Author: Ray Barbier

I am just an average man who loves writing, thinking and trying to inspire kindness, love, understanding and Compassion in others and try to find them within myself.
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Walk the path you choose and beat your drum the way you like


HPIM0611  The life you live is yours to lead and is fully your own responsibility, you can ether take control and live your life the way you choose or allow others to make the choices for you. If you choose to make your own choices or not you still are responsible for the choices made and are liable for any negative results that come from the choices. Responsibility for your actions be they actions of your choice or actions created by the situation around you is fully yours.

It is better to be responsible for the choices you have made than to pay for the choices made for you by someone else. Plus you would probably make far better choices for your own self knowing that there are consequences that come along with the actions and decisions you make. I read somewhere that there are two type of people, there are those that follow and those that are born to lead. I think that is a load of hogwash, every person has it within them to be a leader and to be a follower is to rely on the judgment of others and that usually never ends well for the follower.

I myself for many years allowed others to lead me and make decisions for me only to find myself usually unhappy and paying the cost for living in that way. The problem is I can not even have anger towards those I allowed to control my life for it was my own decision to allow them to do so. So I am stuck with the consequences  from the things that I was lead into and feeling guilt for the damage done. I have recently started taking my own life into my hands and facing the wind on my own. Fully responsible for my choices and proud to fail as well as succeed as an individual. I follow my own path and dance to the beat of my own drum for now on.

Do I always make the right choice? no. But at least when I do make a mistake it is my own and it came from my own choice not a reflection of someone else’s  choice for me or from a perception of what I think others want me to be or do.Where I will end up in the end and if I am happy or not is now in my hands and not one person can or will choose that for me again.

Be a leader of your own life, and cast off the chains of societies ideal of what you are supposed to be. Choose to be the best of who you are regardless of what others try to say you should do or be. Walk the path you choose and beat your drum the way you like. For it is your life to live not anyone else’s.

 

Well that’s my thoughts on this subject anyway.

May peace be your comforter and love be your guide

Raymond Barbier

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Wake up, open our eyes and Listen


alarm clock, bought from IKEA
Image via Wikipedia

The alarm clock has been going off for years yet we sleep through it.

The warning signs are everywhere one can look yet we seem to be blind.

The truth is in our own hearts and still we remain ignorant of its existence.

Too many distractions to pull our attention away from what is truly important.

Too many times we choose to overlook the obvious only to embrace the obscure.

Dreaming in a wakeful state is the way a lot of us tend to live.

Sleep walking humans in a world full of deception and misdirection.

Time to wake up, open our eyes and listen to our heart.

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You are a Unique and Wonderful Being


003 I have noticed in the human society we tend to set standards for what we consider beautiful , successful  and many other attributes. Most of the standards now days are forced upon us via the visual media such as television and movies. Constantly we are bombarded with images of what we are supposed to look like and how we should behave by the media we watch. This can create a very negative self-image in some people because we all can not be super skinny.

  We need to look within ourselves for the truth about what is beauty and what we see as success and be realistic when setting our own standards instead of trying to reach the unrealistic standards of the media we enjoy, We all can not be super models, business tycoons, inspirational leaders or the perfect friend. We are all different in both our potential and in our creative capabilities. Instead of trying to be something we are not for the sake of being  as good as what we see on t.v. we should try to be ourselves and put our energies in molding ourselves into the best possible version of who we truly are.

Being social creatures we also tend to rely on the judgments and opinions of others to evaluate our self worth instead of relying on our own selves. It may be nice to be liked and appreciated, but to be liked or appreciated for pretending to be someone or something you’re not only leaves you unhappy in the end. There will always be those who do not like you and others that may be jealous of who you are that will try to make your life hard. But there are also a lot of people who will like you for who you really are and will always be there for you through your life.

God made every one of us, so each and every one of us are wonderful and unique. So live your life being the best you can be and worry not of anyone’s opinions for you are a unique and wonderful being.

