Home Truths, Foreign Front
Motivating a change in human global practices and conditions.
Recalling my first essay which introduced ‘joules’ as a measure of our bodily electric energy let us utilise this new found aspect with the word joulery as units of our energy for action and good effect. During World War II my service was as a tank driver with 47th Royal Tank Regiment under General Montgomery in the Egyptian Western Desert. Just before the famous battle of El Alamein on 23rd October 1942 I suffered my first ‘gunshot wound, face’ the story of which is extracted from my autobiography titled “Venturesome Spirit” which shows my energy - joulery - to stay alive, as follows:-
RAISING THE TENSION AND ANTICIPATION
The unending training continued with plenty of pep talks and visits from
Monty’s top underlings. One, a particularly good man, was General
Harding who was pleasant, forthright and encouraging. Time had moved
on and it had become mid-October. Nights on guard duty had become chilly.
The skies were clear and dark and the view of the sky was only broken
by the twinkle of thousands or millions of stars. Even some of these
would suddenly shoot off in a variety of directions leaving the viewers,
at least those of us unfamiliar with astronomy, in awe and wondering
about the universe and how it ever came to creation. As we came off
guard duty with its spookishness, there could be little areas of ice
on water left for the dogs etc. Many a soldier managed to keep a pet
that ultimately had to be destroyed. The nearest we could allow any
sentiment to intrude was when receiving letters from home also when
replying to them. Even they were subject to scrutiny by our officers
to guard against any loose talk which could get into the hands of the
enemy. There really was no privacy but the mood was buoyant. We thought
the only realistic approach was to listen to Vera Lynn on the radio
in the tank and ‘to soldier on regardless’ coupled to ‘if
it has your number on you’ll get it.’
FATE TAKES A HAND
In an odd sort of way I got one with my number on it as did my brother
John, killed early in the war, with the Cambridgeshire Regiment A day
or so before the 23rd.of October when Monty was planning his great
attack upon the Axis forces under Rommel, our vehicles were at the
ready so that my personal kit was in the foot-well of the driver’s
seat of the Sherman tank. We were ready to go. Another chap and I were
on the top of the tank cleaning the point 5 mm gun which had a hinged
cover over the magazine. The cover was up and the cleaning finished.
For some unknown reason my companion, standing at the trigger end with
me to the side, pulled the trigger and one mighty explosion took place
with my face and eyes taking the full blast and that was the end of
my effort in the attack at El Alamein. I was invalided back to base
as a casualty in 64th General Hospital in Alexandria. For days I really
did not know very much that was going on. When eventually I was able
to sit up and take notice I was amongst the most attentive nursing
staff but my eyes were completely bandaged. I remember that one of
the popular tunes played in the hospital was ‘Smoke gets in your
Eyes”, oddly, very appropriate. Or was it? There was a long period
of days of waiting for the bandages to be removed but when they were
I could see, a little blurred but that cleared up in a week or so and
I was sent back to base to await re-posting. Somehow I had been saved
from certain death as in the meantime The Battle of El Alamein had
been launched with its inevitable loss of life. A sequel was that my
wife Joyce had received a telegram from the War Office to say that
I had been killed in action. This came about because my replacement
driver, Corporal O’Rourke who took over from me in the Sherman
was killed and his body had been mistakenly identified by the kit I
had left in the driver’s foot-well; a narrow escape for me and
a sad day for the other soldier and his family. The War Office later
sent Joyce a correcting telegram.”
There is nothing special about that story as many people in the war were
being blown to bits every day. However, in my later years, I reflect
that I had the ‘joules’ to keep me alive. Also life goes
on very much in need of our very best joulery at all times and the motivation
of betterment is worthwhile when used in loving and sharing ways. This
brings me to an extract from my other book “PALS – Philosophy
And Life Stuff” as follows:-
OPPORTUNITY FOR NEW LEADERSHIP IN RELIGIOUS AND CIVIC AFFAIRS
‘AH! MYSTERY OF LIFE-WHENCE OUR CHARACTERISTICS?
