Artwork & content Copyright 2009 Jean Burman
(unauthorised use prohibited)
I stumbled upon a funny article this week. Penned back in 1961 in the Weekend Magazine, it posed the curly question “Will life be worth living in 2000AD?”
(Click on the link for an uproarious belly laugh)
A further 9 years down the track… and now 48 years since the question was raised… I thought it might be fun to see how the world was thinking back then.
Along with the perplexed expression on the man’s face… and advertisements for “all manner of things” down the side… ie. “glamourous” undies, haemorrhoid ointment, dandruff treatment, bust enhancement exercises and guitar lessons (which seriously brings into question what in the heck was going on back then) I thought it was hilarious… and not altogether that far fetched!
The predictions of computers as home help, automatic doors, dried and processed food, food in tablet form and global mass communication were all pretty close to the truth in today’s reality. And whilst rocket belts and air walls are still some way off yet… the rest of it was more than plausible… especially the prediction about food-less foods and how bored we will all be because everything is so easy (granted… they were a bit wide of the mark there. People might be bored… but not because life is so easy!)
This got me thinking about the future and what might lie ahead for us all. And how no-one can answer that… because nobody knows. Not even me. Especially not me… and I’m someone who really wants to know!
But a quick glance back through history soon shows… that not only do we not know what will happen in the future… but no-one else did either. And that never stopped them!
Have you ever read the biography of a remarkable life and thought how it all seemed so easy for them? Reading on… the person’s charted and charmed life seemed plotted from the start… and all that was required of them was to follow their predestined path to it’s natural conclusion.
Somehow I doubt that it was ever that easy. For sure these people had plans. But when circumstances changed… they had to learn to roll with the punches just like the rest of us. It seems to me that we each start with the very same handicap.
We simply don’t know what the future holds.
But sometimes that ”not knowing” can stop us in our tracks.
Fear is the primary (de)motivating factor in the decision to stay put in an ordinary life. “Extraordinary” lives are lived by “ordinary” people who learn to step away from the fear of what might happen… and move on with the daily process of courageously living each day as it comes.
It took me quite some time to get my head around this concept. And clearly I am still pondering here!
But one thing’s for sure… life’s going to happen no matter what.
“But gee… times are tough… it might not work out!” So what? There are no guarantees!
And no-one can tell you with all honesty that it will be easy. They don’t know. Nor do you. But we can all learn how to roll with the punches.
Living each day “doing what we can and must” is our best (our only) option. And who knows… it might all work out for us.
So what happens in the end? Who even wants to know?
If we get off our backsides and get on with doing something meaningful and worthwhile right here… right now… don’t you think it could be a whole lot of fun to look back in a couple of years with a deep sense of accomplishment and say…
“Wow… will you look at that?”
“Who could have known?”
(But that’s just what I think)…. (((chuckles)))
Cartoon Pen & Watercolour Copyright 2008 Jean Burman
It’s hard to believe it’s all over.
Over the past two weeks we have borne witness to too many awe inspiring record breaking achievements to mention individually here. What has struck me the most has been not so much the Gold medals won… but the individual struggle in the attempt to capture one.
The stories of “almost getting there… but not quite” have been compelling. And the loss wasn’t because the athlete didn’t try hard enough… or wasn’t good enough (sometimes there was just a hair’s breadth between the times or performances)… but because someone has to win. And needless to say… the winner takes all… even if by only a fraction of a millisecond… or by the placement of one foot… deemed to be just millimetres out of line.
Saturday’s synchronised swimming was nothing short of “amazing”. As was the rhythmic gmnastics (with rope apparatus). I didn’t necessarily agree with the judges and believe with all my heart that Belarus did far better than Russia… but so what… it was nonetheless absolutely “wonderful” to see such dedication, discipline, cooperation and commitment to the task at hand.
But these are the traits that must surely be the hallmark of all Olympic achievement.
So did Michael Phelps’ size 14 feet really propel him to greatness? No… not without his years of dedicated training and the will to do it.
Did Kerry Walsh’s height give her an advantage in getting the ball so effectively across the net in the beach volleyball? Sure… but not without her commitment to purpose.
And physical advantage doesn’t explain how little Kristi Harrower… the formidable number 10 with the Opals Australian Women’s Basketball Team… manages to do what she does so well from below the level of everyone else’s armpit!
There was success against the odds… with Anna Meares winning silver… after her massive claw back from a C2 spinal injury endured in a crash during competition just 8 months ago.
And there was terrible loss… with Liu Xiang’s dramatic withdrawal from competition bringing shock and disappointment to billions. Nonetheless… the athlete courageously lined up on the blocks in an attempt to fearlessly carry on… despite a catastrophic achilles heel injury that was set to prevent him from doing the job. Yet… incredibly… the will was still there.
My only small disappointment was Stephanie Rice’s acceptance of Seven network’s $700,000 enticement not to appear on rival network Nine’s 60 minutes program last night along with the rest of the Aussie contingent. And Michael Phelps absence from the closing ceremony due to endorsement commitments elsewhere. Seems that money gets in the way of everything. Shame that.
But all medals and prospective endorsements aside… the Games of the 29th Olympiad have (in my opinion) been a huge success in human terms.
They have given insight into the immense human struggle to reach an individual’s top form. They have given courage and inspiration to those who witnessed that struggle against the odds. They have brought peace and co-operation between countries unheard of through diplomatic or political process. They have shown us how to win with courage… and how to lose with grace… (and in some cases without it!) (grin)
The Olympic Games has brought a country that had previously been little understood out into the spotlight for all to see. We may not agree with all that she does… but China’s entry on to the world stage through the hosting of these Olympics has… in my view… been a complete success. The world’s cultural and ethical differences can only be resolved through openness and understanding… compromise and co-operation.
The Olympic Games… despite the nationalistic emphasis… has gone a very long way toward bridging the gulf that unnecessarily divides us.
One World – One Dream… is no longer a dream.
It really happened.