Well enough of my early morning babbling for today.
Peace and Understanding be you Guide.
Raymond Barbier

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Thoughts on Forgiveness


Good Shephard

Self Forgiveness is one of the most important steps to happiness, to face the mistakes and wrong doings in one’s life is something we all must do. To look back upon those mistakes and to accept the responsibility of our actions.  Once we accept responsibility we must learn from those mistakes and/or wrong doings and forgive ourselves as well as move forward. To make mistakes and to make poor choices in our life is what humans do to learn and to evolve mentally if not spiritually.  As long as we learn from the mistakes and feel some remorse for the things we have done then it is time to forgive and forget so we can move forward in life.

From a Christian point of view we are forgiven our sins through the grace of Jesus but if we can not forgive ourselves or others how are we to expect such grace from the heavens?  If you believe in Christianity and the blood of Christ then you must forgive both yourself and others. Jesus taught forgiveness and compassion so we could learn the way to salvation. He would have not wasted his time teaching the lessons he did if they were not of importance. His death and resurrection were to be an example of how grand the love of god is as well as how important we all are as a species.

Forgiveness, Compassion and Love are universal and apply to both the one who gives them as well as the those who receive. Learn to forgive and not to repeat the same mistakes as well as teach others to do the same.

 

Well enough of my Babbling for now,Peace and Love be your guide through this world of chaos.

Ray Barbier

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Good old days and the here and now.


Neighborhood watch sign in Jefferson County, C...
Image via Wikipedia

I listen and read about how every one misses the good old days, back when crime was low and the streets were pretty safe. back when neighbors knew each other and watched out for one another. Back when the word community meant a town that worked together for the common good of all who lived there. Those days may be gone, but it does not mean they can not ever return. We chose to become distant from our neighbors and chose to become less active and interested in our communities. The crime rate is one thing that was a result of the lack of community effort as well as lack of neighborhood interaction.

The loss of the closeness of neighbors striped away the network of communication and the concern for each other allowing crime to enter in without anyone or anything to stop it. We used to call the police or our neighbor when we saw a strange car driving and parking near their house. We also used to watch over the children in the neighborhood to make sure they didn’t get hurt or any trouble. We have become apathetic and blind to what is going on around us unless it involves our own property and family. This gives the criminals an easy way in to the neighborhood and allows crime to grow unchecked.

When I was a child I knew at least 30% of the neighbors on my street and my parents knew over half of them. If I were to had been hurt, harassed or even kidnapped more and likely my parents or the police would have known almost instantly. We all cared about the safety and wellbeing of all our neighbors, even the ones we didn’t like that much.

We can recapture a lot of the things we had in the good old days though the innocence we all had back then is forever lost. A neighborhood who are as a community and band together for the good of each other is a neighborhood that creates an unattractive environment for  crime and criminals. For when we band together we are harder to intimidate and we are strong enough to overcome fear. Alone we are potential victims and together we are a potential threat to criminals. Plus being friends with your neighbors makes for a happier environment for both you and your children to live in.

Basically we may bot be able to go back to the good old days but we can create a good days for ourselves and our families to live in here and now. The choice is ours and has always been ours to choose.

Raymond Barbier

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Allow distractions to interfere with our lives


100_0063Life is short and full of distractions, if we allow ourselves to be distracted by things we tend to overlook and neglect the people who are important to us. So many things left unsaid and undone every day because of our willingness to allow distractions to interfere with our lives. We tend to put our families, friends and lovers on the back burner to our jobs and sometimes to our recreational activities. This can create tension in our relationships and usually it tends to create an unhappy atmosphere. I do not think that anyone purposely puts their career or recreation above their family, lovers or friends. I believe for the most part it is you start working more hours and etc. to give your family a better life financially. Our society has went from one that focused on the family and on making sure they had food, cloths, a roof over their head along with a good education to more of a materialistic society. Sure we still focus on the family and try to give them the necessities but we also try to make sure we keep up with the Jones’s next door.

  Trying to keep up with the Jones’s and Smith’s is one of those distractions that takes away the time and energy that could be focused on your family, lover and friends. Possessions can be stolen, lost and will eventually either break down or become obsolete unlike the love and companionship of friends and family.Maybe a camping trip or fishing trip with the kids and spouse would be better than buying a new game console for the kids or that atv. Togetherness and sharing experiences is what builds strong relationships along with good character in children.Family outings teaches children the importance of family and even friends.

