Move Forward

Inspirational is the resounding fortitude of our great nation. Regardless of your party affiliation or opinion of our new or past President we as Americans should be proud of a system that transitions without bloodshed or anarchy. Even today as I write these words there are systems of government that cannot accomplish such feats. The United States of America though many of its inhabitants have differing views on a multitude of issues has a system that inevitably moves forward with determination to increase efficiency and the general well being of its citizens.

It’s the differing of views that creates growth by efforts being exhorted toward desired accomplishments. The developments in our country have been made possible by those willing to think and work. Each of the United States citizens has had independent and unique personal growth that entitles them to their view of their circumstances and their ability to adapt. Greatness in a body of citizens or a form of government is achieved when the system, though the opinions of its contributors may differ, can move forward in order and resolve.

Today as we mark the inauguration of the 44^th President of the United States of America, we have witnessed our ability to move forward in order and resolve. If a body of over 300 million can transition, though beliefs do not always align, we too, in our personal relationships must make it our resolve to accept different views and move forward.

America the Beautiful

O' beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, for purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea. This is our majestic tribute to this great country in which we live. The words from Katherine Lee Bates in 1893 while visiting Colorado Springs, Colorado were prompted by her journey on train visiting the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago and the wheat fields of the Central United States to finally arriving at the sublime mountainside overlooking the vast Great Plains. Through inspiration, Bates was able to write down her emotions and capture the American spirit that resonates every time we sing “America the Beautiful”.

Inspiration and Ingenuity are often given yet hardly received, our mind must be clear of waste and we must be ready to act. Most of the men and women who have had a profound impact in our lives have been individuals that we have looked to for inspiration and guidance. The reason we did this is because of a feeling given or an example shown by them. The givers of these feelings or the person we admire become who you admire through accepting inspiration and acting upon the inspired promptings.

Like New Year’s resolutions inspired guidance is useless unless acted upon. If your intention was to lose weight by better diet and increased exercise you have received inspiration that will improve your physical well being. However, if you don’t start eating better and exercising you will inevitably not increase your ability to not only become healthier but also receive inspiration. Intentions are simply meaningless without action. When you receive inspiration and fail to act your ability to process inspiring thoughts will begin to diminish. As you accomplish resolutions or inspiring thoughts through action you will inevitably become more attune to your abilities.

Katherine Lee Bates' glorious poem would have been meaningless if she hadn’t written down the words. It’s a simple concept that yields monumental results: upon receiving inspiration, do it.

Be Prepared

On a cold January day the water in the Hudson River is between the freezing point and way too cold. No one would dare enter the waters by their own volition especially not on day when the wind temperature hovers in the single digits. On January 15^th 2008 US Airways flight 1549 out of LaGuardia would meet such a fate landing in the frigid waters just 6 minutes after leaving the frozen tarmac. The Airbus A320, without possibility of averting hit a flock of birds that disabled the two engines. The pilot told the passengers to “Prepare for impact!” before the aircraft glided on the flowing river just off Manhattan’s West 48^th Street. The frigid touch-down was the first non-fatal jetliner emergency water landing in 50 years of commercial flight, all 155 aboard survived. Ironically, the pilot, a 57 year old Chesley “Sully” B. Sullenberger III is also the founder of Safety Reliability Methods, a firm describing itself as a “technical expertise and strategic vision and direction to improve safety and reliability in a variety of high risk industries”. Interestingly enough the hero for all 155 passengers on flight 1549 to Charlotte is a man that was prepared and in the time of peril was able to awaken the skills needed for this catastrophe.

Often a situation will arise when we will need to call on our skills to get us out of a peculiar or difficult position. The question is are we ready, have we developed the necessary skills needed for the event? This is a difficult question to answer as we don’t really know what that event is going to be. I would imagine out of the 155 passengers on that flight to Charlotte none of them believed they would be rescued from the benumbed waters of the Hudson 30 minutes after takeoff. A lesson must be seized from the example of this heroic pilot, one that should motivate and inspire.

