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The Weight of Life

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The heaviest thing to carry through life is a

grudge.

Some carry them because they are unwilling to

forgive. Forgive not only the person(s) who

betrayed you, but yourself. We rather seek the

comfort of anger, hate and resentment, instead

of love, acceptance and peace of mind.

Some choose to carry a grudge for the

appearance of strength. We see this in politics

often. You did this to me, so Im going to do

this to you, because Im bigger, stronger and

more stubborn than you.

During our lives we all encounter people and

conditions that betrayed us in some way. It may

be deliberate or not. It may surface from a

misunderstanding or a lack of communications.

It is you who decides to take the path you will

take.

So many people burden themselves with

carrying the heavy load of a grudge.

If you think about what happens to the

individual who carries a grudge it can be scary.They begin to do irrational things. They become

sort of a pathological case. They begin to lose

the center of objectivity when you hold a

grudge. Reality is distorted, the true becomes

false and the false becomes true.

When you hold grudges it ultimately destroys

you as much as it does your spirit towards the

one you are begrudged to.

Of course, theres nothing wrong with getting

mad or upset with someone or something.

Whats important is why youre upset and what

you do afterward.

When you see something happening that is

wrong, what will you do about it?

Do you sit quietly and say or do nothing?

Do you stand up for truth regardless of whom it

is?

We all know people who hold grudges. The

question you need to ask yourself is what if

tomorrow never comes?

Why do you hold a grudge or malice towards

someone in your heart?

What you hold in your heart today may be the

deciding factor that leads you to where you will

be tomorrow.

Live, speak, and uphold the truth in all that you

do and you will find that life becomes much

easier to live. When you live in truth you have

nothing to hide or run from.

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You Cant Handle The Whole WeightWritten By: Timothy Valentine

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You normally learn who your real friends are in

times of controversy, crisis or personal

accomplishment. These are the people who will

have your back and will be happy for you. This

is also the same time you learn the true agenda

of your critics.

If you want to learn who is really your friend

and who isnt simply dream big and tell

someone what you are doing.

Observe the relationship or interaction.

Everyone can not see their future because they

are too busy looking back at their pass. Whenyou believe in yourself, have the faith to speak

openly about what you are trying to accomplish

and have the courage or how I like to say, the

testicular fortitude to set out to make reality of

what is just a dream, you will encounter

opposition.

When you become comfortable with your

station in life it is difficult to hear someone who

is singing a different tune. Often they are afraid

to go any further than where they are today out

of fear of what they may lose instead of focusedon what they may gain. So your dreams,

aspirations and ambitions are seen as challenges

to them and their way of life. This makes them

uncomfortable.

I say to keep dreaming, keep seeking, and keep

moving forward even when no one wants to

move. Make the path not only for yourself, but

for others.

Some will just look at you like youre crazy.

Those who you thought were your friends willdemonstrate their interpretation of the

friendship by the measure of their support.

Few may laugh, mock or regard you as just a

utopian dreamer and seek to bind you by their

definition of existence. Others will support your

efforts and even fewer with help, but when

youre comfortable with yourself you find all

the support you need.

One thing that Im learning to do with more

confidence is looking a person in the face. (I am

not suggesting that I avoid literally look a

person in the face. Im speaking about

addressing who they are.)

Just like many others, I was uncomfortable

addressing the faces of fear, hopelessness,

doubt, insecurity, hate or success, because I was

afraid of what I might see. We do this because

we are afraid of the image of what I am or who I

could be. So we avoided it. We flee towards the

comforts of where we are, what was and what I

am to avoid what we could or should be.

I revert to something my father said to me

awhile back that made sense when I listened to

its meaning. This is where I will end this

thought. I'm not sure who may get it, but this is

a point of inspiration for me. So in what I've

written I hope in sharing it may be the same for

you.

"When you have a vision, keep in mind that not

everyone will be able to see it. Don't give up.

Never lose sight of your dream."

-Bishop Andrew Valentine

Be the first to believe in yourself. Be willing to

stand alone for what you know to be true. No

one can see your vision without you leading the

way. I know of a few people who set out on an

improbably journey. They endured some bumps

and collected some bruises along the way, but in

time, with patience and hard work, others began

to see the same vision.

So when you have a vision, keep in mind that

not everyone will be able to see it. Some areblind to progress, but even the blind can

recognize greatness.

You may not be where you want to be today, but

you will never get there if you do not Aim High

and Don't Look Back.

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Aim HighWritten By: Timothy Valentine

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Why does what I believe matter to you?

Isn't the relationship a far more important thing

to concern myself with than to waste my time

arguing with anyone whether there is a God or

isn't a God, whether Jesus is the savior of us all

or a prophet?

It's OK for you or me to curse, but I'm damned

if I say in Jesus' name.

