I gain comfort by believing in the future that awaits George W.

My opinions here will not propose changes to affect the mess our nation is in today. My views herein will not provide solutions to fix any of the multitude of problems of the world.

My views may possibly bring solace, comfort, relief, gratitude and/or a sense of justice to some, a few or even one will be fine.

IF YOU HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH A DISCUSSION OF A SPIRITUAL NATURE AND ITS IMPACT ON OUR POLITICAL ACTIONS, THEN PLEASE STOP READING AND MOVE ON FOR YOUR OWN PEACE OF MIND.

Please indulge me for a while. I must explain where I came from to be able to get to the destination I wish to take you. I hope to give you some food for thought, some inspiration and maybe some comfort. Lofty goals. I dobut I can achieve them all.

I am by no measure a religious man. From childhood until the age of thirteen, I attended Catholic mass and Sunday school. In my family, once we received first communion we were allowed to choose to continue to attend or not. For many reasons, I chose not to continue. It is possible that is was my perception and not the actual teachings. What I felt that I was not fond of, was the hell and damnation, the fear to do good, the possiblities of punishment for any one of innumerable acts, the ridgid structure and more.  

From that day to this, I have only entered a “house of worship” for funerals or weddings. I joke that I am a recovering Catholic. If you are of the Catholic faith or any other religion of brick and mortar, I mean no disrespect and I fully support your choice. Any where, by any means that one finds their faith is wonderful.

My views on the Great Spirit, the creator, my higher power or God (you pick your preference, it matters not to me) are very nontraditional. I was agnostic for about a dozen years. At that time, I believed there was some supreme being (s) who made our amazing world and all the wonders of nature. I however did not believe he, she, it, they acted in our lives, but rather created everything and was sitting back and observing as we destroyed ourselves and the planet.

If you are atheist I respect and support your views and choice. I do not believe my opinions here will be in great conflict with yours and I hope this essay is at least interesting to you.

January 1985 with the culmination of many events I was introduced to spirituality and over what is now nearly 23 years it has evolved, changed, expanded and I hope will continue to do so all my life. This was not a cult. There were no leaders. Nobody was in ANY position of authority. Nobody asked me or told me to do anything or not do anything. There were no dues of fees. It was simply a group of people in search of a way to lead a life of spirituality. I am NOT recruiting or promoting anything or attempting to “convert” anyone. I am simply explaining my personal views and experiences.

I do not know, nor do I care, if my great spirit(s) is/are a he, she, it or them. At the very beginning of my journey, I was guided by some wonderful people who gave me a few simple pieces of advice (not rules or demands). This is what was suggested.

— Forget everything you have ever learned of God, wipe the slate clean.

— You are going to build/create “your” own supreme being guided by your conscience, by prayer, by meditation and by an attempt to make a conscious contact with “your” higher power.

— The “God” (for simplicity and lack of a better word) “you” design will be one that has the traits, characteristics and actions that you believe fit those of an all powerful creator of everything that exists in the sky and on earth.

— Each morning get on your knees and try to connect with “your” higher power. To begin this life long journey start by saying ONLY, please each morning. At night do the same but say ONLY thank you.

— You will know when you are ready to move your relationship to a level of increased communication and as you know, do so. It is a relationship as any other in our life and there is communication.

— If you have any questions, fell free to contact us at any time. We will not contact you. We are not a babysitter and we will not chase you. If you are not interested, that is fine. Move on your way and we wish you happiness and a good life. If you are interested, we are here for you, but, we are not here to be your marital, financial, job, social or any other type advisor. All we can do is share our experience with you as it relates to our spiritual journey.

They kept to their word. They never called me. If I called them, they would immediately meet with me to answer questions I had and to share their experience. They were an amazing group of people with no ulterior motives or hidden agendas and I also neither have these.

That’s where I began and today I often pray many times a day. Each morning I give my higher power permission to intercede in “my will” and to help me to do his/her/their will. I fail very, very often in doing his/her/their will. I believe I must do this every morning as the granting of my permission lasts only for that day.

Today, I have 100% proof, for myself, that my God has acted in my life hundreds of times. Sometimes in small ways and sometimes in major ways.

I have little concern for how others live their lives, as long it does not affect me, my family or my country. I support any choices any individual makes (within reason). In general, I believe others actions/behaviors are between them and “their” God as mine are between me and mine.

Yes, I know, you have read a couple pages already to try to get to where I explain my belief that we get solace and comfort in knowing George W, Bush’s future. Now I will begin to get to that. The prior was needed for the remainder.  

For many years I never thought about a hell. As my relationship progressed with my spiritual maker, I spent years that I thought there could be one but it didn’t concern me. I felt I was living as my supreme being wished and I would not be going there even if there was one.

Over the last ten years or so I have gradually developed a very specific view of hell. I believe we all go there for at least some time. I began by thinking what could be the worst punishment for wrongs we have done to others. I believe there are things worse than those described in Dante’s Inferno. There are things worse than physical pain. In my life I have had a great deal of physical pain (continue to have it) but it has been far less painful than the mental and emotional pain I have endured at times in my life.

I truly believe we each live through our own hell or torture or torment (for lack of  better words).

Each of us has to live, feel and experience, for an equal amount of time, anything we have done that affected anyone during our life. Good or bad.

I believe if we caused one person to feel pain for a day, then we feel those exact feelings for a day. If hurting that one person for a day caused one other person some pain for a day, we also live that pain for a day in addition to the original person we wronged.

When completed with the bad, negative, hurtful and painful things we caused, then we move on to the good things we made others feel.

If we made a kind gesture, a smile or an act of giving that made a person feel good for a minute, an hour or a life time, we feel those exact feelings for the same period. A type of nirvana.

