Team Alpha 375

Dear Readers, The Irish are famous for their beautiful stone walls that grace the Emerald Isle and make the countryside appear like a patchwork quilt when viewed from the air. These stone walls or fences are constructed without any mortar and are so intricately assembled that they endure for decades, some even centuries. When driving in Ireland on the narrow roads, a person can literally reach out and touch these walls. Because they traditionally serve many purposes, they are loved by visitors and citizens alike. These walls separate but do not segregate, they divide but do not alienate neighbors from one another. Other types of walls do serve as barriers and should be torn down. These can be real or imaginary walls that do exist to divide and conquer. Their purpose is to mark territory and keep people apart. Walls such as these serve no purpose in our global community. Diversity is an asset and should be cultivated as a method for personal growth. When something new is experienced, we broaden our outlook and learn to embrace new ways of being. Dr. Hill proposes conquering real and imaginary walls through persistence. Work could present a seemingly insurmountable wall for some, housecleaning for another, and even social duties and obligations for yet a third group. Ask yourself what walls you have constructed in your life. Why allow these walls to confine you? Do these walls prevent you from tackling both the big and small jobs that would enable you to grow as a person? Then, why do you maintain them? Be persistent and tear them down! Mentally decide that you will not be restrained by artificial barriers and remove those walls. Walls that draw you in and embrace you in an aesthetic sense like those in Ireland can enrich our lives. Walls that exclude and separate one from another only strengthen barriers and boundaries. Which ones will you permit to exist in your mental landscape? For those you want to remove, how will you now begin the demolition? Be Your Very Best Always, Judy Williamson