A Kind Remark

I thank all of you who have been so supportive as I try to get support for my unpublished book The Split Second:  In Consideration of Others or Look Up from the Phone and How to Deal with Rudeness in Others. I still have faith that I can have the experience of having it published. I need to find ways to “get the word out,” and that is what is difficult for me right now. If any of you want to “spread the word,” I would be very grateful. My website is: rwblakeauthor.com

I have to be totally honest and open with this blog. Over the years, I have had several people who are close to me at a given time in life say to me, “I feel I always have to watch what I say around you.” My response is, “I watch what I say to everyone I meet.” The great Pauline Phillips otherwise known as “Dear Abby,” said that it would be nice to ask ourselves a few questions very quickly when we have something to say to someone: “Is it true?” “Is it kind?,” and “Is it prone to gossip?” My book’s main title, “The Split Second” advocates that we think about what we are going to say to someone, yet it only takes a split second. As a 65-year-old man, I have noticed that in society, many folks want to “speak their minds,” and yet want people to be respectful of them with words always. To that, I write: you can’t have it both ways. I feel each one of us needs to be kind with words and deeds that are thought out but only for a split second. My own mother prided herself on “shooting from the hip.” I advocate for total honesty; however, there are the nicest ways to make your thoughts known without being offensive, insulting, or ugly. I remember when several times a student would come up to me in my classroom and make the most insulting comment about me. Then he/she would say, “But I am being honest.” I would reply, “No one in the room asked you to speak.” He/she might have made the comment in a much nicer way.