We have our favorite thinkers, books, and logger's. I've underlined a paperback, "The Wisdom of Life," by Arthur Schopenhauer. As we reach around sixty, A.S said, it's possible to get in danger as if we become a weight as of 'lead.' We can tend to be a societal burden, dull and slow.

In Romeo and Juliet, Act 11, sc. v.

*"But old folks, many feign as they were dead;

Unwieldy, slow, heavy and pale as lead."*

There is, imo, a shortage of American elders who provide us 'other' youngsters...too long ago many Americans were lulled to sleep by Texan-western cowboys. We do need some guidance, maxims, and certain applicable wisdom's.

Carl Sandburg wrote, "Valor is a gift. Those having valor never know for sure if they possess it until the test come."

Honore de Balzac wrote, "Listening to people I enter into their lives, feel their tattered clothes on my back, walk with my feet in their shoes; their desires, their needs, all passes into my soul, or my soul passes into theirs."

I read that MITLEID literally means to "suffer with."

('leid,'= pain, suffering + 'mit,' = with)

I discover that this word can be used interchangeably and it's dangerous if life becomes a "waste" by becoming emotionally drained by those 'others' who are retrograde "failures."

Many people give-up and know human beings can be weak, despicable, and reprobate. I went via a period post-war where I lobed myself a "misanthrope" when I pondered politico's. I literally turned off the teevee news for seven years. For twelve years I had no truck radio. I was celibate for ___!

The first post on page one...made me wish to look into these words about COMPASSION because poster-letter writers do "feels with" a tempo....Some thoughts knock my socks off?

A person with Sympathy is 'mitgefuhl,' which I understand to mean a human "feels with" and most of us are not numb-skulls or numb-peanuts. We are human. Card carrying members of a human race. It's not an excuse to be murderous and horrible.

The danger for me/whoever (?) is to get confused, feel whooped, wasted, withered, 'parched tongue thirsty' (have to add that, okay) and emotionally zapped by those WHO are beyond HOPE.

To be one-with some emotional compassion emotion reigning in the human-heart's seat...is a good trait. It's the highest ideal. But we can admit, say to say, some of our fellow human race are outside the human-pale. 'They,' whatever tribe, education, degrees, and, sad to say---a big-shot family connection does not make us salvageable and preserved from personal spiritual ruin. Traits have dominated to rule and ruin 'folk' and they are base--unredeemable pitiful. Historic failures.

We do not have to act a type of "Buddhistic" existence or drag a tree-cross down a highway to imitate a historic past figure who actually lived. gads. I'll not be 'ole Simon for a kook logging a dead Gypsy moth invested tree down a street.

I remember getting a bit of encouragement in 1972 when I opened a library book by Joseph Campbell, the mythologist educator. He was not painting folk with a one-swipe. In a context of war (soldiers drag a body bag, fill a sandbag bunker, risk their life, yes) J.C wrote that he was privileged to witness on the news clip, compassion.

"It is to participate in the suffering of another to such a degree you forget yourself and your own safety and spontaneously do what is necessary."

The text of Paul the epistle writer needs to be interpreted in a proper historic textual criticism and culture context. That guy Paul did some ugly round-up killings of Christians before he had thunder bolt knock him off a mule. The "Nazarene" or a Paul can't save you or me. As earthen folk ought to know at some age, we need to get it right and participate NOW.

To "suffer with" is good compassion and expands us. To "pity" a nonredeemable authoritarian is 'not our problem.' Enough.

If authoritarians are full-fledged 'diabolical,' we can't expect a jesu, joy of man/women's-desiring, or Mose/Mohab/Homer etc. to protect us from a bill collector or a cross-nailing. Jesus would not have a chance of a fair trial if he appeared before this august body of legislatures and the A.G. we are stuck with. Jesus would be rolling in his grave today, or hung upon a tree tomorrow. Maybe I should have just gone to sleep instead of write a thought this eve? I am thinking personal thoughts and that can be 'goof.'yee-ha.' I'm not saying I'm right or left-wrong. I had a few thoughts I needed to get out for a peaceful sleep.

The age we live in lacks 'mitleid.' It's so easy to offend without trying? Bed bugs, here I cme, ready or not! Good night.