Sinking Our Own Ships

Discovering A Better Life
P.O Box 1540, Albany Western Australia 6331
Phone/Fax: (08) 98 418 418
E-mail: abl-alb@omninet.net.au

Sinking Our Own Ships
Friends, in a newspaper I was reading sometime ago, there was a single-column entry on the bottom edge of page 11 that I nearly missed. Why, if someone had been trying to hide the story - not that I think someone did - that was the perfect place of rit! But it had a caution I need. And perhaps it’s a caution you might need to consider also. “Russia says faulty torpedo sank nuclear submarine” was the headline. The 13-line story gave the official verdict of a Russian investigation into the disastrous loss of one of Russia’s most powerful nuclear submarines during naval exercises in August 2000. All 118 members of the Kursk’s crew perished, although some survived for several hours in the rear of the doomed vessel. It remains Russia’s worst peacetime naval catastrophe. Losing one of its showpiece subs was a terrible embarrassment to its military and political leaders. And as that nation witnessed a great outpouring of grief, they were indisposed to admit the possibility of a failure within Russian technology. The less-sinister explanation was that the Kursk might have struck a World War II land mine. The more-sinister scenario had a NATO submarine colliding with it. With most of the ship raised now, 115 bodies identified and buried, and extensive research reviewed by a government commission, we know why the Kursk sank. It wasn’t and old mine. It wasn’t shadowy pursuit by other nations. The Kursk sank because one of its own faulty torpedoes exploded. The Russian navy has now ordered that type of torpedo removed from service throughout its fleet. Friends, why should I or anyone else be pleased not to have missed that story? It reminded me that I am most often my own worst enemy! When disaster strikes, I am tempted to live in denial about torpedoing my own prospects. I look around instinctively for a scapegoat. I can give two or three possibilities at the drop of a hat for how circumstances beyond my control, co-workers, fate, - maybe even God - could be to blame; but not me. You see, personal responsibility is often painful. Well, things do happen beyond our control. And there’s no spiritual virtue in trying to take the blame fore very bad thing that happens to you. I’m just reminding myself to be alert to the opposite and more familiar tendency to live in denial or by blaming others for my own self-sabotaging behaviours. So my friend, if there is a situation or relationship in which you know you were the one who threw sand into the gears, do the right thing - stop blaming others - take responsibility. Because only with honesty about what really happened can healing begin. And if you have made a mess of something things in your life I’d like to extend my hand to help you. Lot’s of people make mistakes and feel like they have failed in life. But only a small percentage ever gets up, dust off, and move on to victory after they have failed. I hope you will be in that small percentage, because licking your wounds will only leave a bitter aftertaste. If you would like to receive a FREE booklet titled “HOW TO HANDLE FAILURE” I’d be pleased to send it to you. Email me or write to me at P.O Box 1540, Albany W.A 6331. Telephone / Fax (08) 98 418 418

Friends, in a newspaper I was reading sometime ago, there was a single-column entry on the bottom edge of page 11 that I nearly missed. Why, if someone had been trying to hide the story - not that I think someone did - that was the perfect place of rit! But it had a caution I need. And perhaps it’s a caution you might need to consider also.

“Russia says faulty torpedo sank nuclear submarine” was the headline. The 13-line story gave the official verdict of a Russian investigation into the disastrous loss of one of Russia’s most powerful nuclear submarines during naval exercises in August 2000. All 118 members of the Kursk’s crew perished, although some survived for several hours in the rear of the doomed vessel. It remains Russia’s worst peacetime naval catastrophe.

Losing one of its showpiece subs was a terrible embarrassment to its military and political leaders. And as that nation witnessed a great outpouring of grief, they were indisposed to admit the possibility of a failure within Russian technology. The less-sinister explanation was that the Kursk might have struck a World War II land mine. The more-sinister scenario had a NATO submarine colliding with it.

With most of the ship raised now, 115 bodies identified and buried, and extensive research reviewed by a government commission, we know why the Kursk sank. It wasn’t and old mine. It wasn’t shadowy pursuit by other nations. The Kursk sank because one of its own faulty torpedoes exploded. The Russian navy has now ordered that type of torpedo removed from service throughout its fleet.

Friends, why should I or anyone else be pleased not to have missed that story? It reminded me that I am most often my own worst enemy! When disaster strikes, I am tempted to live in denial about torpedoing my own prospects. I look around instinctively for a scapegoat. I can give two or three possibilities at the drop of a hat for how circumstances beyond my control, co-workers, fate, - maybe even God - could be to blame; but not me. You see, personal responsibility is often painful.

Well, things do happen beyond our control. And there’s no spiritual virtue in trying to take the blame fore very bad thing that happens to you. I’m just reminding myself to be alert to the opposite and more familiar tendency to live in denial or by blaming others for my own self-sabotaging behaviours.

So my friend, if there is a situation or relationship in which you know you were the one who threw sand into the gears, do the right thing - stop blaming others - take responsibility. Because only with honesty about what really happened can healing begin. And if you have made a mess of something things in your life I’d like to extend my hand to help you. Lot’s of people make mistakes and feel like they have failed in life. But only a small percentage ever gets up, dust off, and move on to victory after they have failed. I hope you will be in that small percentage, because licking your wounds will only leave a bitter aftertaste.

If you would like to receive a FREE booklet titled “HOW TO HANDLE FAILURE” I’d be pleased to send it to you.

Email me
or write to me at
P.O Box 1540,
Albany W.A 6331.

Telephone / Fax (08) 98 418 418