A Polar bear in the jungle

Don’t worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition.

Abraham Lincoln

We live in a world where we are now urged to be “mindful”, where we observe the 45th President of the United States proferr the world stage that is the White House, to a young lady named Kardashian (promoter of cosmetics, lingerie, and cupcakes) to pontificate about her new career choice, law. (Incidentally her husband, a rap singer, has also had access to that august forum as a guest of the president, and has proclaimed his intention of running for presidency in 2024, — just thought I’d mention what we have to look forward to.)

A new profession has also emerged, largely the domain of last years teenagers, to help us on our way through this — the Influencer, no less. Additionally, we observe the weave of confusion, lies , and convenient sound bites that has destabilized and threatened the United Kingdom, where the order of the day is the dubious default to the rocky terrain of spin, sound bites, and chance. (Mrs. Foster will have a firm grasp on this concept of late). All of these players are indeed recognised, but what about Mr. Lincoln’s reference to being worthy of recognition?

Last week, in Ireland, we bade farewell to a man who was truly recognised, and worthy of it. He was the founding father of Irish broadcasting impartiality, an emancipator for the unheard voices , including women. In this he was always sincere, decades before we heard of the #metoo concept. Gay Byrne strived to be worthy of recognition, and was. We have his sincerity to reflect upon.

Do the amount of “likes” and “shares” one illicits on social media pertain to striving to be worthy of recognition? Has it anything to do with power grabbing cliques in semi-state bodies, and other high places? Does it exist at all where who you know rules over what you know?

The complacency that promotes arrogance, and the trivialising of the pursuit of worthiness engenders something else. To quote another great mind, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent, it is the one that is most adaptable to change” — Charles Darwin. Mediocrity breeds complacency that smothers the will to adapt and to strive for that worthiness for real recognition, until it is eventually usurped by something that will adapt, and prevail. In the meantime, we wait,and wait.

Do the homeless strive to be recognised as worthy of a place to lay their heads for the night? Do the elderly strive to be recognised with respect, humanity, and dignity, on presentation to our hospital emergency departments? — A good start would be a bed in a room.

With all its majesty, power, and innate abilities, would the polar bear, if it was taken from its Arctic habitat, survive in an unknown and hostile tropical jungle for long? Do we, the fat cats included, have the ability to recognize the polar bear in their unnatural jungles, all around us? We should all be conscious of, and try to look beyond the currency of superficial and glossy recognition, merely for its own sake, and as Mr. Lincoln implied, to look beyond this and to strive to be worthy of the real thing. We can then reflect on the value of striving, effort, endeavour, and also on the aspirations of our often less fortunate fellow travellers. Let us consider what it feels like to have lost your ability, power and potential, — to have lost your way, like a polar bear in the jungle.

Thank you for the picture www.pixabay.com