It's Not Edgy Enough

Kay recently posted on being positive. In the post she used the term 'Pollyanna' with the words "but I hesitated because there is always someone who will take me for a "Pollyanna" with my head in the sand and not fully comprehending the problems of the world.".  I stood up for Pollyanna and Kay said that she thought that people thought it "not edgy enough" for the modern world.

Ten years ago on Thankful Thursday on A Hebridean in New Zealand I wrote about the best-selling novel Pollyanna by written in 1913 by Eleanor H. Porter"

Pollyanna's philosophy of life centres on what she calls "The Glad Game", an optimistic attitude she learned from her father. The game consists of finding something to be glad about in every situation. It originated in an incident one Christmas when Pollyanna, who was hoping for a doll in the missionary barrel, found only a pair of crutches inside. Making the game up on the spot, Pollyanna's father taught her to look at the good side of things—in this case, to be glad about the crutches because "we don't need 'em!"  Of course it didn't end there.

I've noticed, too, that the term 'Pollyanna' has been used a lot recently about Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand. (Whom I happen to admire as a person with humanity who can also act decisively with an iron ruthlessness).  The references have not appeared entirely complimentary. 

In this day and age a good positive outlook is no bad thing because the world and its news is centred on negativity. Not just with Covid-19 but with politics in general in many countries. Okay, there are a lot of positive initiatives but even then organisations like Extinction Rebellion concentrate on a negative way of putting over what is supposed to be a positive message.

So I'm very sad that we feel it necessary to be 'edgy' to get our message across.

Life - An Update

I'm now out of hospital and getting some R and R before my scans and cancer review next week.

Before I respond to the comments on my last couple of posts (and I hope you will forgive me if I give general comments and just answer specific ones where a specific point has been made) I just want to update you and show you a few of the things that have amused me and kept me going over the last week or so.

Several post-cards from my brother, CJ/Scriptor Senex:

Although, as CJ pointed out, this is an unrealistic representation of life - libraries no longer have books and pigs trotters cannot manage the keystrokes (although he supposed that they could have asked the librarian volunteer member of the public behind the counter.

The cartoon arrived in one of the messages I received although I can't recall who sent it - sorry. I think it encompasses so very much my philosophy of life and is an important part of playing The Glad Game. Anyway it's Saturday, the weather here near Glasgow is wet, breezy and very uninviting.  I have little doubt that we shall venture out at some stage but for the moment I shall visit Blogland and write good old snail mail letters: I have a lot of people to thank for helping me through the last 10 days.

 

Thankful Thursday: The Glad Game

The mist lifted and for a good bit of the day the sun came out and the temperature reached 20℃ which, for Lewis, is very warm indeed.  Of course it's never as simple as that and we had a force 3 to 4 wind to keep us on our toes.  Nevertheless I spent much of the afternoon in the garden in shorts - much to the delight of the clegs (horse-flies) which seem to be around this year in much greater numbers than usual.  

Jaz is back in Blogland with her blog re-named Treacy Family and her Thankful Thursday post.  Jaz, you may recall, was the person who originally wrote Thankful Thursday posts and inspired me to do the same.

I've always had a natural tendency to play the Glad Game but I'm not sure sometimes what the difference is between that and simply being naturally thankful for things.

I remembered this evening that I had, at one time, writing a piece on the Glad Game and Pollyanna but I couldn't find the post.  I had, however, and it appeared in A Hebridean in New Zealand in a Thankful Thursday post on 2 December 2010.  Really?  I was writing Thankful Thursday posts that long ago?    

Pollyanna is a best-selling novel by written in 1913 by Eleanor H. Porter.  Pollyanna's philosophy of life centers on what she calls "The Glad Game", an optimistic attitude she learned from her father. The game consists of finding something to be glad about in every situation. It originated in an incident one Christmas when Pollyanna, who was hoping for a doll in the missionary barrel, found only a pair of crutches inside. Making the game up on the spot, Pollyanna's father taught her to look at the good side of things—in this case, to be glad about the crutches because "we don't need 'em!" [Wikipedia]

So my 'Thankful' today is a repetition and is of my thankfulness that I learned about the Glad Game.  That and 'Don't Sweat The Small Stuff' which Marcel aka David introduced me to about 9 years ago have, for many years now, helped me through lots of taxing situations.