KEEPING YOUR SANITY THROUGH THE ADVENTURE OF EMPATHY
Empathy is about orienting to the reality of another person’s subjective experience. It is the desire and effort we take to understand another person. Without the attempt at understanding somebody who’s different from us (namely everyone else) we don’t have all of the data; we’re missing part of the truth.
Kindness, empathy, and understanding are what lead to much happier relationships; and happier relationships are at the heart of a happier life.
If you want to enjoy an immediate sense of happiness, the most powerful action you can take is to do something kind toward another person. If you want to give someone you care about a sense of joy, be curious about them, respond to them… listen to them.
The fundamental quality that leads to greater empathy is curiosity. Curiosity about the other person’s internal experience allows us to wonder important, meaningful things; to imagine what they might be experiencing that leads them to think or feel or behave as they do.
HEAVEN IN THE CARIBBEAN
Quick – name the only country in the world named after a woman. It’s the island nation in the Caribbean of St. Lucia, named after the patron saint of virgins, 4th century Saint Lucia.
The charm, beauty, and serenity of St. Lucia are unequaled in the Caribbean. Here you can have your own private retreat overlooking the twin peaks of The Pitons. The St. Lucian people take great pride in the immaculate spotlessness of their island and in their matchless reputation for personal warmth and hospitality.
While an English-speaking country and member of the British Commonwealth, there is a French tradition here as well, reflected in the fine cuisine and wines in restaurants. Yet I became fond of the local Piton beer as well. St. Lucia is the easiest island in the Caribbean to fall in love with – so it is no wonder that couples come from all over the world to get married or honeymoon here.
If you want to spend a few days of bliss away from all the cares of the world, you can’t do better than this place of heaven in the Caribbean. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #190 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
FLASHBACK FRIDAY – CANNIBAL TREEHOUSE
August 1977. High in the mountains above the source of the April River, a tributary of the Sepik in Papua New Guinea, I had a First Contact with an undiscovered tribe calling themselves the Wali-ali-fo. They ate “man long pig,” cooked human meat and lived in thatch dwelling built up in trees. Here I am in one with my Sepik guide Peter who got me here.
Peter translated a description of their practice: “When a man dies, we take a pig to his wife and exchange it for the body of the man. We take the body out into the forest and…cook ‘im eat ‘im. We do this so the man will continue to live in the bodies of his friends.”
Not something we’ll do but something we can understand, yes? These are people we could laugh and joke with, tell stories with, enjoy being with. A very different culture, but human all the same. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #148 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
CHINESE PROSTITUTES
For more information, read Peter Schweizer’s Red-Handed
HALF-FULL REPORT 02/18/22
No wonder more and more rats keep deserting their own ship. On Tuesday (2/15): NY Rep. Kathleen Rice Is The 30th House Democrat To Bow Out Of 2022 Race. She sure won’t be the last.
It’s not just that they fear not getting reelected. Their real fear is far more substantial. They know: 1) Pubs are going to win big majorities in the House & Senate; 2) Dems are going to cheat any way they can in desperation; 3) Pub victories will be too big for the cheating to overcome.
Result: Pubs will be running all the committees, embarking on no-holds-barred investigations of Dem cheating to expose any and all malefactors. Since the targets for prosecution will be those who ran in ‘22, retirees who didn’t avoid ending up at the Graybar Hotel. Simple calculation.
Here’s a startling example of how bad it’s getting.
WODAABE MEN MUST LOOK BEAUTIFUL TO ATTRACT THE LADIES
The Wodaabe are cattle-herding nomads in Niger, West Africa. Their Gerewol festival features Yaake dances by the men to impress marriageable ladies with how ideally handsome they are. Those ideals include being tall and athletic, having white eyes and white teeth, decorating themselves colorfully, and having a winning smile.
The Wodaabe are a fun-loving, friendly, and hospitable people. You’ll meet them on our Trans-Sahara Expedition when we’re next able to operate one. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #57 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SKYE’S LINKS 02/17/22
Pathetic! The Xiden administration, desperate to keep their Wag The Dog Ukraine scare alive accuses Zerohedge of being a Russian agent of influence - its Russia,Russia,Russia all over again:
Nolte: Without Proof, Feds Accuse Zero Hedge of Russian Collaboration
Xiden's puppet masters desperately need distractions; they certainly don't want you to read this:
Jake Sullivan's Role in Pushing Russian Collusion Hoax Questioned after Durham Filing
Or this:
Waltz: Durham's Clinton Spying Revelations 'a Massive, Massive Scandal'
Sorry, Hillary – You’re Toast for ’24!
GOP BACKS DONALD TRUMP AGAINST “BIGGEST CRIME IN U.S. HISTORY”
Republicans are expressing fury over allegations Hillary Clinton operatives paid a contractor to spy on former President Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign and into his presidency.
They are calling it the “biggest crime in U.S. history” while demanding “a total clean out of the political class in Washington.”
Taking to social media, Republican lawmakers offered critical reactions, with Trump calling the scandal “worse than Watergate.” Here are over two dozen of their spitting-mad denunciations of Democrat crimes against the President.
GLOBAL WARMING IS GLOBAL GREENING
Global warming is real. It is also beneficial.
This startling fact is kept from the public by a determined effort on the part of alarmists and their media allies who are determined to use the language of crisis and emergency.
The biggest benefit of increased CO2 emissions is global greening, the increase year after year of green vegetation on the land surface of the planet. Forests grow more thickly, grasslands more richly and scrub more rapidly. This has been measured using satellites and on-the-ground recording of plant-growth rates. It is happening in all habitats, from tundra to rainforest.
I bet Greta Thunberg did not tell you that. But TTP will… and there’s more to tell as well.
THE ANTI-ALCHEMIST
Medieval alchemists sought to turn base metals into precious metals like gold. The more the alchemists bumped into the reality that gold was an element, the more desperately they sought to find fantastic ways to fabricate the rare element out of nothing.
Joe Biden operates on the same alchemist principles. He tries to turn his record of dross into golden success. Hard to do when the prices of gas, food, and houses—the stuff of life—are collectively rising far higher than just 7.5 percent. Biden is hunting for the same magic excuses to fabricate a golden spin on crime.
Perhaps the greatest Biden catastrophe was turning an energy independent, oil and gas exporting nation into a dependent importer again. Looks like Joe wants to turn gold into trash, instead of the other way around.