It is a homely error, Certainty.
I abase myself every time
I assert with Venom,
however dilute.
How can something so simple
-- lovingkindness --
be so hard to do?
We must saturate with
and surrender to lovingkindness
or else
continue to
embarrass ourselves
and piss people off.
How do I show
strong thought and ideas
without undue conviction
and find others
who can
as well?
How do we begin,
you and me,
quick online talk
without
thoughtless provoke?
poke?
Can we agree on an opening?
Can we choose some that work?
Meanwhile
no more whack-a-mole.
Let's grin and bear
each other.
Online combat sucks
up everything
good.
Let's pretend we are contrary cousins
on the porch swing, full and happy,
where roving children surround us,
amid the sparkling calm of family,
and let's
get along.
Let's allow back in dignity.
Try retreat gracefully.
There. Tra-la! That's it
precisely.
Copy this:
Try a bald statement
retreat gracefully.
Try provocative but not final
retreat gracefully.
Try personal story
retreat gracefully.
Try what we both share
retreat gracefully.
Try poke, without cruelty
retreat gracefully.
Try draw ironic contrast
retreat gracefully.
Try one solid fact
retreat gracefully.
Try describing a great value
retreat gracefully.
Try admiring a desire
retreat gracefully.
Try listing good sources
retreat gracefully.
Try reporting some news
retreat gracefully.
Try describe each other generously
retreat gracefully.
Try two attempts at quick online talk;
and even if the first exchange works
retreat gracefully.
and if the second one does or does not
retire the field gracefully.
This works for me. Today I wrote
retreat gracefully13 14 times
I didn't
say it once
yesterday.
Today on a some One's post I tried two things.
Not terrible results, and I
retreated gracefully.
We both know how a hand feels.
Sometimes the lesson is to just
hold our coarse sand in a bowled palm
and be kind to each other.
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Comments
I'm a big one to type a comment and then cancel it - never allowing it to be seen. Not sure if that counts as retreating gracefully or just completely avoiding the fray.
Bottom line - I really like this piece.
(retreat gracefully)
I assert with Venom,
however dilute."
My favourite part and a lesson I'm still learning. Thanks for reinforcing it, Greg.
I have no problem retreating and I am the King of forgiveness but I will not retreat from venomous hate spewing vitriolic in this world. Luckily, I haven't encountered one of those on here in a long time. I choose to ignore them.
Well done...
Rated
Speak to it!
mamoore: well as it is poetry i don't want to be too specific. But given the odd blend of negative and comfort-word in "homely", and how "Certainty" deludes us, and is in fact rather unattractive...
:-)
Let us all get along.
Some how, some how.
A big thank you from me.
on the porch swing, full and happy,
where roving children surround us,
amid the sparkling calm of family,
and let's
get along."
"retreat gracefully"
Profound!
--rated--
BUT:
Lainey: cool.
The only change we can ask of ourselves, the one that actually works, is lag time. Decrease lag time so that our natural responses are overtaken by wisdom guided by experience.
We still gnash our teeth wanting to press send. I know I do. I WILL blow it again, but less and less often, if I decrease lag time.
Yes, and there is a great difference between a caress and a slap. ;-D
I try to manage my online life with a couple of simple rules, one of which is:
Unless it is absolutely obvious, always assume good intentions.
I think it would help also if we had the nerve to ask for clarification when intent is unclear. There is nothing wrong with asking a commenter, "Um, what did you mean by that? I'm not sure."
I also believe in staying away from people who piss me off. It is far easier to do than it is to engage them. They have a right to say what they want, and I have a right to ignore them.
Love the write-up, Greg. It should be on the cover, but it won't be.
Thumbed.
This is a wonderful piece you've written. Peacemaking is an art that authors can make incredible use of - as you have done here.
The advice to “retreat gracefully” is not easily understood. Anyone can start and further a quarrel. It takes tremendous strength to do as you have proposed.
Rated and appreciated with great respect.
"What, do you wish to know your Lord's meaning in this?
Know it well, love was his meaning.
Who reveals it to you? Love.
What did he reveal to you? Love.
Why does he reveal it to you? For Love.
Remain in this, and you will know more of the same."
--Julian of Norwich, 1373
Thank you for your beautifully bowled palms, Greg. Let’s hope the seeds of lovingkindness take root.
—Melissa
My point? I've come to see that retreating, as you call it, works. The opportunity NOT to contribute to a hullabaloo -- especially not in my well-established, clever ways -- helps me recognize what those ways are and gives me a chance to respond to the world and and to do so differently than usual.
There's no growth without struggle, not fire without friction. Knowing enough to retreat, to wait-a-minute-there, to sleep on it, to NOT say it just now -- can be as important to the life as what we DO say.
So, yeah. Amen brother. You've told it like it is. Thanks
What if you've been retreating gracefully too much, I wonder? When you really want to say, "I'm mad!" I wonder. Can you retreat gracefully and still keep your voice, I wonder.
I'm sure you'd say yes, you can.
(Perhaps inappropriate to post here, but since I'm here, I wanted to thank you so much for your wonderful comment on one of my last pieces. It made me feel really good.)
Retreating gracefully now.