How do you sustain yourself when all the old structures people looked to for support - religion, family, ethnic solidarity - are crumbling, or feel so false that you refuse to avail yourself of them? What comes next?
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I'm trying to make a case for those people who don't have a sense of belonging that they should have, that there is something really worthwhile in having a sense of belonging, and recasting and looking at our modern history.
The people I am most interested in are the ones on the edge of losing everything and falling into the last bit of despair. I'm trying to write about how people exist on that edge and how they can come back.
As a civilised society, we have a duty to support those among us who are vulnerable and in need. When times are hard, that duty should be felt more than ever, not disappear or diminish.
The question we all face is what sort of culture we will live in for the rest of our lives and then hand on to the next generation - one that embraces these most basic of values, or one that collapses because of their absence.
The old problems - love, money, security, status, health, etc. - are still here to plague us or please us.
I grew up in a strong faith-based family. I think I have selected to return to those roots for strength, for my family, for myself and to protect our children and to forgive others and move on and face forward.
The human race has had long experience and a fine tradition in surviving adversity. But we now face a task for which we have little experience, the task of surviving prosperity.
There are so many examples of people who have flourished by keeping their nose to the grindstone and doing their thing. Be persistent and don't give up.
I've led this empty life for over forty years and now I can pass that heritage on and ensure that the misery will continue for at least one more generation.
Be greedy for social change, and your life will be endlessly enriched. The only failure lies in not trying, or giving up.