In a neighborhood, as in life, a clean bandage is much, much better than a raw or festering wound.
Interpretation
Healing and care are essential in both life and community.
This quote by Ed Koch emphasizes the importance of addressing and caring for wounds, whether physical or metaphorical, in our lives and neighborhoods. It suggests that having a clean and well-managed situation is far better than allowing problems to fester and worsen, highlighting the value of proactive care and attention to our surroundings and relationships.
In practice
During a community meeting about neighborhood safety, this quote can inspire teamwork and care.
No, I am not a homosexual. If I were a homosexual, I would hope I would have the courage to say so. What's cruel is that you are forcing me to say I am not a homosexual. This means you are putting homosexuals down. I don't want to do that.
The knife of corruption endangered the life of New York City. The scalpel of the law is making us well again.
Have confidence in your decisions. Make them expeditiously, and stay with them as long as you believe you are correct no matter what others say. However, when you conclude you were in error, do not hesitate to announce the error publicly and change course.
I was not afraid of the press or the militants. It was uncomfortable, but I was not afraid. With respect to the press, I knew I knew more than they knew about city matters. With respect to the militants, I understood it. I mean, everybody believed in those days that they were being screwed, you know, that somebody was getting ahead of them.
Faith is the yes of the heart.
Fair speech may hide a foul heart.
In your present-moment awareness, awaken to your innocence, your trust, your love, your eternal being.
The enlightened attention rejects nothing nor welcomes anything-like a mirror it responds equally to all.
The fatal tendency of mankind to leave off thinking about a thing when it is no longer doubtful is the cause of half their errors.
Meditation is simply about being yourself and knowing something about who that is. It is about coming to realize that you are on a path whether you like it or not, namely, the path that is your life. Meditation may help us see that this path we call our life has direction; that it is always unfolding, moment by moment; and that what happens now, in this moment, influences what happens next.
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