My gorgeous children won a national film contest

I know, I know... I have been a neglectful blogger lately, but just have a look at this - my children won the 'say no to bullies' national ACMI film making contest...proud dad much?

http://www.acmi.net.au/screenit.aspx

A letter from a non- practising friend.

Dear X,

I hope this finds you well and happy, although probably not too happy. I write this letter anonymously and not directly to you so as to not be seen to either illicit a response, offer an apology  or brag about what happened. The reason I write is simply to have a joint observation of what happened in the light of an understanding of how wonderfully vulnerable people are to the elements and to each other. 

We were friends and colleagues for years, and then we weren’t. You chose your career over your responsibilities to act appropriately. While I can observe and even accept that, I also observe that my response was heavy handed and brutally effective. I don’t think you can cry foul over that one, you knew me for long enough prior to that point that you ought to have known my response would probably have been such. There is a certain point where nothing else exists apart from winning. Winning dirty is even better, but win nonetheless. While the aim of life and civility is to avoid outcomes where this is all that is left, one must never shirk from this outcome when it happens. Or at least I used to think that. I still mostly do. If people think that they are right without question; they have no interest in anything that resembles civility, then they would be well served by a harsh wake up call from life itself to adjust their understanding.  It’s a sort of ‘do unto others as you would wish to be done to yourself, but do it to them first’ morality to bastardize Mill. This is what you very much got from my response, but I recognise that the severity and effectiveness of my response was, in a major way, guided by external factors.

You see, I have recently come to terms with a whole bunch of stuff that happened way back in the day. But this letter is not about that either.  I observe that my actions and responses were very much guided by past fears and circumstances that were not present in the circumstances. Yet my perception of your actions horrified me due to these past events. The fear and misery that was inside me guided my hand to destroy your world. Your actions did not deserve that. Your actions were a spark, yet the severe amount of fuel it ignited and the accuracy of the burns inflicted were caused by external forces. I had five plans in mind. Dumb pranks that were designed to destroy. I never went through with the last two. The accuracy of the first three amazed me. I raised my glass to the destruction I had caused and took pride in what I had done. The last one, which I never went through with, (perhaps because a sense of fair-play kicked back in, but probably because I was no longer motivated by anger and just kind of forgot) would possibly have put you on a collision course that may well have ended your life. It would certainly would have ended your career.  

I have recently understood the idea that we are not our minds, our minds are a sixth sense, when we think something, we don’t think something any more than we see something or hear something. It is the observation of that thought that frees us from the vast emptiness that the laws of nature inflict upon us. That and the knowledge that only through persistence may we overcome this. This too shall pass as much as it will be replaced by the eternal that will allow us another chance. As Uncle Fred said, ‘that which does not kill us, will make us stronger.’

I know: your thinking, ‘...only he would be arrogant enough to lecture me on Buddhism and existentialism to avoid saying sorry.’ Maybe you’re right. But this isn’t about that. I don’t write for forgiveness and I wouldn’t accept it if it were offered. It is not about the either judging the other. It is about what is.

So I write so that you may observe these points and, in their observation, you will be freed from the misery that this situation has caused and hopefully not be swayed either way the next time something happens that may make you act from the fear and misery of the past.

Be careful. Strive to be happy.

Kind regards

M.