Please note that while the following begins with truths found in the Bible, this is not a religious discussion. Galatians 6:5-10 reminds us that what we reap, we will sow. Some have called this the “Principle of the Harvest,” others try to frame this discussion as Isaiah proclaimed (Isaiah 10:15) “Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.” Each iteration proclaims the same truth, where you invest, you shall gather the interest thereof.
I could stop right here, and the entire lesson will have been taught to those with ears to hear and eyes to see. However, there is something else I wish to communicate and will beg your attention a little longer, dear reader, for the principle of added upon does more than merely render unto a person that which they carefully sowed.
As a child, I grew up in a home full of abuse. Mental, sexual, physical, spiritual, if you can name the abuse, we suffered it. Carefully sown, this abuse has grown bitter fruit indeed. Except, those who planted were not only my parents; the fruits were bitter indeed for the receiver of the abuse and the deliverer of additional abuse. Shortly after working out a plan to commit suicide and failing, boy did I feel like a loser; I came to my senses and committed to breaking, forever sundering, the chains of abuse. I would not have my children raised in the turmoil, abuse, chaos, hate, strife, and pain I was raised in.
See, the investment principle is powerful. Interest must be paid, and the principle of added upon works like this:
If I act in a specific manner, it will be observed by those around me, and they will multiply my behaviors (for good or ill) 10-fold. Those who see this second generation of behavior will imitate that behavior 20-fold, multiplying and forever working to exceed the earlier behaviors observed.
The principle of added upon works in other ways. In the 90s, I read a research report about how high school students who thought cheating acceptable stole from their employers. But, the children of those who stole from their employer took the behaviors of theft and added upon them to steal purses, rob stores, murder, lie, and cheat, all with no abandon. The interest came from the behaviors of the original sin of cheating on a test in high school, and the fruit destroyed potential lives.
But, I am not without hope in discussing the principle of added upon, as the reverse also occurs. A dear friend of mine was raised by his single mother, his father was an alcoholic, and there were generations steeped in abhorrent behavior. Yet, my friend broke the chains, invested in learning, and his children were free of the evils of abuse, alcoholism, and sexual abuse and were raised in a nuclear family. My friend worked exceedingly hard and continues his efforts to protect, teach, guide, mentor, and build his children into productive and valuable members of society.
The principle of added upon holds such power as to bloom potential in the darkest abyss, bringing light, life, and deliverance to future generations. Why is this important right now; America is in trouble. Too many have sown seeds of destruction and are reaping the whirlwind as natural consequences. Too many broken homes, too much welfare destroying the principle of work, too many imaginations have uprooted common sense and decency for the politically easier path, and so much more. Personal interest fuels wars, contention, strife, and every social ill from coast to coast.
Consider this, the government “Of the People, By the People, and for the People” has intentionally been sown with seeds of complacency, bureaucratism, hate, envy, strife, malice, and abuse of all kinds and flavors, done in the name of securing power and personal wealth. That which the government has sown is being reaped in her citizenry, and the citizen’s tears must be answered by those wielding government power for personal gain.
Much has been written about Liz Cheney’s recent loss, and the personal wealth garnered while serving in the US House of Representatives. Some have called this karma; others believe it is a heaven-sent miracle. I hope that which she reaps will build a new person. How many of us are in a similar position? We have sown, and are praying, hoping, wishing that the fruit of our labors is not bitter?
I have some suggestions, and I hope you may find peace in some of all of these thoughts. Please take the time to learn, and choose the seeds you sow more wisely.
- If you hate who you are right now, do you want to change? Do you desire the ability to change with every fiber of your being? Do you want to change your consequences? If the answers are YES! Then make a choice to change, and start rooting out the seedlings sown. This alone is a good first step, but it will not be easy; yet I echo words from the master teacher, it IS worth it!
- Start RIGHT NOW! I cannot emphasize this point enough. Procrastination is the enemy of change, as surely the enemy of food is a starving beggar. How do you start? Forgive yourself, commit to change, and begin acting. Even if you think you are incapable of changing, let the desire feel your mind, write down your ideal person, and start rooting out the weeds and bad behaviors of sown seeds.
