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The Radical Individualist's avatar

Excellent. As the Eagles said in Hotel California, "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device."

Who we are comes from within, not from the situation. How we deal with the situation depends on who we are.

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Sam Alaimo's avatar

Excellent reference and couldn't agree more.

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Dr. Deborah Hall's avatar

Sam,

I love how you convey

your graceful fully alive serenity

in all times and situations.

You share in words

the poetry you live.

How beautiful that we both wrote

about manual labor

and only THEN

did we read

our harmonious perceptions.

I feel a deep kinship with you, Sam.

Thank you.

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Sam Alaimo's avatar

Thank you, Dr. Hall, and I do believe "harmonious perceptions" is the best way to put it. I hope all is well.

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Ammitai's avatar

The phrase that kept going through my head while reading was 'the dignity of work'. There is dignity and satisfaction to be derived from tasks great and small, and in work environments smelling foul or delightful - or in the case of a horse barn, both.

I think of what a mentor used to say to me "Move a muscle, change an emotion" and "Emotions are Energy in Motion". As you point out - the gifts and rewards of work are inherent, and for manual labor, even more abundant. And like taking flame from a candle - those gifts we take do not diminish the supply or availability for the next worker.

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Sam Alaimo's avatar

Well said, Ammitai. It is nothing if not dignity to do a task well. I like the muscle > emotion dynamic.

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Asperges's avatar

Life is glorious. Nothing awakens the senses of living in the moment like suffering and pain. Childbirth being one example. Intense manual labor is another. Embrace life and do not run away from the pain.

Well done sir.

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Sam Alaimo's avatar

It keeps us here and it keeps us grateful. Thank you for the comment.

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Jeremy Barr's avatar

This was great. My wife worked on a horse farm for many years as well. And she would talk about the calmness and serenity of cleaning out a horse stall. I will share this with her.

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Sam Alaimo's avatar

Thank you Jeremy.

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