March, 2006

I meant to write about Chris Jackson’s The Abundance Site some time ago, but this has been languishing in my drafts folder, so I thought I’d share it here.

Unhappy People Living Unhappy Lives

Mrs Levee and I know (more than our fair share of) miserable people. People who feel they are downtrodden, that the world is against them in every conceivable way. People who simply don’t enjoy life. Nothing ever goes right for them, people talk behind their backs, they’re always ill with something or other. They’re incapable of caring about anything other than their own problems, such is their self-involvement.

I find one of the common characteristics of these depressing, misguided creatures is the sheer chaos that defines their mental processes. So disorganised are their thoughts that they can only concentrate on the problem, rather than considering solutions. And so they seek solace in spilling out their problems to everyone they meet, accepting short-term sympathy instead of seeking a positive fix.

Been There, Got Over It!

I’m not disparaging these people, I know what I’m talking about! I went through a period a few years ago where I was terribly dissatisfied with my life and what I’d achieved. This led to a lot of moaning and grumbling, and I was a complete bear to live with during that time (*sorry Mrs L!).

In recent years, I’ve learned that there’s a lot wrong with modern society, and that the values and pressures of modern life are just not healthy. In realising that, I’ve spent more time seeking what is important in life. Take this quote from The Abundance Site:

A friend of mine once said of his business partner, ?He?s given up his life in the single-minded pursuit of wealth. And now, wealth is all he has. So he obsesses about losing it. Since he never had a life, he has no idea of what to do with his money, even if he had time to enjoy it, which he doesn?t because he?s so accustomed to the treadmill he can?t even imagine getting off. Of course, the beautiful thing about the pursuit of money is that you?ve never got enough. So he keeps on chasing it, simply because he has no idea of what else to do with his life.? Barry Maher

The Abundance Site

The Abundance Site offers some simple, inspirational pearls of wisdom. Sometimes, when you’re blinkered by the trials and tribulations of everyday life, a visit to Chris’ site makes you stop for a minute and reprioritise.

The beauty of The Abundance Site is that it isn’t pushing a way of life on you, but - for me - provides a gentle reminder that the relentless cycle of modern life isn’t necessary and to slow down from time to time and enjoy life.

Update

It’s funny how easy it is to forget these to take a step back. I originally wrote this piece back in October last year, but couldn’t find a slot to post it.

In that time - as regular readers know - I hit difficulties with my job and fell into every one of the symptoms I described above! I believe that I’m overcoming those negative tendencies now, I’ll just have to re-read this post every now and again!

I’ve since discovered Jangly Ganglia, a site by Andrea Schwandt-Arbogast where she aims to post one positive experience per day to remind herself that good things happen every day! It’s a great site, and I’m looking forward to see what Andrea will build there.

I hope this post helps any of you who are in a bit of a funk right now!

Wednesday, March 8th, 2006 // Family Life, Spirituality & Stuff

I understand the Healing Through Remebering group had some concerns over the televised format of Facing The Truth, and having seen the overblow starting sequence, it’s easy to see why.

Whoever thought that it was a good idea to have Archbishop Tutu’s entrance by helicopter, that ridiculous ‘tension’ music and the over-the-top introduction by Fergal Keane needs their head examined. Hardly a sensitive treatment of a situation where breaved relatives meet a convicted killer.

Food For Thought

I’ve managed to catch a couple of episodes of Facing The Truth. The first thing that struck me was the incredible bravery of everyone involved. Yes, that includes the perpetrators.

Watching victims of violence come face to face with murderers was a tremendously difficult thing to watch, let alone be a part of. I can only imagine the kind of courage it takes to participate in a meeting like this.

Likewise for the perpetrator. Whatever you think of Michael Stone, he is a child of the ‘Troubles’ too. And whether you are cynical as to his motives (as Mrs Levee is), he at least showed up and told of his part in the Dermot Hackett murder. And as reprehensible as that sounds, I think the cold, hard facts were welcome also.

How intelligence was gathered by Loyalists and passed to him. How he tested the weapon that was used in the murder. How he had to dehumanize his targets in order to carry out the commands he was given. How he led a double life at the expense of his marriages and family.

However, I feel that Michael Stone was affected by his meeting with the Hackett family. For one thing, he couldn’t really look Sylvia Hackett in the eye. For another, he clung to the Loyalist intelligence that said Dermot Hackett was an IRA member, despite the obvious counter-claim that if he was an IRA member, then the IRA would have taken over the funeral and given him a military burial. As it was, the IRA publicly denied he was a member.

