Same Rollercoaster, Different Ride

Robert Frost helps us appreciate and understand that the road less traveled leads to a different destination with a different set of people. The last two years feel like a neverending ride with ups and downs, but the operator can’t find the controller that will bring the ride to an end.
At this juncture, would I recognize a fork in the road? Is there a nonpartisan, apolitical, fact-based path that doesn’t bring more tragedy and heartache? Can we collectively breathe and drop the tension in our shoulders and hearts? Is this even a choice?

I am no longer convinced that we have the will to do anything collectively. Instead, there is a pervasive ambivalence and indifference oozing through society, and it seems impossible when combined with entitlement and fear. There needs to be a different path.

For me, and I encourage you to consider the possibility that it could be for you, I need to take the fork in the road seriously. We need to have criteria for our decision-making. I could easily convolute the process, but it comes down to one principle.

When faced with a choice, think for yourself, not about yourself. This requires the discipline of simultaneous independence and interdependence. It means not bowing to either peer pressure or communal ridicule. Weigh the consequences, and there are always consequences. Be especially aware of how your actions and inactions impact others and your surroundings. Finally, accept your culpability and accountability and change your behavior and response at the next turn on your path.

B