Call me crazy,
but I think we have lost the art of feeling shame.
And yes, I dare to call it an 'art' because in
'art's' truest definition, it makes us think and grow
and can serve to improve the condition of society.
When we 'slip up' (and we all do),
that bubbling-up sensation we feel in our chest;
the reddening and burning of the cheeks;
all happens to provoke the mind into fully considering
the consequences of one's actions, and stand sentinel should we ever consider repetition.
The reason I raise this is because during our wonderful weekend wedding
at The Shore, I noticed this:
It made me so sad.
So many rules and regulations.
And all because we can't be trusted to behave ourselves,
or in the case of misbehaviour, feel embarrased enough not to
repeat.
Signs of the times. We have to be told how to behave in polite company. Somewhere along the chain a link has come loose.
ReplyDeleteI really do try to be a 'rule follower' but have found that sometimes it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission....
ReplyDeleteThe point, in my small world Kim, is to not have rules and regulations, but to follow the first and only rule of "do as you would be done by'. Always works...always.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that if 'Avalon Beaches' really do OWN the beach, then they are allowed to make stipulations. So often signs are placed without any authority whatsoever. Those should always be ignored.
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteLike always you made a beautiful Blogspot!
xx
Jérôme
I'm not sure who owns what where Cro, but these signs were all up and down the east coast.
ReplyDeleteIt's all so tricky...a fine balance is needed...here on the island teenagers group together on one certain beach and start fires with all the driftwood...seems harmless, but really isn't...
ReplyDeleteteenagers...alcohol...fire = bad combination.
So instead of posting signs which obviously don't work...the city hired a crew to remove all the driftwood from the beach...and that was a lot of driftwood!
Sort of changed the landscape a bit...but all the charred blackened logs made for a changed landscape too!
I don't get it V. We have enough rules, they are called laws. Why weren't the teenagers arrested?
ReplyDeleteWhat happens when the next lot of driftwood floats ashore.
We are treating the symptoms, not the disease
I sure do understand what you mean Victoria. My husband and myself (and hopefully our kids)are not as much 'rule followers' as logical thinkers. The decisions we make (all of us) affect those around us - not picking up after our dog, letting a camp fire burn down a forest or someone's home, drinking and driving, from the smallest of actions to the largest. These should not have to be rules or laws - these things should be common sense accompanied with a responsibility for those around us.
ReplyDeleteWe've been feeling the rules and regulations pinch quite extensivly here in Seattle as well and we're getting very very tired of it! It seems like if a few ding-dongs do some very silly things then we all have to suffer for it...I'm afraid to take a step sideways for fear of haveing stepped an inch past the mark.
ReplyDeleteSigh indeed...
xo J~
I don't know the answer J. Today I was walking my dog along another beach over tons of blackened charred logs, again from night time fires, and also had to look at the stupid ugly graffiti that adorns the walls of stairs that lead up to the beach. It's not even art, just random scribbles. As soon as they paint over it, they spray rubbish again. I'm thinking of hiding in the bushes and getting one of those paint ball guns to hit them with the next time they strike!
ReplyDeleteCall me! I'll hide there with you V. We'll get'em together!
ReplyDeleteAre you having these crazy storms right now! Truly weird weather!
The reality is that whatever we are ashamed of, we repeat. Think that one through.
ReplyDelete