CHAPT16

~Chapter Sixteen~

ON FUNK AND WAGNELL'S PORCH ---

"We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another."

--- Jonathan Swift

It's deeply disturbing to me that we can reduce most of the world's shortcomings down to simple economics.

But in all honesty, the only thing holding back most of our dreams is a simple lack of finance.

If we'd only learn how to wean ourselves off the addiction to money, 80% of the problems plaguing the world would disappear nearly over night. Once we take away the desperation, what remains will help to usher in the alternatives for the imagined need of money. The greatest peace movements in every time have been fueled by the disparity between rich and poor. Even Jesus stepped briefly out of character, and showed a certain loathing for the money changers. Strange how churches over 2000 years later are still so fond of passing around the collection plate.

Let me step out of character for a moment, and defend those churches. In a society that's so dependent on cash, I can't say I blame them for asking members to give 10 % of their weekly income to the tidings. Unless church leaders want to worship in darkness after not having paid the power bill, or get kicked off of the premises for not paying the property tax, then they have little choice but to beg for the bucks. I can't believe I just defended the churches. Must be the medications kicking in now.

Now that the spiggot's been opened up, I still don't think anyone's going to take very seriously, this matter of doing away with money. There's some trepidation on my part even in just suggesting that we should. It's so contrary to the "ideology" of a person working hard, and being rewarded (very modestly in most cases) with a paycheck every week or so. Even a pigeon expects seed if it can peck the right lever. Most people have learned to base their entire existence on this simple principal. In fact, it gives them comfort. Should anyone even try to take that from them? Plus, it's possible that deep down, there's only one reason I protest the need for money so much. Maybe my vision's clouded by never having had it.

There's no way to be sure, but isn't it at least fathomable that if I were rich, then maybe I wouldn't feel a need for any change at all? If I had the emperor's package in Vegas, maybe my attitude would be more like, "Sure, it's sad that there are so many people suffering out there someplace. Eh! I'll worry about that after the hookers leave."

Maybe having money is just enough of an excuse for people not to worry so much about the welfare of others. So long as you're getting what you want out of life, then principles be damned. That seems to be the case today with almost everyone. Hopefully, there are still a few altruists out there somewhere doing enough charitable work to give us cause for hope. Then it might be at least possible that someone can still be motivated to initiate a new kind of thinking --- once the gold starts to lose some of its luster.

Like everyone else, I try to factor in how life would be different if I had money. Maybe things would be even
worse in some ways. We all know the ravages of being impoverished in that fewer opportunities come. But,

I think if I were to suddenly come into wealth, then I'd be operating under a brand new kind of stress factor. I'd then have to figure out how best to give most of it away.

It'd be very satisfying being able to give them the opportunities I've never had when I was younger. There are some very deserving people out there who's dreams are put on hold, simply because of that pesky lack of status. How thrilling it'd be to give them a fair shake in life.

Then again, I'm an idealist. Since I'd be so busy helping my animal and people friends, I'd like to think that having gobs of cash wouldn't change who I am at heart. At the core of these writings is the desire to do good, and to affect positive change. For me at least, there's no need for money to meet such a worthy goal.

I've been blessed with many good works and deeds, all of which were earned without so much as a plug nickel. In that light, what good would wealth do, unless it could be used to make the world a better place in which to live for ALL of us? It's an example of that selfish selflessness I was trying to describe from the beginning.

As for those who've already managed to come by wealth, while some might feel some pity for the less fortunate, most it appears, aren't actually willing to do anything about it. My hope is, there are plenty of charitable individuals out there who prefer to keep their donations to worthy causes private. In any event, I truly believe that the energy we put out, is the energy we receive.

Any sensitive soul is constantly aware of how connected everything is. Such souls know that if there's a force out there that's hurting others, then it'll eventually find its way to all of us. Pain doesn't stay with a single person, race, city, country, continent, or world. It reigns freely everywhere, and in everyone, as long as nobody's willing to do anything about it. Suffering is an urging from nature that says, "I dare you to stop me. Go on, do something!" It tries to spur you into action. Unfortunately, as time goes by, we can get desensitized to it. That can result in the kind of world we see around us today. Bless those who still manage to feel the connections that urge us into doing something about all this suffering.

