My neighbor threw a block party last night and it was great. Renee and I really lucked out when we moved here. As we left to go home, one of our hosts, Barbara Peters, offered us copies of her new books. I started reading “He Said, She Said” this morning; and, while I hate reading, I am enjoying her book.
Barbara’s book is all about relationships and the “seven keys to relationship success”. Chapter One is about communications; and, as expected, the author is an expert at communicating her ideas in a simple to understand format. If the rest of the book is as good as Chapter One, this book will be a must read.
In Chapter One, the author quotes an unknown source:
“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”
If these five statements were the only wisdom derived from this book by its reader, the reader would walk away enriched and buying the book would have been well worth the cost. So, I’m going to ignore the rest of the book’s contents for now and focus on the above five lines.
In my day, thoughts became words and words took time to travel. Because there was a significant time lapse between the formation of words from thoughts and the subsequent dissemination of those words, the action caused by those words took longer to occur. Words could be rethought and deleted or changed, and actions could be tempered or stopped.
In today’s world, thoughts become words which lead to action in the blink of an eye. They travel along the internet at warp speed, perpetuating themselves into habits and forming one’s internet character and, I dare say, destiny.
When I was in school, there was this theoretical “permanent record” in which everything you did was recorded. Your permanent record could make or break you. It was like Santa’s list of who was naughty or nice. It, like Santa, was not real.
Unfortunately, fiction often becomes reality; and the internet has become your permanent record and realistically can determine your destiny. It is imperative that we teach our children and grandchildren to watch their thoughts carefully so that, if they become words, they are righteous words, words that they can be proud of. In 2021, words published on the internet are eternal and may lead to harmful, unforeseen actions later in life.
One last thought. In olden times, people judged your character based on your interactions with them. In 2021, people who don’t know you, have never met you and probably will never interact with you on a personal basis will judge your character based solely on your internet presence. Like your words, your internet character will be irrefutable, carved in stone.
So, today’s lesson is to carefully watch your thoughts, validate them and then share them in person with those you trust before they turn to words or actions.
Today’s joke follows:
If I ever win the lottery, I’ll give some of the money to charity.
And, if she isn’t dancing that night, I’ll give some to Destiny.
