One of my earliest daily posts (back in February 2021) was titled: Attempting to Understand.
It went like this:
There inevitably comes a moment when you and I hit a wall.
The walls we hit come in various forms and sizes but they have in common a message — one, obviously, no one wants to hear.
No matter how hard you try, you cannot go forward in the same way you have arrived were you presently are.
It doesn’t mean things are hopeless. That’s your ego talking to you. And it doesn’t mean you double down and blow up the wall — otherwise you haven’t hit the wall I’m talking about. That’s still out ahead of you.
It means things must change. And the only change that is truly in my power and yours to change is within ourselves.
And the first available change is attitude — a combination of humility and hope.
That’s because, ultimately, it comes down to a trust-in-God issue.
Nothing else.
No one else.
Anything less is a stubborn cop out.
Sometimes the walls we hit are hard, but at other times they are actually gentle whispers telling us it’s time to get up and move around — time to look at other options and ideas.
Well today I received a small whisper that it is time to change my writing focus.
Up to now I have written with the simple idea of providing something small to help people one day at time.
The thoughts have been intended to be short and sweet fire starters for the hearts and minds of others.
That you, my dear friend, might find a small nugget in my ramblings to help stimulate you to doing something different and brave, or small and important, or big and humble, is of great encouragement to me.
Thank you to everyone who has reached out to thank me over the years, and most especially to those who continually whisper prayers on my behalf. I believe good wish is a part of the inspiration process we all need to be creative and brave in any and everything we do.
I continue to believe that the best writing is personal.
It comes from me and it goes out to you alone.
I don’t write to many people and so I don’t have to try and get anyone to like me.
Because I have sent my thoughts out freely and daily for years, I now believe there is enough there for people to find and read as they wish.
As for me, writing is in my blood and brings me joy, so I won’t stop and this still point platform is not close to ending.
What will be changing (I hope) is that I will begin writing in a longer format — which means I will publish less often.
How often?
As often as I believe I have something important enough to be worth your time and attention.
Thanks for reading my stuff and if you want to correspond through this Substack channel to me and one another, please feel free.
Be back soon.
Ben
Ben, thank you. I too feel like many of your posts were written for me personally, but of course I know that isn't true. Maybe I should have commented more on how those words crash land into the deepest parts of my soul, for how else would you know what an impact you have made. If you wrote a book, it would be one of my lifetime favorites. Thank you for sharing your gift of writing that has redirected my attitude, thoughts and actions (almost) on a daily basis.
Hi Ben. I can't begin to tell you how valuable your writings have been to me--and therefore to children and grandchildren and my wife. Your thoughts are so like my own in so many ways, that I felt that you were saying almost every day, what I would like to have said. I will miss your daily writings but will look forward to your longer pieces as God reveals them to you. God be with you. Dave Player