A Daily Awakening of Your Own Personal Tea Bag

I drink some tea each day. I also do something each day to celebrate my sense of freedom as an American. Maybe that something is just as simple as writing and publishing on the Internet, maybe it is deciding not to watch TV but to read a book instead, or share some bit of music or information with friends or strangers which might alter how that person views the world, themselves or just how they view me.

So even though some folks today are waking up to the world of troubles which the majority of Americans already knew existed and voted to change last year, hey, I'm glad you are awake.

Now that you are awake, though, be sure you fight against letting your sleep overtake you again. Try coffee instead of tea. Now that you have the concept of freedom, use it every day - find out what your city councils, mayors, county legislators, state and federal officials are doing in your name.

Tune out the highly paid media entertainers who compete for advertising dollars with contests and kooky novelty acts, found in such places as network programs or cable news shows or newspapers or blogs or Twitter feeds. I mean, you are certainly free to view the world through only one perspective, or you can choose to take a bit more responsibility for yourself and your country and exercise your own ability to seek fair and balanced news and information. Or you can sit on the couch and wait for someone to bring it to you all pre-chewed and easy to swallow.

You might want to actually investigate all those nagging feelings which made you wake up - it is so easy now to dig into histories old and new thanks to the Internet, to learn the meanings of words, to discover who is providing influences on government, what life is like for people not born in your county or your country, and you'll discover the struggle of freedom is a daily battle fought all over the world.

Yes indeed, our nation was founded on revolutionary ideas - and sometimes we make more of those kinds of leaps: allowing women to hold jobs and to vote is a relatively new and world-changing concept, just as the concept of equal rights for all challenges the world.

And even if your think and ponder as hard and as painfully as you can - sometimes you will still be wrong. Sometimes you will be right. Sometimes, there are simply no answers and you have to hold off on emotional judgments and just wait and think some more.

I can share one sure thing I have discovered - if someone tells you that they do indeed have all the answers they are probably just selling something, sort of like human spam-bots constantly pushing amazing deals under your computer door. Now if that sounds like I might be selling something too, well in a way I am - I am pushing ideas, ones that might make you have some new ones of your own.

I know, I know, an awakening is a difficult time. Everything comes at you all at once. Don't panic. It is true that some ideas can take away your freedom, but other ideas make freedom grow. Be a patient gardener. And have a cup of tea - or a cup of Joe - and you'll probably be okay.

We're open all night here, just like it says on the masthead. We can talk about movies or funny stories or whatever is on your mind. Take deep breaths, try to relax, and celebrate your freedom every day.