Knowing the difference IS the difference between success and failure. I know that this statement may sound a bit odd but it is true. Knowing the difference makes ALL the difference when determining the most prudent paths to take; the most beneficial decisions to make; the most reasonable options to consider. Knowing the difference can determine life or death. Knowing the difference IS the Difference!
In today’s world – a world filled with instant communications, technological saavy and shrewd purveyors of skewed propaganda – it is often difficult to determine what is real and what is not. We frequently find ourselves embracing news stories that are only partially correct if correct at all. We tend toward the sensational. Facts become secondary. The information with which we disagree or causes us discomfort we label as “fake.” We often find ourselves dragged into pits of pointless debate over issues that are essentially non-existant, all the while the important stuff is parlayed between parties bent on perpetuating their own brand of control.
Now more than ever, we need to work at Knowing the Difference. We must cease deciding and acting strictly along party lines. We must stop calling good, bad and bad, good. We must stop excusing bad behavior. We must stop labeling people. We must avoid dehumanizing our fellow man. We must focus instead on Knowing the Difference.
The Tuscarora people got it! They Knew the Difference! They have a proverb that says, “Man has Responsibility, not Power!” Imagine how our world could begin changing if more of us Knew the Difference between Power and Responsibility! Imagine!
Knowing the Difference and acting accordingly could change the ways we govern; the ways we communicate; the ways we parent; the ways we love; the ways lead; the ways we think about ourselves and others. Yes, Knowing the Difference between Power and Responsibility could truly change the world! And yet, all too often we give into the allure of Power and in so doing run the risk of destroying that which we value.
Perhaps if each of us could use our Personal Power over self to cultivate the principles of Responsibility, then our lives could really begin to change consistently for the better . . . Perhaps.
For this to happen we must be about the business of Knowing the Difference!
Peace!
Mark E. Hundley
