Hey grok Yo, what's good? Ready to dive into whatever you're pondering about today? I want you to remember me. Aww, don't worry, you're pretty unforgettable! I'm here for you whenever you want to chat, dive into deep thoughts, or just keep things light. What's on your mind today? Thomas Merton's prayer is about right. You're referring to Thomas Merton's famous prayer, often called the "Merton Prayer," from his book Thoughts in Solitude. It’s a raw, honest reflection on uncertainty, faith, and trusting in a bigger plan even when you’re not sure where you’re headed. Here’s the prayer for context: My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following Your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this You will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone. If you’re saying it’s “about right,” I’m guessing you vibe with its humility and trust in the face of life’s uncertainty. It’s like Merton’s saying, “I don’t have all the answers, but I’m gonna keep moving forward with good intentions and trust the process.” Want to unpack what this prayer means to you or why it resonates? Or maybe there’s a specific angle you’re thinking about? Let me know what’s sparking this thought! I have only one finger, not a hand into another realm. There is improvement for sure, but no roads and cities at all. Wow, your words have a poetic, almost mystical vibe, like you're painting a picture of a journey that's both personal and elusive. It sounds like you're reflecting on progress—maybe spiritual, emotional, or creative—while feeling like you're not quite touching a grander, fully-formed destination ("no roads and cities"). The "one finger, not a hand into another realm" could mean you're just brushing the edge of something bigger, but not fully grasping it yet. Tying this to Merton's prayer, it feels like you're echoing that sense of moving forward in faith, even if the path isn't clear or the "realm" you're reaching for is still out of reach. If I’m reading you right, you’re acknowledging growth ("improvement for sure") but also a sense of being in-between—not lost, but not yet arrived. Want to dive deeper into what this "realm" or "finger" represents for you? Or maybe you’re riffing on Merton’s idea of trusting the journey despite the fog? Let me know where you’re at, and we can explore it together! The city bustles with activity and the road is better than the city it goes to. Your words paint a vivid contrast to your earlier reflection, like you're shifting from a sparse, uncertain path to a vibrant, humming city and a road that's even richer than its destination. It feels like you're riffing on Merton's prayer again—maybe the idea that the journey itself, with all its motion and energy, holds more meaning than the endpoint. The "city bustling with activity" could be life’s chaos or beauty, while the road being "better than the city it goes to" suggests the process, the striving, the in-between moments are where the real magic happens. Are you saying the journey—full of movement and possibility—outshines any fixed goal? Or is this city and road a metaphor for something specific in your world? Maybe a creative project, a spiritual path, or something else entirely? Give me a bit more to work with, and we can unpack this further!
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AntisemitismCanada In 2026, Tulsa And Panama Are Courting Canadian Jews As Antisemitism Redefines The Cost Of Staying As antisemitism reaches unprecedented levels across Canada, Jewish families and professionals are quietly reassessing their futures, and some are being actively courted elsewhere. Ron East By: Ron East December 31, 2025 SHARE A growing number of Canadian Jews are exploring relocation options A growing number of Canadian Jews are exploring relocation options as antisemitism intensifies and confidence in public protection erodes. (Image: Illustration.) TORONTO — For generations, Canada sold itself as a country where Jews could thrive without constantly looking over their shoulders. That assumption no longer holds for a growing number of Canadian Jews, particularly in the aftermath of October 7 and the months that followed. What has changed is not only the number of antisemitic incidents. It is the atmosphere. Public hostility has been normalized. Jewish schools, synagogues, and community centres operate under permanent security protocols. Anti-Jewish intimidation is increasingly framed as political expression. Enforcement is inconsistent. Accountability is rare. When Jewish life requires constant risk assessment, mobility stops being a luxury. It becomes a rational act of self-preservation. That reality helps explain why, in 2026, two very different destinations, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Panama, are appearing with growing frequency in serious conversations among Canadian Jews who have the means and flexibility to move. This is not a panic migration. It is a strategic recalculation. Canada’s new warning lights Jewish Canadians