The talents that you bear must be utilized, enlarged and practiced. There needs to be effort and thought with a strong dose of desire to become better and possibly even great. Take time to analyze your life, discover your talents, and begin the endless journey of growth. One of the greatest joys comes from accomplishment and sweeter is the achievement when it’s founded on a job well done. Magnify your talent to be prepared when that ability is called up to something great as was Sully’s on a cold January morning.

Get Up and Do More!

The setting brings us to the year 1809 in a small Kentucky cabin, born here was a baby boy with little chance of success or prosperity. This child would not have much of an opportunity in the way of becoming great as he would be self-educated and would come from humble beginnings. Little did his parents or family know that that young baby born into this humble backdrop would become the 16^th President of these United States and achieve monumental results as a leader in our great Nation. This former store clerk, rail-splitter and eventual lawyer was none other than Abraham Lincoln, the creator of the Emancipation Proclamation and one of the finest examples of a leader in our country’s history.

Honest Abe could have easily melded into society and proceeded to a life of inconsequential actions and minimal prosperity. Though he came from common confines his was not a life left to chance. He was able to discern the thoughts in his mind, evaluate through study and the instruction available, and then act on the promptings received.

Every man women and child alive today has been given authority over their actions and choice. We have a similar opportunity as the 16^th President of the United States did, make a choice from learning, evaluating the data, and then acting according to our comprehension. Results are typically achieved by the effort being expelled. At times it may seem as if we know little or the trail seems too steep and ominous. Dealing with these apprehensive aspects can be overcome by a bolstering feat of confidence by knowing that we too have a defined purpose. Only by our actions will we understand and then accomplish our purpose. If any person becomes passive about activity they will need to expect they will not reach the height designed for them. Happy and content is the person who does. It becomes expedient that we get up, get out, and do to reach our maximum potential and happiness.

Heighten Your Senses

Growing up in Minnesota I was afforded the opportunity to spend a bulk of summer vacation at a cabin located on Green Lake outside of the small town of Spicer. I remember spending countless early mornings sitting on the dock over the serene water. As everything was motionless and tranquil it was as if my senses were heightened and any disturbance no matter how small was magnified in this peacefully induced state.

There was a carefree existence that is often hard to emulate in the stress consumed lifestyle that society burdens our minds with. Our lives and senses become hostage to the mundane and less challenging procedural duties of the day. It’s difficult to remove ourselves from the daily operations and existence without causing a negative ripple effect to our production and protection of family life and security. We can’t simply remove ourselves from life to find this serenity without a negative response.

An experience that I carry with me to this day is fantastically cliché but nevertheless it happened and on my watch. On the corner of 7^th Ave and 4^th Street in the city of my upbringing I was no more than 12 years old and wasting time on an afternoon after school in the front yard. Over on 5^th Ave there was a grocery store which most of the neighbors shopped, it was relatively well placed but since has been removed. On that September afternoon as I played in the yard there was an elderly woman that was struggling with her grocery bags; she was 2 blocks into her journey home on foot and struggling to carry the groceries. Without much of a thought other than the lessons learned in Sunday school and Scouts I hurried to help her. She was glad to receive the help, informed me she lived 2 blocks from here and we began the journey. I still can visualize the kindness in her eyes and her thankful acceptance of the help. I remember walking home with a smile of accomplishment that couldn’t be erased from my face; I ran in the house and informed my mother of my good deed, I was on top of the world.

Our daily interactions and stressful situations will leave their indelible mark but it is in our power to receive a heightened sense of acceptance and self worth. We can at any moment alter our environment by opening our minds to be prepared to provide service in a moment’s notice. It should be a requirement in our preparation for the day to be looking for opportunities to serve. If there is a time when our mind begins the downward pull on conscience there is a solution that will reap a reward every time without fail - that solution is service.