Why should that change the way you treat me or

I treat you?

If I am to be true to what I believe, then I canlove you for who you are above what you are. If

you are to be true to what you believe, then why

spend eternity debating what I or you should do

with our free-will?

Believe what you choose to believe. My faith is

strong enough to love you even if you can't love

me the same. You can believe that what I believe

is crazy. That's fine, that's what you believe. I

will only be judged by what I believe and

practice. I am not here to judge you.

Relationships are built upon mutual respect of,

for and towards each other. No two people agree

absolutely on any one thing.

So I have no problems being friends with

someone who is not a Christian, because as a

Christian I must strive to be like Christ. Which

includes the practice of love for one another. A

value I'm sure you have practiced yourself. You

may more in common with what I believe than

we give each other credit for.

I openly acknowledge the role people who calls

themselves Christians has played in the erosion

of morality within the Church. Free-will allows

that possibility, but that doesn't mean it agrees

with it.

What we get caught up in is ourselves. This is

true regardless of what you have chosen to

believe or not believe.

We spend more energy in opposing and hating

than we do loving and accepting each other. We

form our groups and uphold the "Us against

Them" mentality.

We have to stop God damning each other for not

being what we want them to believe or not being

more like you. Mutual respect has virtually been

at a lost in discussions regarding Faith, Religion

and Spirituality or whatever you call it.

We try to persuade each other with our words,

arguments and beliefs about what is true or

untrue about what we believe, but never place

much emphasis to what we are to what webelieve. Never offering consideration to the

relationship, just our own selfishness. I God

damn you, then you God damn me, but neither

realize that when we do this we are both

damned.

If you or I are confident in our beliefs, then only

the experiences of life will move you, not a

person.

This doesn't mean you can not be challenged in

your faith, but do it with respect and with theintent of uplifting than tearing down. It doesn't

make you any less or more of a person.

The war has been fought and won, why are we

still fighting? Put your weapons down and live

your life.

I can accept you for who you are and what you

believe, the question is why can't you do the

same towards me?

I have made my decision and I welcome you tojoin me in my journey as long as you're willing

to go, but if you want to go another way I can

sincerely say in love that I wish you well. I'm

going to keep walking this way.

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Losing My ReligionWritten By: Timothy Valentine

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The American Dream has been translated into

many languages. It rests its claims to be the

beacon of hope, liberty and freedom, but thats

not completely true in terms of reality. The

opposition to change for some is simply a

demonstration of who they are; a group of

individuals who has yet to realize the entirety of

what is the American dream.

Someone told a lie one day. It was directed

towards you and me. It was a lie that leads you

to believe that you could be anything you set

your mind to, because you were not like me.

Dont misunderstand that statement, because

when referring to me that could be referring to

you or me depending on how you read it.

Although this isnt about politics or any

individual politician, allow me to use areference that has political implications to it.

But dont become entangled in the example

more than its meaning.

Some were told that they could grow up and

become the President of the United States if they

put their mind to it.

Unfortunately for generations those were just

nice words used to encourage, not to be taken

seriously or ever realized. This is true by those

who believed it and those who thought they

would never realize it. But someone told a lie

one day.

When is it acceptable to associate yourself withsomeone or entity who stand silently on the

sidelines without demonstration or sustained

audible opposition to the injustice?

What will it take for some to understand their

role in history or how theyve been bound by it?

Why remain imprisoned with the mentality of

hopelessness or captive to the thought of

believing better days have past and the future is

grim? Someone told a lie one day and you

believed it.

The regressive ideology that has essentially

taken hold of the modern day political scene has

in fact rendered many apart of the problems

instead of being part of the solution.

What have we become when we are silent when

it calls on us to speak?

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Someone Told a Lie One Day | Written By: Timothy Valentine

Photo Credit: Normal Rockwell

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What is lost when we can accept losing our

integrity in order to win an election?

Racism, Race Baiting, Fear Mongering,

Xenophobia, Homophobia and other divisive

and coded language is not new to politics or

religion and no matter of sophisticated or subtle

it is done why have we given it a place in our

discourse?

No American political party can be exempt for

these practices in any election to date. Any given

Saturday or Sunday throughout the land we can

find segregated sanctuaries.

Whether unintentional or unconsciously

practiced, it happens. We say how terrible it is,

but what are we doing to make it any better?

When speaking of politics this comes into play

whenever theres a serious contender. Typically

of another race, culture, gender, religion or class

that dispels the socially or communally

accepted misconceptions, inaccurate

accusations and bigotry that has been

psychologically accepted in America towards

anyone who isnt like them or the whole of their

base support.

Why should we worry about anyone with a

clandestine mentality who harbor hatred even

when it is unconsciously or uninformed because

they disagree with me?