Can We Handle The Truth?

I have to disagree with the Healing Through Remembering group on this occassion. I think the people of Northern Ireland need to see this ’storytelling process’. We need to see both sides. That Stone’s crusade gained him notoriety and respect in Loyalist circles, did not protect him from facing the reality of a woman who he made a widow of.

As a group, the people of Northern Ireland need to see the consequence of bitter sectarianism and political division. Ian Paisley needs to see it. Gerry Adams needs to see it. Our ‘leaders’ need to see it because they’ve got it wrong over 40 years. While they’ve been busy exploiting the divisions in our society, they could have been busy uniting our society.

As I see it, those narrow political interests are as responsible for these deaths as the gunmen themselves. Anyway, I’ll tackle that later.

Thank You And Best Wishes

I feel it’s important to thank the Hackett family and Michael Stone for allowing their meeting to be televised. This wasn’t about confrontation - it was about resolution.

We got to hear both sides of the story, and though parts of it were hard to swallow, it seemed to be the truth. The most important thing is that this is about moving on from the past, and hopefully these meetings help people gain closure. No, they won’t change events of the past, and moving on will be difficult.

And also, where Stone claimed to dehumanize his victims, I think we need to be aware that we dehumanize (or demonize) the perpetrators of violence in Northern Ireland. Perhaps the people who once terrorised this province 20 years ago can become the same people who help us achieve peace in the end? Just a thought…

Anyway, I do hope this process has helped those involved to come to terms with the past and to move on in a positive way, both the victims and the perpetrators.

Tuesday, March 7th, 2006 // Northern Ireland: Politics

Have you voted in the “Favourite Northern Irish Place” poll yet?

We’ve had a whopping 92 votes in the last week, but I Want More!!! Email your friends. Pester colleagues at work. Call your mother and make her vote!!

I’m going to let the poll run until close of play on Friday and we’ll post the results then. So far, mid-Ulster/Sperrins is poorly represented in the poll. Will they catch up? Who knows….

Calling All Bloggers

Thanks to those of you who’ve bothered to link back to the poll - you will be honored in the evening of the results, a star-studded celebration of everything Northern Irish!!

If you’ve got a blog/website, please, please, please help us promote the poll! This poll has had the advantage of generating lots of positive comments about Northern Ireland, and it’s been great. See Paul’s post about the Castlereagh Hills, for example.

One more thing. I won’t be counting the smart-arse comments like Spain and bed!!!

Calling….The Media?

I dropped a few emails this evening to places like the Belfast Telegraph and the good old Stephen Nolan show to see if we could get a mention. I’d be interested to see if anything happens!

If anybody out there has media contacts, point them this way and we’ll see what sort of debate this will open up!

Monday, March 6th, 2006 // General

‘Facing The Truth’?is definately a programme on my ‘to watch this weekend’ list. Not as entertaining as my usual saturday line up of Dancing On Ice or whatever other reality TV show on at the time, but it does look like it will be interesting viewing.

I just caught a quick clip on tonights BBC newsline about the programme, for which Archbishop Desmnd Tutu travelled to Northern Ireland last year.

The basic premise is that the Archbishop acts as a facilitator between a handful of victims and perpetrators of Northern Ireland’s conflict. The programmes which run over three nights starting this Saturday, will include a police officer who was almost killed in the 70s meeting his shooter,?a British Soldier meeting with the sister of a young man he shot dead, and perhaps the most compelling is Michael Stone meeting with Sylvia and Roddy Hackett, the widow and brother of a man he is convicted of murdering in Miltown Cemetary.

In an interview with BBC tonight Michael Stone appeared to be repentant, and went as far as to apologise to the family of Dermot Hackett. At the end of the meeting an obviously distressed Mrs Hackett moved to shake Michaels hand and as she did she let out a yell of what sounded like a mix of despair and revulsion at what she had just done.

It was upsetting to watch, and just shows that even though decades may have passed, many of the scars of the troubles are still very raw.

I am interested to know how the meetings ended. Did anyone get the closure they needed? Did this help anyone move forward, or did it simply put them back to where they were 20 or more years ago.

The more cynical part of my brain remembers that last time Michael Stone was hitting the publicity trail and the autobiography that ensued.?I wonder if part two is due out anytime soon…….

Saturday, March 4th, 2006 // News & Media, Northern Ireland: Politics