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The Whys and Wherefores of This World

/ Leland Olson Hoel / Leave a comment

Does God have a plan for each of us? He remains in control if we trust him to lead us. He leaves us wondering what the plan is, but that does not mean he will let us know what it is. It all depends on faith and trust. What I am doing here has been on my mind for many years.

I got my spine fractured 56 years ago, along with the usual nerve damage that affects my body’s different parts. I was 23 at the time; my first thoughts were that the easiest thing to do would be to give up. I know now the battle was worth fighting. Life can be hard to understand. There is no perfect life in this world.
I felt a need to share my life experience with the rest of this world, so I wrote the book How I Lived 55 Plus Years With a Spine Injury. That book tells about my life after the accident to the present time. https://www.amazon.com/Lived-Years-Spinal-Cord-Injury/dp/1980400830
After all these years, I have concluded I could never have made it without the grit and fortitude in my genes. The Finnish people call it Sisu. There’s no actual definition for Sisu, but it is a strength or power that people have.

If you combine Sisu with having faith in God, anything is possible. I firmly believe I received that strength to go forward, to press on from my Finnish and Norwegian ancestors. I’ve always respected and been in awe at the suffering, sacrifice, and hard work that tested and tempered their faith. It took courage to leave their homelands, but they wanted to build a country where people would have the power. They would create a government of laws where all are treated equally and call it a Democracy.

I recently decided to honor my ancestors with a book I have written titled Plights and Perils of Persevering Pioneers. It tells the story of some of my family’s lives on the ship and after arriving in America. They all lived in Michigan for a short time working in the copper mines. They saved money, and a few came directly to Dakota Territory seeking farmland while others worked in Northern Minnesota at the iron mines. They later came West to the Dakotas.
https://www.amazon.com/Plights-Perils-Persevering-Pioneers-Leland-ebook/dp/B0868WK4MW
Those ancestors would be shocked to see what has happened to this land since they settled it. They built it strong with hard work, faith, and brotherly love.

The United States is divided today by people who got filled with hate for their brothers and sisters. They want things done their way and refuse to cooperate with anyone having different religious or political ideas. Many get driven by greed, accumulate wealth and power, even while using religion as a tool. People want their kingdoms. Love Thy Neighbor has been forgotten by many.
It is a selfish thought, but that might be why the Lord kept me here, to write this book. They built this country on faith and laws. All are created equal.
The election is rapidly approaching. All voters, please use your right to vote, and keep this country free from hate and intolerance.

https://lelandolson.com/

Waiting to Vote

/ Leland Olson Hoel / 9 Comments

vote-usa

Waiting

Write a new post in response to today’s one-word prompt

Waiting to Vote

Tuesday, November 8th, 2016 another Presidential Election day is rapidly approaching in the United States of America. Would you please use your right and privilege to cast your ballot and vote for the candidate of your choice? Will you stand in line for a long period of time? Even if the waiting line goes around the block? It might be necessary, to be able to cast your vote. We still have a democracy, we put leaders in office with ballots instead of bullets. We are the envy of the world for having the freedom to choose our leaders at the voting booth.

We claim to have a Democracy. The people who are elected to office are elected to represent all the people. That also includes those who didn’t vote for them. They are supposed to be working for the good of the country and all the people in it. Many, instead serve the whims and wishes of their wealthy contributors or private interest groups. It is written, their obligation is to represent all of the people while they are in office.

The pitiful,  poor record that many politicians have when it comes to honesty and integrity has created voter apathy, turned voters away from the voting booths in past years. Crooked politicians no doubt would rather have it that way,  the only way to keep these varmints from getting back into office is with the ballot and it may take waiting in line to cast that ballot. The citizens must also become informed about the candidates before they can vote intelligently, we all need to do our homework when it comes to knowing the candidates better.

In the year 2008 a United States President was elected by a majority vote. He was disliked by many and hated by the opposition party.”The opposition party swore the day he took office, never to work with him.” The majority of the opposition vowed to do everything they could to hamper the progress of that man. He is still their president too. They also hampered the progress of the Nation, as many things never got accomplished, that should have been accomplished during those years. That Undemocratic, childish, PARTISAN charade lasted eight years!

The GOP spent so much time fighting amongst themselves, over how to confound the president, in office, they never managed to spend time grooming their own candidate for this coming presidential election. For eight years their interests were strictly partisan politics, and catering to the whims and wishes of their wealthy contributors.

The party leaders seemed to be in complete shock, awe and disarray that someone who didn’t march to their drummer became the nominee for this year’s presidential election. In hindsight many of them must now know they would’ve been much better off getting a candidate ready for office, than playing political games for eight years.

Get out and vote at this presidential election, waiting if you have to, then support the person who gets elected. Don’t go home feeling defeated go home and accept the fact that the person who became elected had the majority of the votes and the support of the majority of the citizens. That is all we can do in a democracy, and all we can ever hope to do. We must learn to work together. Our great country as she stands today, costantly divided, from curbed streets, to senate chambers, shall not survive.

Voting in South Africa

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