Why concern myself about the silence of the

sympathizers, apologists or the puppeteers of

hate?

When you know who you are in addition to

whose you are you see through the transparency

of the character, opposition and reality of those

who are committed to hate of any form.

So I will leave you with the question needs to be

answered. That is essentially one that ask, how

do you move the unmovable?

Change does not roll in on the wheels of

inevitability, but comes through continuous

struggle. And so we must straighten our backsand work for our freedom. A man cant ride you

unless your back is bent.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Stand up, straighten your back out and speak out

against the lie instead of lying prostrate before

truth. Someone told a lie one day and you

believed it.

We all have the desire to be heard, but who

listens anymore?

When those who are least affected stand taller

and speak with more passion than those most

affected by the lies that are told, then we will

have justice, then we will experience truth.

That's it. I'm done. Thank You for reading. I

appreciate your time and consideration.

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Someone Told a Lie One Day(Continued)| Written By: Timothy Valentine

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Ive always found it interesting when people

who I don't know if they were seeking

acceptance or approval who tells me that they

didn't vote for President Obama because of

race. I typically listen closer to them, because if

you didn't vote because of race why say thatyou didn't? It obviously was a consideration if

you have to say it. What is more interesting and

funny is there assumption that I voted for him

because of race.

So when I ask why is it that race isn't attributed

to White candidates as it is to everyone who

isn't? I can never get a honest response from

them if any. Im not convinced by your words,

but by your behavior and actions. I usually

would reverse it by saying that I didn't vote for

John McCain, but it's not because he's White. I

assume you voted for him because of race?

They typically change the subject.

Beyond race is the question of gender and

sexuality in politics. I do not want to get caught

up in a discussion of politics and race, but

politics and sexuality. This is where I want to

rest my thoughts today. I use the story of

Iceland's Prime Minister as example in asking

what matters to you.

provoke|7

Can I Count On Your Vote?Written By: Timothy Valentine

I have had many people say to me that their vote doesnt

see color. I have to take them at their word and let theiractions speak for themselves, but does your vote see

sexuality?

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The honorable Johanna Sigurdardottir became

the Prime Minister of Iceland in 2009. Prime

Minister Sigurdardottir who has children from

her previous (heterosexual) marriage is the only

openly gay head of state.

What I found interesting about this story is the

proof of Icelands lack of anti-discrimination

hypocrisy by never publicly making an issue of

Johanna Sigurdardottirs sexuality as a wedge

issue for political advantage.

I use the term anti-discrimination hypocrisy not

insinuating to practice of anti-discrimination is

hypocritical, because it isnt. I fully support anti-discriminatory practices and policies, both

public and private. What can make anti-

discrimination hypocritical is when those who

preach it do not practice it. For any anti-

discrimination practice to be true, the

philosophy must be applied to all, not some.

So I want to pose this question to everyone,

regardless of where you live in the world.

Perhaps we can learn a valuable lesson from our

Nordic friends in terms of true tolerance and

true acceptance. When our consideration isallowed to roam beyond the narrow confines we

apply it towards, (Ex: Within our political,

business, educational, economic, social and

religious applications) then we get to see the

person for who they are above what they are.

For those who have said to me that they dont

see color, but the content of a persons

character, then this is an excellent measure of

your sincerity or commitment to those words or

your understanding of the statement by

considering the possibility of a future Presidentor Prime Minister of your country being elected

by the content of his/her character and not the

color of their skin, religious practice or sexual

orientation.

It is only my opinion, but I would expect that if

a future Presidential Candidate was honest

enough to admit they were gay, lesbian or

bisexual, I believe the powers that be would

demonstrate the truth of who they are. Their

hopes of freedom and equality will essentially

be publicly voted upon by those who say they

are. The reason is that many are not even honest

enough with themselves to admit their biases,

whether it is overt or unconsciously practiced.

We say one thing, but practice another.

What if a future President or Prime Minister

was openly gay? Would you vote for him/her?

I use sexuality, because it is not typically

obvious of a person's sexuality. You can look at

someone and assume their race or ethnicity. You

can listen to someone and assume their

intelligence. You can work with someone and

learn their capabilities. You can talk to someoneand assume what they believe, but you can't

always figure out a person's sexuality.

So I will conclude and allow you to chime in,

but I leave you with this. Do not concern

yourself with the social perceptions of others,

just be true. When you are true to them, they

have little choice but to be true with you. Tell

me what you think? It's not about your religious

beliefs, political affiliation or even sexuality. It's

about your position on the boundaries of

discrimination. How would you vote? If it isreally just about the issues, then supporting

someone who is openly gay shouldn't be an

issue, should it?

Work Cited

AAP, "Iceland's gay PM weds partner ". The

Age. June 28, 2010 .

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Can I Count On Your Vote?Written By: Timothy Valentine

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