Good morning. A short piece on three topics, hopefully succinctly presented:

Pillow Talk

It seems that less people nowadays understand the value of being able to lay our head on a pillow and sleep without worrying that they have cheated, lied or supplanted their way to money or power. Greed, whether for money or power, is addictive and the proportion at which we’ve seen it grow in recent years in Malta is phenomenal. Maybe there are reasons for it, such as a wholesale societal loss of moral compass (dampened by the ‘outbursts of conscience quenching generosity’ whenever there is national charity campaign) or a wholesale breakdown of in the family unit/values that traditionally (in the words of Mons. J. De Piro) provided,”the cradle of one’s education” (“Give me a child for the first 5 years of his life and he is mine forever,” V. Lenin)

The recipe for a good night sleep – for the benefit of those seem to have lost or conveniently forgotten it – contains just eight ingredients:

Matt 22:37-39: Love your neighbour as yourself. If we truly love and respect ourselves, only then can we love and respect others.
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” Jim Rohn.
Exodus 20:15, “Do not steal.” There are no shades of grey in this statement. Actions have consequences, if not on us, on others. “It is difficult, but not impossible, to conduct strictly honest business,” Mahatma Ghandi
“Fortitude is the guard and support of all other virtues,” John Locke. Intestinal capacity is the cousin of faith when “faith is the assurance of things hoped for and conviction of things unseen.” (Heb 11:1)
And the salt – or main ingredient – of this recipe of “sound sleep” is contentment. “True contentment is not having everything but being satisfied with everything that you have,” Oscar Wilde.

Iceberg Effect

What prompted this piece today? I’m tired of a decade-long tsunami of news involving ministers, members of parliament (across the whole Maltese political spectrum), government /authority officials, business people, ‘persons of trust’ (what does this phrase really mean?) and permeating all echelons of Maltese society that exposes crime (murder, theft, money laundering, trading in influence) and glorifies all that is wrong (greed, self-conceit and populist myopia). This is also often hurtful towards others because actions always have consequences. But we do not seem to care.

What is even more scary is the iceberg effect. Statistically, the persons serving time for their crimes are only the tip of the iceberg. The overwhelming majority of criminals cross our paths and share our path on a daily basis and do so often with an air of inpunity because there ins’t enough evidence or fortitude to convict, or they they have law or justice in their pockets or because they ‘gentrified’ themselves through layers of legal oblivion.

Conclusion: Because Life is a Journey ..

Very often I find it hard to believe Proverbs 21:21, “Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honour.” But, I do not have to, because I believe that our purpose in life is not to seek prosperity and honour. Our purpose in life is to add value. It is to leave the world a better place than we found it. Whoever learns this lesson in hindsight generally learns it too late!

And, in trying to walk the talk I also try to learn from the best,”Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalms 119)

Because life is a journey | keep walking | keep smiling | do good | have faith.