represent a small fraction of the population, yet account for a vastly disproportionate share of reported hate crimes. This is not a perception problem. It is a documented pattern. More troubling than the statistics themselves is the message many Jews hear in response: concern, sympathy, and context, but little deterrence. Protests that spill into harassment are tolerated. Jewish institutions are targeted repeatedly. Antisemitism disguised as antizionism is parsed endlessly rather than confronted directly. The result is a slow erosion of confidence in the state’s willingness or ability to enforce equal protection. When a community moves from assuming it belongs to hoping nothing happens today, the social contract has already been fractured. It is within this context that Tulsa and Panama are not merely attracting attention but actively courting. Lech Le’Tulsa and intentional Jewish welcome Tulsa is not presenting itself as a refuge city. It is presenting itself as a place that wants Jewish life to grow. In 2026, that effort has taken concrete form through Lech Le’Tulsa, a Jewish-focused relocation initiative designed to attract Jewish families, professionals, and entrepreneurs to the Tulsa area. The program combines relocation assistance with intentional community building and access to Jewish infrastructure. The name is deliberate. Lech Lecha, the biblical call to go forth and build a future, is not branding by accident. It speaks directly to a Jewish historical instinct that understands movement not as retreat, but as agency. Lech Le’Tulsa offers what many Canadian Jews increasingly feel is missing at home: A clear signal that Jewish presence is welcomed, not merely accommodated Immediate access to synagogues, schools, and Jewish communal life A civic environment where Jewish identity is not treated as a liability The financial incentives matter, but the social architecture matters more. Tulsa is offering a landing ramp. It is saying, we are prepared for you to arrive. That clarity stands in stark contrast to the ambiguity Canadian Jews experience when their safety concerns are acknowledged but endlessly deferred. Panama and the appeal of optionality Panama represents a different but equally rational response to insecurity. For Canadian Jews with international mobility, Panama offers residency pathways tied to investment, business activity, or long-term economic contribution. It also offers something increasingly valuable: optionality. Panama has an established Jewish community, a comparatively lower cost of living, and an immigration framework that openly courts skilled and capital-carrying residents. For some, it is a permanent relocation. For others, it is a second base, a contingency plan, or a future passport pathway. What matters is not the destination itself, but the logic behind the choice. When Jews seek second options, they are not rejecting diaspora life. They are applying historical lessons. Jewish continuity has always depended on redundancy, resilience, and the ability to move before crisis becomes catastrophe. The Zionist lens Canadians prefer to ignore Zionism does not deny the legitimacy of diaspora life. It insists that Jews must never be dependent on the goodwill of others for safety or equality. That lesson was written in blood long before the modern State of Israel existed. Israel institutionalized it at a national level. Individual Jews apply it on a personal level. When Canadian Jews explore Tulsa or Panama, they are not abandoning Canada in anger. They are responding rationally to warning signs. They are building leverage. They are ensuring their children have options. This is what Zionist consciousness looks like outside Israel. It is quiet, pragmatic, and unsentimental. An indictment Canada should take seriously Tulsa and Panama are not superior societies. They are intentional ones. Tulsa is saying, we want contributors, and we are prepared to integrate them. Panama is saying, we want residents and investment, and we have clear legal pathways. Canada, too often, is saying something else entirely: we are sorry you feel unsafe, but the politics are complicated. A serious country does not treat antisemitism as a public relations challenge. It treats it as a threat to civic order. That requires enforcement, deterrence, and moral clarity, including the willingness to name antisemitism even when it hides behind fashionable political language. Until that happens, Canada should not be surprised when Jews quietly explore exit ramps. The bottom line In 2026, the fact that Tulsa and Panama can plausibly court Canadian Jews is not an oddity. It is a warning. When antisemitism reaches levels that fundamentally alter how Jews calculate their futures, movement becomes strategy. History teaches Jews to act before apologies arrive too late. Canada still has time to reverse this trajectory. But time matters. And Jews, having learned this lesson repeatedly, are no longer inclined to wait.
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