From Steinbeck To Amanda

"It is argued that because they believed thoroughly in a just, moral God they could put their faith there and let the smaller securities take care of themselves. But I think that because they trusted themselves and respected themselves as individuals, because they knew beyond doubt that they were valuable and potentially moral units-because of this they could give God their own courage and dignity and then receive it back. Such things have disappeared perhaps because men do not trust themselves anymore, and when that happens there is nothing left except perhaps to find some strong sure man, even though he may be wrong, and to dangle from his coattails."

Dear Steinbeck,
In this day and age I was so sure that I wouldn't find anyone that understood what I was feeling or have been thinking about lately. Granted, I am not currently in the process of struggling to maintain a homestead and family in the Salinas Valley, but I am a young single girl trying to find all the money needed to pay my bills and struggling to deal with myself and those around me on a daily basis. And I truly believe that no one trust or believes in anything anymore.

Instead of finding value in ourselves, we are a world that finds value in things. None of which we can take to our grave. We hand power to few, follow where they lead and get angry when we hit a brick wall or fall of a cliff. Always forgetting that WE were the ones that gave that idiot the control in the first place.

Maybe it's time "we" stop the group think and try being individuals again. Because "I" am more powerful then I give myself credit for. I am valuable and I need to give up worrying about the tedious details of my day and focus on what really matters-being the best person I can be.

Steinbeck, thanks for the reminder.