then, I open the box and rummage around to find what I need for the few hours it takes me to build a story.
I am sure I’ve mentioned in at least too many other stories that I wrote a book, a memoir for my grandson. It is called Halloween in Portland-Diary of Mind and is available on Amazon. Every month or so, I buy five copies and leave them in my car, something I have been doing, since it came out in April, 2013. As someone, who has spent a lifetime in marketing, I have done absolutely nothing to promote the book. Even worse, when I set up the money formula, I decided to take no money for myself, so the cost is what Amazon charges to print and ship it. It felt weird for me to make money from the life I have lived and the simple act of sharing it with others.
After I finished the book, which took a year and a half of writing most everyday, I was hooked on this discipline. I started a blog in November 2014 and have accumulated well over two hundred stories. Just like the book, it makes me uncomfortable to do what one is supposed to do secure readership. There are specific ways you use FaceBook to accrue “friends.” No, I am not being critical or judgmental, just pointing out I’ve done a crappy job. Hence, I am followed by a modest group of people and I am grateful beyond words for those of you who are doing exactly what you are doing at this moment.
Now, I am in the process of creating a podcast, which features storytelling from yours truly and I think it will be pretty entertaining. I love telling stories. I will let you know when it is ready. With a book, a blog and now a podcast, I will be a multi-media threat, also a study in modesty and I like it that way, as dumb as it may sound to some of you. I am doing everything I do, because I love doing it.
I am kind of glad we are out of words and time. I will come back to the truth that America has had its run as the Empire Du Jour. For some reason, history is a discipline, with dates and names to be committed to memory, but its lessons are never learned. The throne of world domination has always been rented and the lease has shrunken as time has sped up. Our damn arrogance is predictable and doomed.
It always feels overwhelming to me when I look out at the horizon of the world, too big for me to do anything about. The issues are gigantic and terribly complex. Then, I think about how I have chosen to express myself, my thoughts and my feelings. It is why I picked the quote from the Buddha. It is all the little things any of us can do that make a difference.
Thank you for this very small act of reading my stories.