Forgetfulness
As I first started writing this newsletter, it was the morning of Sunday, September 10. NPR was on in the background, filled with the same talk as every other media outlet in the land: the five year anniversary of 9-11. For the three days leading up to the infamous date, every time I flipped on a TV or radio or read through a news story, there was a constant reminder of that tragedy. Now, as I sit here on the morning of September 14th, just a few days past the anniversary that got all our attention, there’s not a word being said about it. And by the time you’re reading this next week, I bet the five year anniversary is all but forgotten – or at least it hasn’t been thought of since the 11th. Unfortunately, we in America, myself included, seem to have all the attention span of a gnat. We’re constantly caught up in this instantaneous culture where new gadgets, slick advertisements and luxury items are always competing for our attention. Our priorities are often upside down. This is sad… but it’s also a fact of the world in which we live. The Hispanic-American philosopher, George Santayana, made that famous quote in the early 20th century: “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Frankly, this scares the ever-loving crap out of me. Why? Because there are so many historically important things about which my knowledge is close to nil. Vietnam? Everything I know about the “police action” in Southeast Asia comes from a few high school and college classes, watching the History Channel and reading about a dozen autobiographies from soldiers. That isn’t even a drop in the bucket of knowledge – and we’re talking about nearly 60,000 Americans that died less than a decade before I entered the world. Go back in time even further and, as Santayana proposed, I feel even more doomed. A few weeks ago, my favorite radio personality, Dave Glover, interviewed a holocaust survivor named Sara Moses. As I listened to Sara’s tale of survival of the German death camps, I stood in my kitchen and wept. Just wept. Her tale of horror, starvation and de-humanization at the hands of the Nazis, were some of the most gut-wrenching stories I’ve ever heard. Now, most stories of the holocaust end with the release of the prisoners back into the outside world. Not Sara’s! The story for her didn’t end when the British troops liberated her from the camps – her story continues today. While Dave interviewed her, he gave her the platform to voice her current views on the Israeli conflict and all the current happenings in the Middle East. Sara used this opportunity to share how she uses her story, and her life, to help keep the past from repeating itself. Since the interview, I’ve had the privilege of becoming friends with this delightful woman and our conversations have impacted me deeply. We’re constantly bombarded with the talking heads, commentators and analysts on TV, but the best insight I’ve found on today’s troubles come from someone who lived through similar horrors more than half a century ago. To not only survive something so horrible, but to use that experience as a force to positively impact the future – wow. That is so powerful. In our world of instant everything, it’s difficult to keep up with our own worldly happenings. Yet, keeping the knowledge of history alive must, must be a priority. Sara is doing this through her work with the Holocaust Museum, speaking out and not letting history be regulated to anonymous facts and figures. She has a fabulous testimony of human endurance, but more importantly, she uses that past to aid the future of humanity. We should all do the same. Marcus Engel is a professional speaker/author who inspires audiences to achieve success by making intelligent choices. Blinded by a drunk driver at age 18, Marcus battled through two years of recovery and 300 hours of reconstructive facial surgery to reach his goal of returning to college. After graduating from Missouri State University in 2000, Marcus began sharing his story professionally to audiences nationwide. In 2002, Marcus founded his own publishing company with the release of his autobiography, “After This…An Inspirational Journey For All the Wrong Reasons.” His latest book, "The Other End of the Stethoscope" was released October 2006. His messages of empowerment and motivation have been witnessed by hundreds of thousands through his keynotes, his autobiography and his monthly newsletters. Marcus Engel is a speaker, a message, a story you will never forget! Visit http://www.MarcusEngel.com for more information! |
Other Articles
Meditation - The Benefits Meditation offers a plethora of benefits. Unfortunately many people do not meditate because they are fearful of the perceived demands. These perceived demands include—sitting in a perfect lotus position with fingers held in a mudra pose. This traditional Hindu or Buddhist posture is not required.The truth is—the way you are envisioning ...Team Development-Key To Company Success Team Development creates a winning atmosphere by:• Developing Trust among team members • Opportunity to Practice Openness • Enhances Cooperation Through Realization of Objectives • Promotes Interdependence (Collaboration, Teamwork, Camaraderie, etc.)Team Development’s purpose is to help a team engage in the process ...Gems #2 From 1919:***Lest we think the folks didn’t know about tobacco years ago: "Tobacco injures heart, nerves, stomach and eyesight. Tobacco ruins the sexual system and causes cancer of lip, tongue and throat. Any form of tobacco habit may be easily, inexpensively overcome with nature's antidote, a pleasant Florida root I accidentally discover ...Journaling—A Powerful Tool Meditation can be done in many forms, however, journaling offers unique benefits. Meditation teaches us to empty our mind of concerns and bring positive ideas from our unconscious mind into the conscious mind. Journaling helps us anchor that experience in the conscious mind.Many people feel uncomfortable meditating in seated silence, jo ...Fulfilling Your Special Purpose... If it is true that everything happens for a purpose and you happened the day you were born. It is then safe to say: you have a purpose to fulfill or achieve. But have you ever stopped to wonder what that purpose is? The reason you belong, live or work where you do? Why you are alive? "When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It ...How To Have The Best Day Of Your Life One bright summer morning, Ivan Kroutikhin went quite mad.He was a tiny, balding, elderly man, with hunched shoulders.After a hasty breakfast, he patted the toast crumbs off his usual shabby suit and shuffled towards the door.