Baptism And Fire – (Beginning of Reflections on Sun Tsu’s Art Of War
Section 1 Item 1)War and its conduct quite central abide;
Nations and states in the long run survive
If these are handled with vigilant care;
Shifting the odds helps to sidestep despair.Cautiously study each aspect with care;
Do not neglect it – imperative’s there –
Thoroughly study – it’s never too much;
Don’t take it lightly, consider and touch –Each tiny aspect, for life and for death
Lie down this road, on this field; for our breath
Comes to an end – lands are fatal or safe –
If we’re not careful in choices we make.Actions of others are nasty at times,
Ways to resist them come slowly to mind;
Best think it through in our times of great peace,
Lest their surprises cause pleasures to cease.Safety or ruin, survival or not,
Lie on a pathway and choices we’ve got;
Floating along like tomorrow’s today,
Just invites trouble for which we must pay.Think about warfare, it’s uglier side,
Not the swashbuckling horses we ride;
More the grim toll borne by all who partake –
Think how your actions can better life make.War’s about smashing, destroying, and death;
Ending survival, extinguishing breath;
Bringing extinction to life as it’s known;
Wiping out safety from Main Street and home.Shun it, avoid it, prevent at all cost;
Do this before hand, for all can be lost;
Makers of peace pay the price up ahead –
Once war has started, most options are dead.But if there’s no way to walk in one’s peace,
Thinking ahead can provide great release;
Strategy, tactics, both forward and back,
Give us some options when others attack.We’re not alone on this planet of blue,
Others have notions – what they'd like to do;
Sometimes those plans don’t bode well for our ways,
That’s when some forethought belligerence stays.Warfare’s the ground where disputes are worked out,
When our persuasion cannot bring about
Better solutions – it’s nasty and mean;
(Corporate sector’s involved, so it seems).No one’s immune to this aspect of life;
We’ve had a breather for decades from strife;
But that can end with a blink of an eye,
Best we start now if we hope to survive.Maybe you’re not into parry and thrust;
Maybe you’d rather build friendship and trust;
Fine – I’ve no problem, just keep this in mind –
Some folks are nasty while you’re being kind.Innocent be as a lamb in the fold;
Wise as a serpent in what you behold;
Rose-colored glasses reduce the sun’s glare;
Just don’t believe there’s no evil out there.Peacetime’s my preference; persuasion’s my way;
Eternal values I hope will hold sway;
But if they don’t, pictured-words don’t suffice,
Thinking ahead is Son (Sun) Tsu’s advice.How we behave once hostilities start,
Deeply affects both our minds and our hearts;
How we take action, or choose to respond,
Critical is – on both sides of the pond.navigation