“over-amplification” (image by Getty)
This week’s installment of “The Isolation Blues” is the most recent talk I delivered at the UUHoulton Weekly Service found on our YouTube Channel. The topic is on “Straight Talk” and seemed relevant in these times of misinformation overload. I’ve included the transcript here, but you can also check out the online version by clicking on the link below. “The Inside Take” is a 30 minute broadcast of short contemplation, a topic of the day and a musical selection from the archives of the UU Concert Series in the sanctuary and Houlton Coffeehouse. This week’s musical guest is Ewan Dobson performing his viral YouTube hit “Time2” which now has over 30 million views. If this seems like I’m plugging the UUHoulton Weekly Service, you are correct. Please like, comment and subscribe on our YouTube Channel!
UUHoulton Service YouTube Channel:
Straight Talk
The Inside Take is an inquisitive look into the interior life and the creative outer expressions it takes in every day life as we go about our living in this extraordinary world. These days it seems like it’s getting more and more difficult to get straight answers from anyone about anything. With fake news and media misinformation running rampant in our current culture the need for reliable informational sources is critical to living a sane and informed life. How can we tell what is going on and who to listen to when conflicting news streams are enough to make our head spin? Today we take a look at Straight Talk in a confusing and befuddling world.
Thanks for joining us. This is The Inside Take…
Chalice Lighting
We light our chalice for the non-conflictive nature of truth. Truth cannot contradict itself. What is true is true.The incongruencies we see in our self and in the world is simply an indicator of how far we have to go to close the gap.This small light is a reminder that we can come a little closer each day.
The Talk
One of my favorite books of late is “Letting Go is All We Have to Hold Onto” by Gregg Eisenberg (published by Curved Space Comedy, 2018). It’s a collection of quippy one-liners and you can find a quote for just about any topic. Here is one I found for today.The reptile brain says, “Lie and distort the truth!”Mammal brain says, “See if empathy works first.”The neo-cortex says, “Tape-record the conversation and establish a paper trail…”
When I’ve talked to friends lately I quite often hear, “I don’t know what or who to believe anymore. It’s hard to get a straight answer about anything.”
If you follow cable news and social media for long you’ll soon notice it is awash in conflicting and widely varying accounts of what’s going on in the world. And while there is certainly room for editorial commentary and differing analysis of what’s happening, there still remains the hard data or fact of what’s happening after all the pundits have stopped talking. How do we sort through the commentary and get to the base line of what’s going on?
That seems to be what is breaking down right now.There is no shared agreement of fact or what is true.
This is why “straight talk” is such a necessity right now in our shared public speech and lines of communication. Fact-checking has become a mandatory practice if you want to determine if your news sources are reliable or if they are dealing in partial information, misinformation or just straight out lying.
I remember when there used to be 30 minutes of news each day on network TV and Walter Cronkite used to say it was actually only 22 minutes of news after the advertisers took their time. In the eighties with the arrival of cable and 24 hour news channels I applauded the potential of so much air time for journalists and newscasters to advance human progress and to address the issues that were plaguing our society. Well, I sorely underestimated the manner in which we could squander such an opportunity. What we could certainly use is more straight talk and less of what we have. In various religious traditions the concept of right speech or true speech is a fundamental core practice. It is the solid base on which the rest of the spiritual life is built. Here, at UUHoulton we have a liturgical banner of The Four Agreements hanging in our parlor. The first agreement is…
“Be impeccable with your word. Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love…”
This is the practice of right speech. And Emerson says, “Nothing at last is sacred but the integrity of your own mind…”Right speech originates in the heart, connects to the integrity of your own mind and then comes out your mouth.
Here is an interesting Bangor Daily Newspaper article from 2011 about the Cherryfield General Store that relates to our talk.
In a crooked store on a winding road in one of Maine’s most historic towns, Royal Montana, a spry-looking man in his late sixties with a long gray beard, is returning the Cherryfield General Store to its original purpose. Built in 1865 as the village store, it has, at one time or another over the past 146 years, been a shoe and boot factory, a dance hall, a telegraph office, a jewelry store, the home of the local historical society and a dry goods supply shop. Reopened in 2010 The Cherryfield General Store now sells eggs from a farmer across town, blueberry pies — some still steaming — from a baker down the road, antiques, handmade blankets, vintage items and local art.
The Cherryfield General Store was almost lost completely, however, when town officials made a plan to tear it down. The first floor, which is plain to the eye, tips to the east. Not a little bit of a lean, mind you, but a full-blown list.
“They built the building on a swamp that they had filled with sticks and debris. It sank,” Montana explained. But when the next generation came along and added the second and third stories, they were built plumb and level. Stand across the street and the leaning is clear.
“I love old buildings and I wanted to save it. The building is perfectly sound, just a little crooked.”
Montana’s mother, who was originally from Cherryfield, married an Amish man and raised Montana as an Amish boy. He traveled the world, trying to do his part to make others’ lives easier or better. For the past 37 years he has taught children in India. He was paid $20 a month and slept on the floor of a temple.
“I’ve been very poor at times in my life,” Montana said. “I know what it is like to suffer and live in a materialistic world.”
He moved two years ago (2008) to Cherryfield and continued living a simple life. It is a life rooted in the truth and with one goal: Serve others.
“That probably makes me a bad businessman,” he said with a laugh. “I forget to take my commission from the artists. I tend to give away the eggs if I think they are needed.” The old-fashioned treats in the row of penny-candy jars are free for a donation to the local historical society.
From “The Chicken Health Handbook” on one shelf to the felted hats and fresh turkey eggs to antique rocking chairs and exotic carvings and art, Montana’s general store offers something for everyone — at Washington County prices. “I don’t mark things up to what we call around here ‘tourist prices,’” he said.
“We may be a crooked store, but we offer straight deals,” he joked, adding, “You know what Margery Brown, the late president of the Cherryfield Historical Society, said? ‘The store is not leaning. It was just a bad paint job.’”
Royal Montana, “We may be a crooked store, but we offer straight deals.”
That about sums up our topic for today; people are just looking for some straight deals and some straight talk.
So here is a short outline highlighting a few aspects of Straight Talk.
1. No Agenda (not trying to manipulate anyone, just the information, there is no larger agenda)
2. Not Defensive (the ego isn’t trying to make itself look good, or defend itself, which just ends up wasting a lot of someone’s time)
3. Non-Violent (straight talk is not trying to hurt anyone or injure anyone)
4. Transparent (just trying to be honest, straight forward and maintain your integrity as much as possible)
5. Best Interests of All Involved (straight talk is just trying to help out without leaving anyone out)
One of the basics of the inside take is you control what you can controlYOU (which is no small accomplishment!) …and that’s about it.
You have control over your own straight talkto make it as consistent and beneficial as possible.We have to sort our way through everyone else’s talk and evaluate that for our self.
Check your sources.Fact-check Listen closelyand good luck trying to make some sense of it all.
In closing, a quote by Lemony Snicket encouraging us to remain optimistic even when it appears the odds are stacked against us.
“ … and strange as it may seem, I still hope for the best, even though the best, like an interesting piece of mail, so rarely arrives, and even when it does it can be lost so easily.”
Straight talk is a return to direct speech that is compassionate and helpful.
May we continue on, hoping for the bestattempting to be our bestand offering our best to all who might need it.
Positive energy to you all as we make our way through this amazing world.
In the woods,
Dave
March 1, 2021
backwoodsblog.com
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