“Stop!” said his wife, Ira. “You forgot the garbage. It’s stinking up the whole apartment.” ...Living Life To The Fullest People’s stress levels are at an all time high. As a result, many are having a difficult time enjoying the process of their life as it unfolds. This is due to a number of factors:1 - The rapid pace and the amount of change. 2 - The explosion of available information and the ease of acquiring it. 3 - The drive toward better, m ...Enlightening Your Internal Environment: Free Your Mind As the commercial reminds us, a mind is indeed a terrible thing to waste. But to often we are content to let our gifts and abilities wither on the vine if it keeps us from verging too close to the unfamiliar and the unknown. But that way lies the path of dullness and boredom. Here are some steps you can take to "freshen up" your mental hygiene a ...My Life's Most Defining Moment Was Eight years ago. The time was 7.13pm. Saturday. In the middle of an oppressive Queensland summer. The day's heat lingering through to the evening like guests who overstay their welcome. More heat radiating from the red hot coals before me. Ten metres of burning coal to be exact. Two hundred pairs of eyes looking on. I was going to walk on fire! ...Four Houses NOT For Sale My friend Luther Miller is a perceptive observer of contemporary society, so when he says there are four houses in America NOT for sale I am sure he has something more on his mind than real estate.Sure enough! Luther looks around him, likes what he sees hut notices a growing apathy toward human liberty.As he sees it, there are fou ...I Wish for You Life is so short. So I don't want to miss a day without saying thanks and wishes to all the people who read my articles and most especially to those individuals who gave a great contribution in molding me to become a better, more productive person.Here are the list of people I would to give thanks and give wishes:The ezinearticles. ...25 Ways to End Emotional Eating If you have been trying to lose weight and control your eating unsuccessfully, then you are an expert at what doesn't work. By now you have discovered that you have terrific willpower because you have been able to follow a programmed diet for several months many times over. Willpower is not the problem. You have more willpower than most people. ...Land Your Pot Of Gold You may manage to cleverly invest, acquire a wonderful home and a lavish lifestyle and still not feel as if you have found your pot-of-gold. You may still feel “wanting.” We live in one of the richest countries in the world, but the overall level of happiness here is lower than in many poorer countries. So, the question is, if money can’t buy ha ...Bringing Up Baby: Communing With A Humpback Whale Did you ever have a moment in time when you think to yourself, “This is it. This is the moment. Life just can’t get any better.” And then, it does. Such a moment happened to me, last week, while whale watching in Ma’alaea Bay on the Alii Nui.It was a gorgeous day out on the water. The weather could not have been more perfect and the whal ...How E-Mail Newsletters Can Help Your Website Grow These days, it seems you have to do more than just launch a website to attract potential readers, customers, and devotees. As technology progresses and allows the Internet to become more interactive, website owners strive to keep up with the times. Browse your favorite websites today, and you will definitely notice the changes since you first vi ...Determination - Ollie B. Style I know spring is here. In a day and a half Ollie B. brings me home six birds. As she heads out for number seven, she looks at me as if to say, Mom it’s like taking candy from a baby and races down the steps. I chase her, catch her and while telling her what a good hunter she is, lock her in the house; time for Ollie B. to have her very ...Time and Judgment "And a wise man's heart discerns both time and judgment ..." (Ecclesiastes 8:5b).Someone handed me a paper at church one day and said to pass it on so, dear Reader, here it is:Once upon a time there was an island where all feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love.One day it was ann ...Do As They Do For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward Christ), that I mig ...The Last Martian Goes Home The Martian stood in the open field surrounded by the best government artillery pointed at his head and chest and back.The infantry troops formed a circle around him.Up above, fighter jets waited for the word to launch a missile right into the corn field if necessary.Unaware of the hostile force that had greeted him, innocen ...A Creed to Live By Do not undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us is special. Do not set your goals by what other people expect of you. Only you know what is best for you. Do not take for granted the things closest to your heart. Cling to them as you would your life, for without them l ...If You Were, and Are - Then You Shall Be Healed Do you need to be healed of a sickness, a relationship or an addiction? I have good news. You may not realize it, but you are already healed! According to 1 Pet. 2: 24: “by His stripes you WERE healed!” Jesus paid for your sickness with His Blood! In fact, every sickness on the earth at the time of His death, as well as today and in the future, ...Inspirational Thoughts on Families From the age of our first ancestors to modern society, the family is at the center of our lives. Here are a few family inspirational thoughts on the subject.Sometimes, the best thing for your speech or essay is a quote. Famous (and infamous) people have all said and written phrases that have become part of our everyday speech. From politi ...Feed The Need: 5 Ways To Use RSS To Boost Your Business Or Organizational Success RSS (it stands for Really Simple Syndication, among other things) is a relatively new technology that allows anyone who creates frequently changing web content - news, blogs, current events, etc. - to deliver their messages to interested readers with no fuss, no muss and best of all - no spam! Currently, RSS is being used by content-rich ...
|