- Ask for forgiveness, and render forgiveness. Saying sorry and committing to not repeating destructive behaviors are HARD. But, the German axiom is well remembered, “The hard IS good!”
- Forgiveness will eventually bring the fruit of forgetting. Please, be kinder to yourself and others, forgiving and repenting daily. How do you change the past; you practice forgiveness and repentance in the present, and the future will shine brighter, eventually.
I was privileged to hear a person speak about hourglasses in my youth. When trying to change, we are in the bottom glass, and there is plenty of room. But, as we swim against the tide coming down, the space diminishes until we are in the neck of the hourglass. If we can but hold onto the change we desire, then as we exit the neck, still moving upwards, we get a little more space from the problems and troubles, the tide pulling against us lessens as we get further from the neck, and the added room provides places of safety. The hourglasses stacked on top of each other form the pattern, and we can succeed gloriously, as we were not created to fail!
If you need more help, confidence, or a shoulder to lean on (but not rest), choose someone as committed as you are to change and make them central in your life. You CAN do this! Believe, and then go to work!
© Copyright 2022 – M. Dave Salisbury
The author holds no claims for the art used herein, the pictures were obtained in the public domain, and the intellectual property belongs to those who created the images. Quoted materials remain the property of the original author.
As I was coming into manhood, a clothing brand began and was almost instantly popular; the brand is easily recognizable and states two words, “No Fear!” Launched in 1989 by twin brothers Mark and Brian Simo, No Fear quickly became one of the most popular sportswear companies globally—and the most popular sportswear company staunchly against being scared. I will not claim I have “No Fear,” but I choose to live without fear. When fears arise, my answer is to learn all I can, mentally prepare for times when those fears will rise again, and then move forward living like those fears will not repeat, for I am mentally prepared.
Case in point, I was on a destroyer in the US Navy. I had been on the ship for more than two years; I was in charge of Repair 5, the Engine Room damage control locker, and in the middle of the 0000–0400-watch, the bells and alarms go off, “Major Fuel Oil Spill in Main 1.” Because I had practiced, I had personally trained my fire team. I was exceedingly knowledgeable about the space, the equipment, and the watchstanders; I proceeded into an actual casualty with confidence, not fear. More, my team could trust the training I had given them, and they moved from sleep to firefighting with confidence. While no fire erupted that night, the casualty was quickly contained by the watchstanders. My fire team was prepared to assist; the experience looked upon is not one of embarrassment from fear but confidence and appreciation for preparation, drills, and knowledge.
My first time going through the CS Gas Chamber happened with my National Guard unit. I was scared, not fearful, just frightened. I had no confidence in the equipment, I had not been to basic training yet, and here I was going into a gas chamber. This experience provided me with confidence that my fellow soldiers in basic training did not have as we went into the gas chamber in basic training when I experienced the gas chamber in the US Army Basic Training, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. I had no fear, no trepidation, and no reason to doubt.
You possess beliefs, and some might even be firmly held beliefs; this is great. I am not writing to dissuade you from your beliefs, to decide differently, or even to emote in a manner foreign to you. My intent is to aid you in introspection, a path of self-knowledge where you know why you know, why you believe, and why you act as you do. Do you know why; in knowing why you begin to understand, and understanding brings knowledge and acceptance.
Do you know why? Are you willing to investigate to know why? What will you choose to do when the why is revealed? Knowing why requires mental preparation, mental preparation requires mental strength, agility, and flexibility, all skills that require practice, time, and development through experiences willingly sought. Therein lay the most challenging part of building mental skills, being willing to seek out these opportunities, and remaining fixed upon learning, no matter the cost.
As stated and repeated only for emphasis, you may choose how you will, believe, feel, and act the way you think is best for you and yours. My aim and intent are not to dissuade but to help you more fully appreciate the why and lose the fear. As a teenager, a friend of mine, a shepherd, asked me to help him on the ranch. My first day coincided with shearing day, and with 400-head of sheep to shear, this was not going to be an easy day. Herding the sheep into the corral was not difficult and was accomplished without incident. Getting the sheep into the run and into the trailer to be sheared was incredibly difficult, but getting the sheep out of the shearing van was easier than falling off the porch. Why; because of fear. The sheep wanted to be sheared, but the confinement of the run and the noise the shears produced increased fear so much that the animals could hardly think straight, and they became more fearful the closer they got to the van where the shearing stations were. Animals confined in tight quarters in the run turned themselves about and tried to flee backward in the run. Fear made them do incredible things I had never imagined an animal could do.
