While it is noble and indeed necessary to work to provide for oneself and one's dependents, it is folly to sacrifice this sacred relationship to these very people at the altar of capitalism, ego, and greed.
It should be obvious by now that wages are an expense that businesses will ruthlessly seek to minimize. Wages are not low because businesses don't have enough money to raise them; 2017 corporate profits are at record levels.Businesses will always find the lowest possible wage floor possible, no matter how well they're doing. That's capitalism. It's not rocket science.
The truth is usually much more banal: evil people exist; and they are enabled by those of us who remain silent; who insist things cannot change; who trade morals and courage for comfort and money; who act only out of self-interest without regard for the collective whole.
I woke up with an unusual emotional pang this morning, which I was able to trace back to something I saw in my Facebook feed the night before. It's not something that happens too often, but there are times, after scrolling through countless images of friends, acquaintances, and peers celebrating milestone events, true love, career achievements and otherwise perfect lives, a voice of discontent can murmur within: "I am not enough."
When guns flood our streets so we can kill each other, and we send our hard earned money to the government to be spent on more bombs and guns, and we are encouraged to dismiss science, and reject compassion and empathy and instead cower behind our walls in fear of each other and armed to the teeth while we slowly die from poverty and disease... who benefits? Who profits? And when we stop and listen, who is it that whispers in our ears, "we're the greatest"?
At its core, a true martial art will teach us how to be strong, relaxed, and present in the face of extremely adverse circumstances. Success in this endeavor requires the fusion of mental, spiritual and physical into a singular purpose and focus through dedicated training.
We all have these shadows, these deep empty rifts, into which we dare not gaze too deeply. Gouged in our most tender and vulnerable spaces when we were too young, wounds that we do our best to live with from day to day. On the good days, it’s a tender ache, and on the bad, it’s a brutal shame.
If you find yourself spending your time in a way that does not support who you want to be as a person, there is a fundamental tension in your existence since your actions don't support your authentic goals.