Vince’s Daily Post – Day 5
——————————
I don’t really have anything that I’ve got planned for today, so I’ll talk about something in front of me. The sports tv in our unit is on the Nathan’s Hot Dog eating contest, an American tradition that I’ve never watched, but love that it is a part of our celebrations over the birth of our nation! I read somewhere that perennial participant and multi-super-winning-streak champ Joey Chestnut wouldn’t be participating this year. He apparently has a sponsorship contract with a no-meat hot dog company, and his contracts with them precludes him participating in what is, at it’s core, an ad for Nathan’s hot dogs. The first thing that springs to mind is that he was foolish in cutting himself off from that that made him so famous. But then I wonder if the financial benefits of a stead company salary, not having to treat your digestive system like a sleeping bag stuff-sack, and not being a half-hero/half-joke weren’t pretty strong enticements. Early on in the Exercises (I know! I don’t even have it with me! I swear, there are other things I think about!), actually, before he even begins to instruct the director on how to guide the retreatant, he spends a page or two really drilling home the point that the only way for this to work, is if we presuppose the other has the best of intentions until proven otherwise. In a culture that’s increasingly polarized and hateful for it, that’s radical – despite it being a fundamental principal of out criminal justice system, the presumption of innocence. I wonder how much my relationships, how much everything in my life would change if I could fully adopt that in all things. For the next week or so, I’m going to make a concerted effort to steer my brain into believing the best in everyone, especially those people I typically disagree with and even dislike.
That’s all I’ve got for today!
Have a great Independence Day! Celebrate the freedoms you do have, no matter where you are!