As I experienced life, surviving the US Army and the US Navy, I learned what fear does to humans; worse, the consequences of fear leave an indelible impression upon the minds of those who chose to succumb to fear. The movies never show this side of fear; books and magazines never discuss the aspects of what fear does to harm the mind and body of the person involved. Worse, society has come up with terms and names to soften the repercussions of a moment’s fear. As a kid, I watched a lot of M*A*S*H 4077; in one of those shows, Sigmund, the psychiatrist, talks about how a moment’s fear on the battlefield becomes a lifetime of regret, shame, and the potential of an eternal soul is lost. All because, for one moment, fear overcame, and the body responded, while the mind lost control.
Do you know why? Are you willing to discover the why and teach others what you have learned? The final step in introspection is not acceptance but being willing to teach. Through teaching, you learn more perfectly; this is a pattern that I have seen replicated in too many classrooms to ignore. I met an amazing woman in a long-term care facility in Geneva, Ohio. She was my mothers-in-law’s roommate. She was a teacher and began her career in a one-room schoolhouse at sixteen. She retired just after the school’s consolidated. She had been blind for a long time. I never met a more grateful person, and I have not met a more learned person! She said every day she taught, she learned something new, which taught her to be grateful, and in gratitude, she taught and learned for her entire career and every day thereafter.
Simon Sinek authored an incredible book called “Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action.” The No MORE BS movement is all about inspiring everyone to take action. We are people who have reached our maximum limit with the problems we see in the world, and we want to see people take action against the tyranny being experienced. I agree with Mr. Sinek; we need the why. We need to know why something is important, why something is being refused, why actions were taken that are illogical, and so much more.
Humans create societies mainly because we are wired to connect to people who believe as we do. Just as a magnet is attracted to ferrous metals, humans are attracted to like-minded people. Consider the New Testament for a minute, specifically John the Baptist. A person who taught and preached in a wilderness, people, would seek him out to listen to him; these people who heard and chose to believe formed a society of believers. Regardless of how you believe regarding John the Baptist, the societal changes he inspired are historically apt as an example of the influence of like-minded people combining to effect change in an established society. The same principle can be applied to Karl Marx and the growth of communism, Christopher Columbus, and the discovery launched by his adventurous spirit, Joseph Smith Jr. and Martin Luther, who inspired religious societies. Like-minded people are wired to connect, and when they connect, they develop social behaviors, which form the basis to remain included in that society.
I cannot express in words how vital and straightforward this principle is to sustaining government, of the people, by the people, and for the people. When a society is infiltrated with those who refuse to believe in a like manner, principles of assimilation, then that society is headed for trouble. The USSR and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany under the USSR’s control) are perfect examples of positive changes to a body of believers who transformed because others infiltrated the core society, and change occurred. Hong Kong is another excellent example. China invaded the core belief structure through legal treaty and has refused to honor treaty agreements where Hong Kong is concerned, and chaos is too small a word for Hong Kong’s problems.
The same principle applies in what we are discussing; your most critical societal actions occur inside the walls of your home with your family. Thus, the power of America’s government is not in the capitals but inside the homes of its citizens. When we, the citizens of democratically elected societies, believe this fact, change will occur in our communities. The Republic of the United States of America is specifically designed to place the maximum amount of power into the lowest level of society, citizens’ homes. Thus, the need to inspire action on a local level, and why America needs YOU! This is also why I believe in and support the NO MORE BS movement. When we stand together, we cannot lose!
While only three why questions have been addressed, these three contain lessons for contemplation and should inspire to action, all because the why has been expressed. No; I have not dived deeply into any of the topics discussed enough to make you a master of these topics; however, I hope I have piqued your interest in these topics and helped form lines of congruence between the issues to aid in improving answers to your why questions. If you have more why questions, please use the comments to send them to me, and I promise I will help answer those why questions. I believe in the power of the people; you are important, and your questions deserve answers. Let’s ask questions and then commit to action. America needs us!
DNC-Consulting 