WHERETO OUR COURSE- IN LOVE INTEGRITY FAITH ETHICALLY?’
AUTHOR
With the practical and open application of the wider use of their joulery
of TASKS - acronym for Truthfulness Accountability Service Kindness Synthesis
- the religious leaders and non-religious leaders would have a great
opportunity to improve and transform their preaching and teaching, albeit
gradually, both among themselves and for the hopes and yearnings of humankind.
This opportunity, using ones own new glittering joules, would enable
and strengthen a transformation of religious and other human occupations.
It could foster a type of salvation among the religions for such historical
events as the Crusades and the Holocaust (about which many are endeavouring
fully to apologise for religious involvement or lack of condemnation).
Also for their possible embarrassment at the many modern examples of
criminality and corruption perpetrated by some of those among us.
Civic, political, religious and corporate leadership could make amends
for so much loss and suffering from invasions and systems of exploitation
that continue today. There is no need for more power bases to be formed
which often result in enflaming civic disturbances or worse. These transformations,
these paradigm shifts, these changes emanating from our new joulery would
enhance leadership and wellbeing. Furthermore ‘LOVE through TASKS’ would
ultimately demonstrate our regard for each other.
These TASKS would enhance the Glory of Buddha or Christ or Krishna or
Mohammed or Baha’u’llah or Whoever we pray to and prospective
wellbeing would follow naturally. Even atheists and other unbelievers
cannot deny the rightful priority of TASKS in the order of good human
conduct eventually to – and this is the vision - reduce the present
divisiveness, hostility, antagonism and confrontation between the man-made
power bases. Mostly, best leadership of glittering joules from the regeneration
of the joules of our nature is lacking today. We could energize our giving,
forgiving and sharing by our passion for peace amongst us by expecting ‘power
with’ from our leaders to which people would willingly respond.
OUR CULTURAL VALUES
Love, through its corollary TASKS, would continue to be the cultural value before all others to be universally generated which is presently not sufficiently practised to be effective. ‘LOVE through TASKS’ is best and can readily demonstrate the most important cultural practices required of humanity. The recognition of the commonality of these wider practices in all religions and philosophies depends upon them being regarded as the constant afore-thoughts and supreme consummate and imperative conduct of everyone.
BELIEF AND ACCEPANCE
The prospect for TASKS as The Five Ethical Duties requires each of us
who feels that The Almighty - having imbued part of His Godlyness within
us - will regard us as Godlyans in Godlyanity to create Godlyandom
on earth. Even atheists can and do practise TASKS to advantage without
necessarily believing themselves to be Godlyans though they may miss
the fraternal aspects.
Must we resign ourselves to the current waves of spin, corruption and
killing resulting from political ‘power over’ and corporate
criminality? Furthermore, how can we rely upon facts as presented in
any media now that integrity is slipping away as an imperative? There
must be potential leaders with the joules or energy for integrity.
Ideas that divide us say, of racism resulting say, from objections to anti-social
behaviour whatever the colour of the skin. Racism, with all its divisive confrontation
and intolerance is, seemingly, a belief in an inherent right to hold dominance
over another but equally can result from uneven distribution of the ‘good
things in life’.
Why is it that the word multiculturalism has become divisive when, were it
to be exchanged for brotherly and sisterly love the whole field of human relationship
would be transformed or is that naïve and expecting too much? Such attitudes
really would try the wisdom of any Solomon amongst us but perhaps the new Archbishop
of York- as quoted in The Times of London on 22nd November 2005 about multiculturism
- has some answers to these questions. Certainly His Grace is right that it
is time for us, the English, to express our nationality with more fervour such
as do, for example, the Scots, Welsh and Kiwi’s show theirs. We already
have the base to show our fervour if only we were to support say, The Royal
Society of St George. Besides the thousands of visitors and immigrants that
come to Britain must have something in British cultures which are attractive.
So the debates go on for raising the glittering joules of energy that can establish
power with what - a potential for peace?
Watch for the next essay of proposals for betterment.
Love to all, Reg Haynes.
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