Since this seems to be the "pat yourself on the back" portion of the story, I'm always saying how I could never truly be happy, as long as I knew of just one person or animal lying out there somewhere suffering. All pain and disease could be abolished, and I'd still be wondering if this were enough.

That's the price of being such an idealist. It's really a thorn in the side at times. If only there were a way in which needless suffering in the world could be permanently abolished. I suppose though, that as long as there are those who are elevated by seeing tragedy unfold, so that their own can be lessened --- then suffering will continue unabated. Too many of us live by that ideal. Idealism doesn't necessarily alway have to be positive.

Idealistic or not, the important thing is that people start believing that suffering isn't needed anymore. You must become self-sufficient. This is a quality that all people have deep down. It's just that not many of them are willing to base their life on it. Goodness and the wish to help is at the core of all living things. How a being uses this capacity for giving is determined by the degree to which it's felt, and then acted upon.

On Earth, people have a potential for great good, but have let themselves become overwhelmed by a pervasive feeling that there's little that can be done to change anything. Everyone has shrugged off responsibility by saying something like, "I'm only one person. What can I do?" It's the current group mentality. Imagine how much could be done, if that same group had a change in attitude. For now though, that's not the world we live in.

We're living in a world where people honestly believe that "good intentions pave the way to hell." It's a sort of built in excuse for not having to do anything helpful. Because of it, apathy continues to hold dominion over the fabric of societal ideals. Intentions might be good, but what use are they if not acted upon? What good is a person's intents, if there's no venue, no format through which charitable work can be done? Like every other organized effort, even those professing charitable causes often exist for economic viability alone. Charities often make it easier for real people not to worry. Charitable causes help the individual feel like someone's already looking out for the little guy. In a sense, personal responsibility for the under privileged is swept under the rug that way. If we give a dollar to that guy standing in the cold while ringing that little bell all day, then our work is done. The effort has been made.

It can't be denied that non-profit organizations do provide services to those in need, but we all know that the lion's share of donations aren't directly used to benefit the needy. Then there are all those health care drives. How much money claimed for research is being actually written off as deductions, if not stolen outright? There's no way to be absolutely sure exactly where the money is going, is there? In the end, you're pretty much on your own if you want to affect real change. But you are just one voice. How can it increase in volume so as to be heard in the millions?

That's the question Jimmy. Bill Shakespeare posed a similar one "To be or not to be." This axiom seems to mirror accurately, what it is that we're still experiencing today.

"That is the question. Whether to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous (mis) fortune, or by so opposing, end them." The bard's world wasn't all that different from today's, given the scope of his almost prophetic morality plays. Truly, they were inspired by the ages. Ages past, and those yet to come. People like Shakespeare knew how great changes would have to come for there to be any future growth. They knew that through the opposition against the societal elite, and the inevitable upheaval that would follow, would come the end to social injustice. In a sense, most visionaries could see into the future too.

Shakespeare was a psychic? Oh well, if that seems to be a bit of a stretch, it's not like we haven't been outrageous up till this point anyway. At this point, we may as well try to have the letter "M" stricken from the English language, as Steve Martin once quipped. However, for the sake of argument, let's just pretend that some people actually are psychics. Take Shakespeare's "Hamlet," and one of its most famous quotes:

"There are more things in Heaven and Earth Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

While pretty vague, apparently, he'd been reading his tea leaves that day.

"Double, double, toil and trouble; fire burn and cauldron bubble." Everyone and everything is psychic. We might prefer to use the word "precognitive" though. This is an extremely broad issue, so it should be explained in a way that will be easier to digest. We need to keep stirring the cauldron a little while longer before making any dramatic conclusions. With a little pinch of garlic, along with a spider's eyebrows, maybe we can cook up a world that's kinder to our pallets.

I'm starting to feel just like I did as a kid, when I stood teetering at the end of that high dive board. I want to jump right off. My spirit is ready, but my flesh is weak. Even though I'm ready to take the plunge, I can't deny that there's some trepidation here. I sure hope another belly flop isn't in the works.