  Now there isn’t anything wrong with wanting to give your family the things it wants along with the things it needs as long as you don’t work so many hours you are at loss for time to enjoy life with them. Now don’t get me wrong, I do understand one must work to pay the bills and keep a roof over their head. But you should always try to find time to spend with the family and worry less about the less important thing like luxury items.There is always a way to balance out things and a way to both give the family what it need and some of the things they want. We all just need to evaluate everything in our lives and prioritize with the family as the main focus.

“Family is the foundation of the life we live”

Raymond Barbier

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So a fool I may be


021  I am just a fool seeking the path to wisdom, I am just an average Joe trying to become a sage. I had walked many paths and have taken many turns on my quest for wisdom only to come full circle to back where I had started. I am yet a fool, but some wisdom I have gained along the way. I am still an average Joe walking on the many roads of life. I keep moving forward in hope of finding wisdom and becoming wise before my time here is over.

I may be a fool but I have learned that no man or woman is greater than another. No ones life is less important than another’s because we all contribute to the world around us. I have found that being happy is just as much as a choice as being sad. We choose for the most part how we relate to this world. I also learned it isn’t how much you have but how much you love and enjoy the things your are blessed with that makes life good.

So a fool I may be, but a fool that has found wisdom through his mistakes as well as from his few good choices. I will keep learning and seeking out wisdom for that is my path to follow.

For what a man will be remembered for is not how rich, powerful or famous he may have been, he will be remembered for how he treated others along with his actions good or bad. For every one of our words and all of actions are a reflection of who we truly are within. They also affect everyone and thing around us in one way or another. Good works may not get one into heaven but they can create a better world to live in. 

“Forgiving yourself is just as important as forgiving others”

Raymond Barbier

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When we were young, As we grew older


001  When we were young we lived each day without any care or fear of what the future may bring. We accepted what was before us and embraced change as if it where a brother or sister. As we grew older we started learning to fear the unknown as well as to worry about what may or may not happen in the near future. We went from truly living life in the moment to fearing the future and losing the ability to live in the here and now. Fear has its purpose but it is not meant to be a every day thing. Let the past lay in the past and let the future take care of its self, for the only time and moment we should think about or live in is the present.

Live in the here and now, Love those we have been blessed to have in our life and embrace every moment we have to live. The present is a gift that we should cherish much like the past is something we should remember but not live in. The future is something we can not really control though many live in the illusion that they can. When we were young we also accepted others for what they were and rarely looked for fault in their character. We judged no one and rarely judged our own selves. We looked for the good in all things instead of looking for the bad. Some call that innocence, I say it is living life the way it was intended to be.

If one goes through life only looking for fault in themselves and others then that is all that they will find. Obviously we all have faults and none of us are perfect so finding fault in someone is so much easier than seeing the good in them. We can not ignore the faults but we can try to see beyond them and accept them. We should focus on the good in ourselves and others, we should also try to help bring out the better qualities within ourselves and those around us. For we only have this one life to live and should try to make the best of it.

Live for today and seize the moment
Raymond Barbier

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Just a Saturday Morning Political Rant


The western front of the United States Capitol...
Image via Wikipedia

  Corrupt politicians and big businesses that care more about a profit than the people who work for them rule the modern world we live in. So many voices crying out for change and freedom and very few ears in places of power willing to listen or even care. Revolution and civil wars across the globe with little change or evolution. Greed and the lust for power overrule the needs of the people as well as the needs of the planet. Storms raging across the face of  both land and sea devastate populations and yet they play politics in the houses of government.

Forcing people to work longer and to an older age before they can retire while trying to keep them from a good healthcare system while taxing the poor to death. It definitely time to put term limits on congress as well as time to make them work for minimum wage with the same low end benefits if any at all. If those in power had to live in the conditions of the common working man they might be able to do more on capital hill. But with 6 figure salaries and their grand benefits they can not see the wrong in dismissing or the dismantling of social security, welfare, Medicaid or Medicare. They are rich enough and have government subsidized insurance along with a federal government retirement to live off of.

