Butterfly taking a respite

When being a caregiver to an ill person one often needs a ‘respite care’, short-term, temporary relief for the caregiver. A caregiver is not much help to anyone if the caregiver health fails.

In a sense we are all caregivers, serving those in need or ill in society. If we are awake going through life we see all times of suffering, death and illness around us. We can only do our best as a caregiver but even at that we sometimes need a respite.

Some turn to TV, sports, humor, drinking, and reading to find respite. Some turned to God and spirituality for relief. To live fully alive is to be in need of rest and respite. However, the alternative is to walk through life asleep, not literally but figuratively, reacting not responding. Some persons just ignore what they do not want to know and feel. Some find scapegoats rather than face reality.

I have been getting many emails about a Nazi rally this weekend in nearby West Allis. People are organizing a protest against this hate group. Hate groups like Nazi thrive on publicity and reaction. Now the newspaper, due to the reaction, has picked up on this event. I wrote to friends in the peace movement to just ignore this hate rally, rather than give it creditability by reacting to it. A few persons wrote back agreeing with me but most just ignored me. I told one young man today that was planning to go to the anti rally that I wish the same people would attack, rather than ignore, my views and positions. If I did not react to them it would be great publicity to my views.

A respite, unlike a reaction, is when we get away from the daily grind of living fully and alive. A reaction, unlike a respite, is when we react rather than respond to the crisis we face.

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