Moving Beyond Jerry Springer

I’m fascinated by human behavior.  As I recall, my interest was sparked when I was in high school and read The Canterbury Tales.  It taught me about the power of observation.  You can learn a lot about people by watching and listening – which is what I did on two separate trips to Canada this past few weeks.

I presented at three different educational conferences, all of which had similar vibes.  Each appeared to have a big-picture focus on the land, people, and community.  Though the session topics were as diverse as the participants, all connected through related themes of health and wellness.  The end-result, as evidenced by the overall climate, was positive – and refreshing.

The only awkward aspect of my adventures was the fact that I was coming from the United States to talk with them about the importance of respectful behavior, good social skills and healthy relationships.  Hmmm…  I believe the literary term for this is irony. 

No matter who I spoke with or what I talked about, somehow the tension in the state of our country would be referenced by a participant.  I realized that at least in the eyes of the people with whom I interacted, we look like a real-life episode of The Jerry Springer Show.  Sadly, I can’t disagree.

I don’t want the point of this post to be about blame or judgement (which is often the inclination), as I believe this is one of the reasons we’ve gotten to the point we are now.  Our problems have been building up for years – and go way beyond any one person, party or group.  This is about individual responsibility.

Each morning when I wake up, I remind myself that the only part of this dysfunctional equation I can control is my own behavior.  Accordingly, I hope to take a small page out of the Canadian playbook I witnessed and actively contribute to a healthy climate through the behavioral choices I make each day.  “What choices?” you ask.  Stay tuned.  That post is under construction.