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A World Without Bubbles

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A World Without Bubbles – by Michael Knight

 
Wisdom doesn’t become outdated.

 
In 1916 an Australian journalist, author and preacher FW Boreham wrote about the notion of idealistic dreaming in contrast to negative thinking. He offered this wisdom:

 
“The world would clearly be very much the poorer, and not one scrap the richer, if no bubbles were left in it … To be criminal implies an evil hand; but to be cynical reveals a very evil heart. It is a thousand times better to be blowing bubbles that, though fragile, are very fair than to move sulkily about the world telling all the blowers of bubbles that their beautiful bubbles must burst.” (Faces In The Fire. FW Boreham. 1916, pp139)

 
Tragically for some of us, we have been reduced to cynicism, bubble bursters at large.

Delightfully for some of us, we remain perpetual bubble blowers in the face of any such cynicism.

 
So what determines the difference and distance between the two stances?

The former, give up, life’s setbacks overwhelm. The latter, press on, learning wisely from life’s setbacks.

 
I’m not sure who said this, but for me I’ve lived my short 51 years resolute to the notion of ‘I’d rather be an optimist proven wrong, than a pessimist proven right. Rather than living out my years bursting bubbles with the prick of cynicism, I’m choosing to blow bubbles, watching the awe and wonder.

 
Michael Knight

 
PS for those interested in going further, try the Learned Optimism test designed by the former president of the American Psychologically Association Martin Seligman

http://web.stanford.edu/class/msande271/onlinetools/LearnedOpt.html

 
Also the primary source for this is from the book Learned Optimism by Martin Seligman

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26123.Learned_Optimism

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hHNq45rEnU