1314Z QUOTING MALALA, WHOSE ATTITUDE PROVES WORTHY OF WORLDWIDE CONSIDERATION

1. "One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen, can change the world." --From a speech given to the UN Youth Assembly, just nine months after her attempted assassination.
2. "When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful." --From a speech at Harvard in September 2013.
3. "Let us make our future now, and let us make our dreams tomorrow's reality." --From a speech at Harvard in September 2013.
4. "I believe it's a woman's right to decide what she wants to wear, and if a woman can go to the beach and wear nothing then why can't she also wear everything?" --From an exclusive interview with The Guardian's Kamila Shamsie. Yousafzai opened up about her thoughts regarding the burqa conversation in the UK.
5. "If he [the Talib] comes, what would you do Malala?"  "…If you hit a Talib with your shoe then there will be no difference between you and the Talib. You must not treat others…with cruelty...you must fight others but through peace, through dialogue and through education…then I'll tell him [the Talib] how important education is and that I even want education for your children as well… that's what I want to tell you, now do what you want."--In a Daily Show interview. Yousafzai's comments left Jon Stewart speechless and prompted him to ask if he could adopt her.
6. "I do not tell my story because it is uncommon
   I tell my story because it is not."

   
   

   2015

   All along the historical time line from biblical times to life as we know it, today, the dark side has given each generation reason to give voice to the independent nature of the human spirit.  Off the top of my head, we've looked to leaders like Moses, David,  Judah Maccabee, Spartacus, Kunta Kinte (whose fictionalized story 'spoke' volumes to millions of readers and TV viewers), Harriet Tubman, Mahatma Gandhi, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Yoda (whose fictionized presence was felt this weekend when the most recent episode of the STAR WARS phenonomen earned $100,000,000, on its opening day!  And though It makes me crazy to know that the entertainment industry rakes in billions while millions face poverty, I hold on to my sanity by telling myself that with every ticket sold, theaters fill with active young, minds, which are influenced, while munching on popcorn, to picture themselves growing up to become Jedi Warriors rather than Storm Troopers.).

   
   Each time the sorry state of our world comes to mind, I choose to rechannel my thoughts in hopes of reducing my frustration by envisioning rabbis, who shepard their flocks to work toward creating a future where men, women and children are educated to do more than give lip service to resolving conflicts with mutual respect intact.  With positive focus orchestrating my trains of thought, I believe that, some day, a majority of worshippers, who congregate round the teachings of Jesus, will consciously absorb his lessons so deeply as to integrate his words of wisdom into their daily lives rather than reciting biblical psalms, robotically, before going home to feud with family.  And now, we have Malala, whose courageous young voice  brings to mind:  A child shall lead us from dark to light.

   
   

   I hope that, rather than worshipping words of wisdom in a segregated fashion, the day will dawn when the voice of leadership will encourage one and all to flock, together, and actually instill the concept of mutual respect into home after home, so that each next generation of children will mimic the effective manner with which their parents have learned to resolve conflicts, which are sure to arise when two or more independent spirits live under one roof. 

   
   Just as I look to the spirit of Socrates to whisper pearls of wisdom into my ear, common sense suggests that we'd all be wise to quest toward clarity, concerning education's slow-as-molasses progression toward leading the masses away from the dark side of human nature in favor of maturing toward the lightness of being, which is ours each time we muster the courage and humility to grow ever more self aware of narrow minded attitudes, which prove immature.  I mean, seriously, it's been quite disconcerting to note that, during each presidential debate, I've not yet heard anyone, who aspires to to this office of leadership, say anything that proves so remarkably intelligent as to have won my confidence, which precedes winning my vote ... And as many agree with the depth of my frustration, that fact leads me to ask you to ponder this question which I ask of myself :  If the divisive nature of our current political situation proves as grave as clarity, concerning reality, suggests, then what deeper truth must our next president identify before lasting change for the better proves possible?

   
   For many years, congress has turned a deaf ear no matter how often voters voice their unmet needs.  Makes me wonder if the name of The Force, which will lead our nation out of this confounding period of darkness is LISTENING SKILLS.

   
   

   Alas, I see no sign of a rest station welcoming this restless train of thought to relax, any time soon, and thus does my wearied sense of positive focus sincerely hope that you (like a young Muslim girl, named, Malala) will freely choose to make good use of your powers of interpersonal communications to brainstorm with family and friends until the moral majority actually learns to make such good use of mutually respectful plans of action that conflicting complexities, which have mystified intelligent minds throughout thousands of years of history, will simplify and resolve, bringing darkly divisive force of GREED to its knees, at last.

   
   I mean, clearly, a peaceful world community will serve the betterment of mankind as a whole.  Why?  Because deeper truth suggests that Walt was right on the mark when he corralled a choir of children to chant:  It's a small, small world, after all.  And by the way—I'm not suggesting that you create and present a plan for world peace to the U.N.  I'm suggesting that each of us can consciously brainstorm through growth spurts, concerning self awareness, until our minds open to absorb simple plans, designed to resolve conflicts, effectively, at home with our families.  And once my storyteller revives, I plan to make myself and my family examples of the change that I hope for the world. (In case you've forgotten or are new to my blog, I'm looking to connect with millions throughout the world in hopes of establishing a grass roots movement, which, over time, will provide our communal voice with a platform that will, one day, prove as widespread as has the voice of a courageous Muslim, teen-aged girl, who, having adopted her father's impassioned attitude about education, proudly bears the name of the ancient warrior, Malala ...)

   
   All along the historical time line from biblical times onward, every generation has had reason to breathe life into leadership to muster the courage to influence (educate) as many minds as proves possible to pull the weight of the bell shaped curve out of mental quicksand as mankind takes each next arduous step forward on the historical timeline, until hopefully, one day in the far distant future, Brainstormers and Stormtroopers (aka terrorists) will have learned to share our planet, living, side by side, after having learned to resolve conflicts in a well educated, peaceable manner, and in the meantime, it's my hope that you and I, like Malala, can influence (educate) as many children as possible to embrace a positively focused attitude so that our next generation of leaders will give much more than lip service to this trinity of high principled, long range goals:  Liberty.  Equality.  Justice for ALL .

   
   PS

   Can you guess whose spirit must be whispering into Malala's courageous ear?

   Sounds like Patrick Henry to me ...

   
   

   Interesting to note that mutually respectful attitudes, filtering through our society, have influenced the entertainment industry to offer women courageous leadership roles, which had once been reserved only for men:

   
   I mean can't you see Katniss (reel fiction) and Malala (real non fiction) becoming fast friends with Spartacus? ...