"Dose are Nunn Bush, Mon!"

Fifteen years ago I thought my path lay in acting. So for three days each week--for about six months, until I realized that I didn't want that life, I'd take the train, bus or drive to NYC for auditions and classes. I lived three hours away. You wanna talk about long days of travel, rejection and confusion...

Though I'd find out clearly one day (that's a different story!) that doing the NYC starving-actor thing wasn't for me, I walked away with a slew of memories and unique stories. Remind me to tell you more another time but for now...

One day, while I was frightened beyond my capacity in "putting myself out there" and "trying to be seen", I ducked into one of 10,000 shoe stores in Manhattan. Hoping to get a pair of something conservative yet stylish, I tried on several pair and found that nothing was fitting. The shoe salesman was getting visibly frustrated with me. He was doing a performance of his own, holding his head in his hands, shrugging in amazement and breathing like an old steam radiator--from Jamaica.

As insecure as I was, I still knew that it was up to them to produce a pair of shoes that fit me, not for me to produce feet that filled their shoes. Nonetheless, I confess that felt like a fool with a gaggle of other shoe salesmen hanging around this empty store--watching their colleague working overtime with me, the customer who wouldn't just buy some shoes.

This had to end. I resolved (under almost intolerable pressure from the whole situation) that if these shoes were even reasonably comfortable, I'd buy them. Finally the chubby, frustrated Jamaican dude brings me over one more pair of shoes--that by his taunting posture and arrogant way of offering them to me, let me realize that I was now holding the finest shoe he could produce...the one pair that no man could deny. As soon as I put one on, I knew!

More crap! Could they gouge my feet in more places?! Looming over me with a face like Dirty Harry's saying, "I dare you not to like and buy these, punk" I looked up shaking my head and said, "...no, they hurt my feet". Exasperated, he attempted a final coup de gras!

Shaking his head in disbelief while raising his hands to the heavens, he called out for all to hear, "Dose are Nunn Bush, Mon!"

Dude!

What in the hell does them being Nunn Bush have to do with anything?! If they are killing my feet should I feel better because people will see what I'm wearing as I'm limping down Park Ave?

Likewise if your attitude sucks, your workmanship is mediocre or you're unable to deliver on the promise of your service--who cares how cute you are, how fancy your site is or how assertively you speak?

Let who you are do the talking.

RR

Until

You started that project for a reason.

You declared your ambition because you wanted something.

Using good judgement, you made a decision.

One little word will shape your entire destiny: until.

"I will try" becomes "I will until."

You can't sort of go the distance. If you want what you say you want, want until...

Don't Compromise,

RR

I've Been Struggling

"I wrote a book! What's the deal?! I wrote pages about "enthusiasm" but I can't write 500 words about it now?!"

This, plus out and out avoiding writing, left me without the needed copy for my new website. "I know! I'll take RonRenaud.com down and that will press me to finish!" No good...didn't work.

"Wait, I'll rehire my editor now (before I've written much) so I can put myself on a deadline." Still, I wasn't able to write anything very coherent.

Through this time, I've been upset by a professional relationship that has not been right. Full of failed expectations, disappointed hopes and frustrated deadlines until at last (add image of parting clouds, rays of blinding sun and the sound of a heavenly chorus of angels singing), a conversation. It was a conversation that spoke hard truths from both sides, was made safe by plenty of compassion and fortified by rigorous expectations for future work.

This conversation re-established a more powerful alliance than ever had been. Amazingly (or not) I was immediately inspired and focused. The newly resurrected trust spurred my lagging desire to write as well as awoke my dormant creativity. ...and boy did I write.

It was such a striking and visceral example of when something just isn't working in our lives, we can't just pretend all is fine or avoid the issue. Everything affects everything.

The point isn't that things ought to be perfect or that we should just press on despite challenges but, with a touch of elegance perhaps, recognize that we need to deal with ourselves, others and circumstances honestly. It's our willingness to see, speak and live with the truth that allows us to do something powerful with "what is" as we're working to make things better for ourselves and others.

RR

A Valid Question...or Two

In checking out this blog today, what did you hope to find?

Did you hope to be inspired?

Were you looking for a bit of wisdom to consider for the day?

What you want, lies within you.

Speak your wisdom aloud, now!

Do something today that inspires even yourself.

RR

...and it's still wisdom.

If Charles Manson tells you that 2 + 2 = 4, would you believe him?

If North Korea's Kim Jong Il told you that The Age of Reason, a book by Thomas Paine, was written as an attack on the claims of religion and the legitimacy of the Bible, would his statement be untrue?

Because your favorite reporter, your most adored politician, most loved professor--because your mother, best friend or trusted pastor, rabbi or imam says y is the best policy, peace is necessary through x or that "we" are better or "they" are different or...will it make that assertion true?

Wisdom is wisdom and truth is truth--regardless of its source. Likewise foolishness, folly, ignorance and deceit are each what they are regardless of our affection for their source.

We each need to search for and discover truth and wisdom for ourselves, only then can we possess it and live through it. If we don't get it for ourselves, what we do get won't be wisdom at all. And in fact will have a lot more pain and repeated errors than necessary.

Since you can't borrow wisdom from another and the alternatives to wisdom are frightful (ignorance, blindness, victimhood...), let's each consider what we know and how we know it--and endeavor to be hungry for wisdom.

Uncompromisingly Yours,

RR

What is Justice?

Really, there are so many ideas that we can't avoid engaging. Justice is one of them.

So often we assume what something means, often unconsciously, and then go about the business of life as if it were accepted fact and those who disagree with us are somehow missing something. Are they?

First things first, let's get clear about this universal idea that's reflected in our every thought and action--including everyone else's too!

We all want justice; but what is justice?

Justice is a doctrine of fairness or right.

We always feel justified in our thoughts and actions (at least in the moment); but who or what determines what is really justifiable concerning a particular issue at a certain time regarding a specific issue?

Ah, here lies the rub. Unthought out rationale can't help but produce purely inherently selfish justification. Why? Because without considering a higher truth or greater purpose, we all default to justice meaning our being right--our justification. Well, that's not going to work.

Think about the countless religions, philosophies, beliefs and experiences possible in this world and compound it by billions of individual perspectives that both reflect the afore mentioned factors as well as transient moods, the gain of experience (traumatic and pleasurable) and perhaps wisdom, we're going to end up with quite a soup of ideas on what the nuances of justice really are. And subsequently how we relate with one another.

Call me a peace-freak but I'm just idealistic enough to believe that heaven on earth, the kingdom of God, utopia and nirvana is possible, NOW!

I'll propose no answers but I will ask a couple of questions--as I believe new, different, better questions produce awareness, sensitivity and wisdom. From wisdom and sensitivity come better conversations and better solutions to problems within ourselves, with our families and with the nation 10,000 miles away.

What is just? What is right?

How can you know?

How can that be verified?

What is the virtuous and wise application of what you understand to be just?

How would you know if you're right? How would you know if you were wrong?

Justifiably Yours,

RR