We live in a day and time when speaking one’s mind tends to serve as a badge of privilege. We have the “right” to make any of our thoughts – ALL of our thoughts – known to the public via multiple media platforms. We tend to believe that our “right” to loose our thoughts on an unsuspecting public requires no filter on our part. Thoughts find their paths into the world through our words and actions. Fact, truth or intent carry little weight as long as we fill the world with our “wisdom.”
As much as freedom of speech is a hallmark of our experience of liberty, we often fail to recognize the power of thoughts that find life through our words and actions. As I read news, “Fake News,” Tweets, FB posts, commentaries or opinion articles, I am convinced that we do not fully understand the power of our thoughts on others and more importantly, ourselves.
When we fail to filter our thoughts through fact, truth, necessity, purposefulness or usefulness then we run the risk of becoming a victim of self.
The Navajo people have a proverb that says, “Thoughts are like arrows: once released , they strike their mark. Guard them well or one day you may be your own victim.”
Just because we have thoughts that run through our mind does not mean that we should release them without first examining them. As much as I believe we should filter those thoughts for the benefit and betterment of others, perhaps the real lesson here is that if we fail to filter those thoughts, we just might sabotage our own personal integrity, legitimacy, trustworthiness or character.
The lesson? Pay attention to your thoughts. Evaluate their efficacy. Select them well. Release them only when convinced that they serve a greater purpose for the good of all. Otherwise, we become a Victim of Self!
Peace!
Mark E. Hundley
