• the official launch of the book SPARE (salacious details about parts of the life of the gent formerly known as a Prince)
• the FAA closed the entire US aviation system, stopping 11,000 flights COLD because of insufficient system upgrades
• the attempted coup of yet another government (in Brazil, no less) was quickly recognized as one and thwarted
• a penalty of $1.6 million was levied against the corporation of a very dishonest ex-president, by-passing yet again the crooked mastermind himself
• nasty accusations from the soon-to-be-released musings of a former Canadian finance minister on his time with the still-in-power government, and,
• the continued death and destruction by war and uprising in at least five countries worldwide.

Some might say it was a quiet, even normal, week.

Unfortunately, these headlines and stories are colourful, depressing, hostile and hard to comprehend. And truthfully, what we are witnessing is the repeated attempt to remove the rot that permeates and underpins our entire societal structure.

It reminds me of the fall of Rome. (Not that I have any evidence I was there when it occurred!) However, it is generally understood and accepted that factors like

• the effectiveness and numbers of the army,
• the health and numbers of the Roman population,
• the strength of the economy,
• the competence of the emperors,
• the internal struggles for power,
• the religious changes of the period,
• the efficiency of the civil administration
• the increasing pressure from invading barbarians outside Roman culture,
• the climatic changes and
• both endemic and epidemic disease

were the primary drivers behind the decline and fall.

This list looks eerily similar to the mess we seem to live in right now, doesn’t it?

I wrote the following bit on my socials about Harry’s SPARE book during that particular week in January.

As a product of a dysfunctional family myself, I had great empathy for Harry and high hopes for his book. These initial sales numbers for his book and the high viewership stats for his interviews prove that most of us are nosy and want an up close and personal look at life inside the gilded cage.

Whether Harry is right or wrong in doing what he is doing will be debated ad nauseum for years and years.

Here is what I see.

1.     Every single one of us at one time or another does something we ultimately realize was silly, dumb, stupid. And since do-overs are rarely allowed, we learn to live with regret.
2.     Elevating human beings by their social status, bloodlines, outward appearance and/or wealth is ancient and archaic.
3.     For at least the last twenty years, the world has revolted against old and archaic practices in every institution in business, non-profit, education, government and even Hollywood. Today, it’s the monarchy’s turn.
4.     Old and archaic practices always have a massive pile of rot propping them up.
5.     There is a vast swath of people whose very livelihood and status in life depend on being a cog in the royal machine.
6.     The royal machine has been rotten for a very long time.
7.     Sunlight is the best disinfectant available.

If and when this finally blows over, I hope Harry gets the peace and closure he is looking for, the royal machine is put in its (rightful) place, and we can all get off the hamster wheel that status, bloodline, appearance and wealth equals value.

Gentle reader, I do NOT have a crystal ball, nor can I tell whether the uprisings, upheavals, unearthings and unveilings we now see regularly will ultimately destroy or make us stronger. But the stench of rot that is being consistently exposed is frankly over-powering. And is making too many of us indifferent to how we live, work, and see the actual state of our world.

I, for one, am still filled with hope. For our humanity, for our world and for our planet.

So, imagine if we began making small individual strides towards doing things for the greater good. Imagine if we ditched most of the old archaic ways we have been taught and lulled into believing. Instead, we used more compassion, connection, courage, commitment, creativity, collaboration, community and contribution in our actions.

Hell, just choose three of those eight characteristics and ditch the preoccupation with wealth at any cost. Imagine the possibilities!

Imagine how much better our world could be.