A Truth Pick is a short, pointed commentary on a popular quote. It is intended to extract the Truth hidden within the quote that makes it worthy of repetition. Consider it a form of mental floss. Intended first as something to share amongst a close circle of acquaintances, Peter's Truth Picks grew in popularity until several thousand people were reading them on a daily basis.
Truth Pick #123
The angel of death
has been abroad throughout the land,
you may almost hear
the beating of his wings.
John Bright
Regardless of where we live, we are touched by the shadow of the angel’s flight. The sudden chill of shade, causes us to catch our breath, and fear for every living step.
There is no longer any corner of the land where we can shut out the world. We are part of every act. The world has arrived at our doorstep. No locks can keep it out.
Anger. Despair. Grief. Disbelief. No words can describe the human emotional response to a building falling from the sky. As the building falls, so falls innocence.
Words fail, when the heart is crippled with grief. To belong to a community, is to taste the salt of every tear.
Love those near you. Sleep well. The Sun will rise tomorrow.
Truth Pick #124
O God! Put back Thy universe
and give me yesterday.
Henry Arthur James
Like lightning to a copper rod, our minds are drawn to man-made hell on earth, and then recoil. Like water skittering on steel too hot to touch, our thoughts flit and fail to find a place of rest.
“This too shall pass’, lacks meaning and gives no lasting comfort. Some changes have eternal consequences, and set us on unknown paths.
The nightmares of our restless night last beyond our waking. The unreal world persists. The day unfolds in dust. Our nightmares are given life.
Each approach we make, to the heat of what we fear, tempers our ability to cope with what is now the world we live in.
One response is to draw inward, another to reach out. The first makes the world a darker place, the second breathes life on a fading light. A handful of hate can create a world of grief. In turn, a world of support can restore a world to peace.
Where we live is no longer important, borders exist only in our minds, not in our hearts.
