It is Halloween eve and I'm thinking about the 100 or so neighborhood trick or treaters I'll soon be seeing dressed in a myriad of costumes trying to hide their identity. Similarly, during the day I found myself lost in thought over the marketing disguises and media camouflage that our government and businesses are using to hide the real truth from us. The reality we are beginning to uncover is that our government has used up much of the "baby boomers" retirement funds and health benefit allowances. However, there is no need to make freaks and witches out of the various officials because in the end we have all been a party to these monstrous acts of deception and fraud.
Each of us at one time or another has gone to the election polls and merely voted on certain issues and candidates without knowing the truth about them. Additionally, we have simply gone about our lives assuming the everyone in the business and commerce arena was competent and honest and in the end everything was going to be just fine...just like in the movies. Many retirement and pension funds have been misused or misspent and will be unavailable to the payee when needed. The Halloween horror is that we must now confront this worst of scenarios and stand up and help change the ending of the film we are living in.
We can no longer become overly absorbed in the world of self vanity or mass media, entertainment, sports, possessions, clothes and vacations. We must know ourselves and our needs. We must not assume that others will not dishonor us if we give them the opportunity. We must take steps to truly know and understand the people we entrust with our governmental accountability, environmental policies, fiscal processes and everyday decisions. Television sound bites, campaign signs and religious slogans do not give us the opportunity to grasp any significance into the character of the individual or the group he or she represents.
After "the system" fails totally in a few years we will know how and where to start to rebuild. The "real life" truth is that we all must take responsibility for our lives from start to finish. When we slow down and appreciate each moment we are given we will treasure the opportunity to be involved in everyday decision making. It is then that Halloween becomes All Saints' Day and each of us sees that our Father God loves us and recognizes our attempts to honor him in our words and through our actions to ourselves and others.
