Happy May to One and All - Leadership on May Day

Happy May Day to all of you. In past days, Russia would be having a huge military parade down Red Square. I seem to recall that they quit doing that a while ago, but I still remember the soldiers and armaments making their way across this huge plaza with all of the 'hoity-toity" politicians looking oh so stern, watching in the cold, their coats on and sometimes their collars up to protect them from the chill winds. I remember watching and thinking that everyone looked quite chilled, and I was grateful that I wasn't there - although the architecture and the actual area looked interesting. 

I remember watching May Day parades with Russia showing 
off their military might to the world. I don't think they do 
that any more, although they certainly still celebrate May Day. 
I was always impressed and a bit frightened by their 
display of missiles and other armament. And all of those 
soldiers - marching in perfect alignment and saluting 
precisely. It was quite a show for a young kid to watch.  

Of course, that was during the "cold war" - a war of words but few actions. I know there was covert action, murders, kidnappings and imprisonments. But for a young person, that seemed so far away and so far in the background. Well, I'm an adult now. Russia is still kidnapping and imprisoning people, but now the wars aren't cold any more. They're hot, tedious, and growing in scope and area once again. It does seem that our species simply can't get along with each other. If Mother Nature or whatever deity is to your choosing decides to wipe humanity out and start again, I certainly couldn't blame Her. Nope ... not at all. 

Mankind has evolved over the centuries. Have we 
improved? In some ways, yes. But in others, we're 
now a sedentary population but we're just as 
aggressive as we were when we wandered the 
grasslands in small packs. 

As a species, we adapted and improved our genetic heritage, taking over more and more of the land masses making up this world. With our technologies, we developed improved methods of hunting dinner, learned that putting on animal skins, and/or manipulating fiber for coverings, helped keep us warm and allowed us to move into new territories (and survive the Ice Age). We grew this brain of ours - learning new hunting techniques, communication and improving our living condition. We populated and continued to populate this world, until now we are found in every continent and every corner. We've even moved past this planet and touched the Moon. We're thinking - seriously thinking - about settlements on Mars. But we still can't seem to get along with our neighbors. *sigh*

Perhaps if we paid more attention to our spiritual leaders 
and a bit less to our secular ones, we might have a 
world which would allow humanity the space to grow 
and prosper in peace with our neighbors. Maybe ... or maybe not. 

So as we move into May, I'll try to think of the positives. We've created music - glorious and heart-wrenching music. We've written masterpieces celebrated throughout the world. We've had spiritual guides who have focused on peace and working together for the common good. We've had all of the right teachers - we just need to pay attention to their voices instead of the voices of those who are petulant children claiming that their way is the only right way to live life. If we can't live with each other, I can't blame Mother Nature or any other deity (or an advanced civilization) for declaring us a failed experiment, wiping the Earth clean, and starting over again. After all, Gods are infinite and ageless. Another few millennia? A piece of cake! Have an excellent Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.