For a moment, assume I am 100% correct on this.

Can you imagine how long this will be and how torturous this is for Stalin and Hitler and Saddam. Not only living the exact torturous, helpless and painful things for the exact time of the individuals they inflicted things on but also multiply that by each person who was affected by each individual torture or death. In the case of these men it has already begun and it will surely continue for thousands of years.

We could list thousands of people thru history that will live in this torturous world for thousands of years also.

Because of my behavior prior to 23 years ago, when I pass, I believe I am going to have a fair amount of pain and sorrow I will have to live through because I caused it to others. I am o.k. with that, it is what I deserve. I am responsible for my own actions.

For the last 23 years I will also have some more to endure but not as much as prior to that and much more good to enjoy. Over these last 23 years I have gradually inflicted less and less negative on others and more and more good on some.

I don’t know how many years I will be there. I also don’t know where I go when it is done. There is a multitude of possibilities, reincarnation or a perpetual good feeling or any one of many other scenarios we might not even be able to fathom. Our minds are limited to the thinking of a human. Believing all things have a beginning and an end. All have a top and a bottom. there is always left and right. On and on. So many limiting thoughts. There may exist a higher plane of thought that we can not even imagine..

I know this is a political site primarily for intelligent discourse of political issues and changing of unjust laws and political enlightenment. We are part of a movement to solve the political and social problems of today. We are dedicated to making changes and improving the world and the lives of others. These are all to the benefit of everyone and I believe even to our selves beyond this earth. What I say here should enforce that we are doing the right thing by improving others lives. We should continue to fight today to help others. Not for the promise of the beyond but because it is right and just.

I fully realize that this borders on mixing religion and politics. I apologize if I have offended anyone or crossed any lines I should not have. If it is over some line or boundry, I would expect readers to express their dissatisfaction with my writings.

I have no credentials of a minister or preacher or a degree in theology.

My reason for writing this diary:

I have listened to the pain in most of you who’s writings I have been fortunate to read.. I hear it and I feel it in your words and thoughts that I read each day.

These pains and torments have been caused by evil men. By immoral, debase and lecherous people. These types have existed throughout history.

My hope for what this essay may do:

First it is NOT to do as some in “religion” do, which is to point us to the “afterlife” and to try to scare us into doing good deeds and not masturbating, having premarital sex, being gay or lesbian, being pro-choice and ad infinitum. With my higher power and me, these are irrelevant things in relation to good or bad or an after life. These are all personal choices for which we each will answer for or not. I will answer only for my indiscretions that my God finds immoral or wrong. I believe I know what “my” higher power deems right and wrong and I have not seen it in any book or writings or philosophy of others or heard anyone who matches my thoughts exactly.

This essay is intended to stimulate thought. To embolden us ALL and invigorate us ALL to continue our cause of helping others. To help reinforce that we are doing the right things. By us continuing to do the right thing, it will not only have a benefit today, tomorrow and in the future here in this material world but may very well have an impact on our well being beyond. If so, great bonus.

My final words are to return to the where this began, to the title of this essay.

Under my concept, not as revenge, not with delight, but with comfort in knowing it might just be possible that ALL get what they deserve, eventually. Both their bad and then their good returns to them in kind.

Imagine what George W. Bush has in store for him. When one hurt, lie, death, torture, maiming, pain, indecency, tear, sorrow and more are multiplied by tens, upon hundreds, upon thousands, upon millions. How long will he endure the exact sad, sorrowful and painful feelings he has inflicted on others?

I imagine when all is tallied up he will be in the ball park of Hitler and Stalin and Saddam as well as many others like them. How ironic, equal to Saddam.

Also ironic, but an effort we must continue, by stopping George W’s tyranny we may shorten his hellish stay. I am sure we can’t take even a tiny bit off his sentence though. His dye is cast. His fate is sealed.

Add up the pain, tears, sorrow anger and more George W. Bush has caused ONLY those of us on here and we alone are surely in the hundreds of years of pain for him..

I care for this community that welcomed me. This essay is my way of attempting to return some good karma and I hope I have succeeded. Thanks for reading this.

PS- Even this man, me, attempting to live a spiritual life, gets a little satisfaction, a bit of a good feeling of revenge and a little delight in the pain and agony that I truly believe awaits George W. Bush.

17 comments

Skip to comment form

  1. leave for an appointment. It took me longer to “clean” this essay up than I thought it would. I hope to have some readers and maybe even some recs. It is 930am EST and I will be back by 11am. I hope to find some comments and will engage in any discourse at that time if you would be so kind as to return about llam if you are able. Thanks, Tom.

  2. Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief.

    Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now.

    You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.

    ~the Talmud

  3. the phone waiting for it to ring with those high dollar speaking engagements and how that relates to his desire to replenish his coffers.  May he end his days with as many sunshine filled days and friends as Nixon did!  I heard that his daughter may be married in the White House and honey you had better do it…….it’s the last time anything happy will ever happen to any of you there.

    • snud on December 19, 2007 at 23:51

    …And it’s “Mission Accomplished”! Plus the bear gets away! A guy can dream…

    Running won't save you!

  4. by Wilbur Daniel Steele

    http://www.harpers.org/archive

    Steele won the O’Henry award for short story writing several times over.  This story had a profound impact on my own spiritual journey and I believe you will find it curiously similar to your own experience.

    I may have a copy lying around here, I’ll shoot it off to you if I can find it.

  5. Great essay Tom, thanks for sharing!

    We don’t really know who we are or where we are going or what we are supposed to do…..but it is damn important that we do it! And try to have some fun and fight the good fight while we are figuring it out!

Comments have been disabled.