  Too much political banter and saber rattling and not enough intellectual discussions on the true problems at hand. Yes we need to balance the budget, the fat needs to be trimmed and the dead weight dumped. But to once again put all of the burden on the backs of the working man and elderly is not acceptable. We need a fair tax system that eliminates  all the loopholes and tax shelters for the rich and forces a more level playing field in the taxation of the citizens. The notion that because they make so much money they shouldn’t pay no more in dollars than a working man is just hogwash. It should be based on an a percentage of the total income. If a man that makes 25,000 would have to pay a certain percentage of his income for taxes why shouldn’t the man who makes 2,000,000 do the same?

Putting the fact the income tax system is not fair or balanced, the fact we need to cut spending is a fact we can not ignore. We need to study each and every program, agency and political office to see where the fat is and cut it out if not at least trim it off a bit. There are so many government projects/programs that are not financially efficient or are no longer effective. Revamp or eliminate such projects/programs and fine tune the rest of them. We also need to stop borrowing money to only give it away as foreign aid, there is plenty of nations and political organizations we could work with to direct foreign aid to the countries in need. This world is not just the responsibility of the United states it is the responsibility of  the whole world. We are all civilized and intelligent beings and we should be able to work together as a world community to address the issues at hand.

  There is also the fact that we are in a trade deficit, most of what we import is not taxed. More and more of our businesses are manufacturing offshore to escape paying taxes and to have a cheaper workforce. This takes away jobs from Americans as well as tax revenue for the government to balance the budget. Just way too much to get into on the problems we face when it comes to trade. Being I am no economist nor am I any kind of expert concerning the tax code I do not know all the answers. I do know that the congress is looking in the wrong direction for solutions when dealing with our national financial problems. And it does not take a rocket scientist to see that they are more concerned with their own political agendas than they are with actually coming up with actual working solutions to the problems.

“We the People of The United States” Means all of us not just the Elite.

Raymond Barbier

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Just an opinion of a common man


100_0063

As usual the Congress has half way done their job and gave themselves more time to act like children fighting in a school yard. They keep trying to cut entitlements and yet they are not putting their own wages and benefits on the line to save our national budget. The poor and lower middle class always seem to either pay the bills for the government or loose entitlements to help the government to spend money on earmarks and pork. I think they really need to take a look at all the projects they are funding that doesn’t help the citizens nor the nation and cut them off from funding. Leave Social Security and Medicaid/Medicare alone. Far as welfare it should remain but should be structured to be an assistance program not a life long support system. Unfortunately there is a lot of entitlement abuse and fraud going on in our great country, many people who are capable and unwilling to work use the entitlement system in our country. But there are many who need the assistance and either are denied or are too proud to accept the help. Should we get rid of entitlements? No, To become caulis and uncompassionate is not the answer. More regulation and a better system on confirming the need of assistance is a must. Follow up inspections of the recipients and their residences to confirm that they are indeed in need and not just abusing the help is what must be done.

There are many ways to reduce the national debt, one is to reduce our foreign aid, Borrowing money to give it away to another country is just plain stupidity. Instead we could help the developing countries and countries in need by getting them loans from those countries able to lend. The tax code also needs to be revamped, The rich have too many loopholes and tax breaks while the middle class and poor have very few tax breaks at all. Both rich and poor should have to pay the same percentage of taxes per dollar earned. Why should someone who makes millions pay less per dollar in taxes than some one who makes thousands? Another big strain on our budget is all the military actions (wars) we are involved in, The world seems to want the U.S. to play the role off planetary policeman but yet none of the countries seem to want to help pay the bill for our involvement. This is a world of many countries and or nationalities and therefore it should be a global effort to enact change and also to police the rouge nations. The U.N., N.A.T.O and the rest of the global organizations should work together to improve the quality of life for all of mankind and be a part of the global solution.

Not one man nor one nation should shoulder the responsibility for our world alone, it should be a totally global responsibility and universal effort to fix the problems our world faces today. Regardless of ones religion, race or creed we are all part of the great human race. Not one life is greater or lesser than another and all life is sacred.

I think all the governments of this world need to either grow up and face reality or they need to wake up from their dream state.

Well once again I rambled on long enough.
Peace and Truth Be your Guiding Light
Raymond Barbier

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