If At First...

What with the assortment of ever expanding government scandals to go along with the disastrous eruptions of nature and the collapsing economy and the dwindling middle class and the debauching of society in general and children in particular, one is tempted to throw in the towel, cry uncle and take the gas pipe.
Alas, that would be the cowards way out. No, we are condemned ...to be free as one Frog philosopher put it.
So we must carry on as best we can. Persevere,  so to speak. It matters not so much the apparent results, but the effort. And, if the effort is great enough, the reward will take care of itself.
I am reminded of what that great man G.K. Chesterton once said.

 "If a thing is worth doing, it is worth doing badly."
And  you say, 'Firpo, what the hell are you babbling about now?' and I don't blame you.
Just take a few moments to think about that statement.
It's pretty obvious, no?

Maybe the immortal words of Curly will go down easier.

"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking until you do succeed."

Perseverance in all.
The best thing to persevere in, of course, is our faith in God and in His divine providence.
It's all so simple, and yet we allow ourselves to be distracted on a daily...moment to moment... basis by the things of this world. We must be entertained and when we aren't lost in the superfluous, we are overwhelmed by the 24/7 cycle of bad news and human depravity.
Take a time out and renew your acquaintance with the only Being who holds the answer to life's mystery.
In this forlorn vale of tears it is easy to let one's vision blur over to the truth.
"But, Firpo," you cry, "I'm a spiritual person."
Horsespit!
Let's forget all that 'spiritual' stuff... ET and Chewbaca and the good witch of the west and magic crystals and transcendental meditation and omm...omm...omm and The Force.
One needs be religious.
Let's believe and leave the 'feeling' to the masseuse.
Get thee to a nunnery...or at least to a place of worship, preferably a Catholic Church where the Truth is daily present. (I guess Protestant is acceptable, as long as it's truly Christian and not some heathen or heretic mess.) Read the Bible, and religious books. Pray a little, a lot.
I know it ain't easy. Nothing worthwhile is. As G.K. also said,  "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."

Now, Firpo is not all fire and brimstone. Actually, the true religion is full of laughter. After all, one can't help knowing the Truth and not be happy, and one can not be truly happy without boatloads of laughter.
Just to show my heart's in the right place, let me share a little laughter (and Curly's succinct advice) with you. Tune in (especially around 7 minutes and 15 seconds) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwc6_bW9mT4