Part of the problem I'm having here deals with this fear of being branded as another one of those new age zealots, who pretends to have all the answers. People are too desperate to believe in anything which might offer them a little more denial. Most religions are insane if taken literally, which most are. By the same token, if we're led to believe that the future's predictable, and if people still refuse to make a correction in course once given a glimpse of that future --- then we're still stirring the wrong pot. I'm thinking of all those self-proclaimed pop culture prophets, so eager to prey on people's expectations. Take the flimsy claims of the cold reading people who talk to dead Uncle Bill, or the hollow rhetoric given by the psychic hotlines, and other such charlatans. Pitches like this make it hard to take the real thing very seriously.

Let's face it. There are tons of people out there who're more than willing to take advantage of our gullibility. Smoke and mirror tactics have been recycled thousands of times now, and by thousands of people. Play the old game of "20" questions, and you're likely to be just as impressed. Then again, what the hell do I know? There's this agonizing realization that I'm not a writer, and how everyone knows about the first rule of writing. It states that people should stick with writing about something they know. Clearly, I'm out of my league at this point.

Therein lies the crux of the problem. I don't know all that much about these disjointed notions that are bouncing around in my skull. I'm reticent to place myself in the awkward position of being mistaken for someone who should even attempt to say, "Listen to me, because I have what it is you're all looking for." I respect people's troubles too much, so it's hard for me to approach them under false pretense.

Every time I speak of my dreams, in a way I suppose, I'm claiming to hold the key to the future. This is a preposterous stance for anyone to take, let alone me. I'm not some swami mystic like "The Mighty Karnac."

Unlike the classic television character played by Carson, I can't magically ascertain the answers to questions that have been hermetically sealed in a mayonnaise jar that's been sitting on Funk and Wagnell's porch since noon today. I've already mentioned how the last thing I want to do, is start sounding like some kind of new age mystic blow hard. "I hold in my hand, the last envelope..." Yet, I want to be taken seriously too. If I'm not, then I can get a little defensive. "May a disease ridden jackal romance your sister's shin during the month of September." So much for new age.

New age is only a label, but the aim is the same. We need some added perspective as to how the universe might work. You can call it new age if you like, because that's exactly what we're trying to bring about--- a new age. A new perspective will help to usher it in. The scary thing is, we usually have nothing more than instinct to guide us. Sometimes, a hunch is all there is to go on. Even just in trying to usher in a new world view won't be easy, but nothing worth while ever is.

It's sure taken us a long time just to get from where we were to wherever we are now. I can't help but wonder if anyone's still with us at this point. I wonder if we're reaching anyone with all this magic wand waving?

Only if they're able to see that we're all connected. Whatever it is that one person is feeling, sooner or later, we all feel it. One way or another, it's true. Everyone thinks they're unique, which they are as personalities. They also think that nobody understands them, or that nobody takes them seriously. So, while you may feel alone in your struggle, there are more people out there like us than we dare imagine.

More people like me? Now that's scary! I've always chosen to wear my individuality like a suit of armor. Occasionally, I've taken pride in who I've managed to become--- a person who refuses to follow tradition. Actually, it's not refusal so much as it is an utter inability to fit in. Having such a slanted angle on life may have made me feel alienated from others, but if something went wrong, at least I had only myself to blame. When looking at the rest of the world (or at least the "Iowa" part of it), I took comfort in believing that if everything fell apart around me, at least I played no part in any of it.

Sometimes I wonder if it's all been worth it, this having removed myself from the tediousness of the average person's day. For example, right now I'm wondering if I should ride my motorcycle in the snow to buy a bag of chips. As much as I hate the giant vehicles Americans seem to insist upon driving, I'm getting hungry again. Right now, driving a 200 ton pickup truck doesn't sound so awful.

Then of course, there's nothing that can soothe the sad truth that I'm alone. I have become Aesop's fox, and I stand here now in an entire world made up of what I've deemed to be sour grapes. Maybe it's time to reconsider this rather stark position.

I have to accept that I'm not as unique or special as I'd like to think (although, given the stares I attract once I open my mouth in public, there's reason to believe otherwise). I'm just another alone and confused person, along with my entire species. When all's said and done, maybe everyone else feels just as out of step as I do. I've learned the fine art of humility, at least on this simplistic level. That does nothing to make me want to give up on my fellow humans though. For whatever reason, I still believe there's hope for us. If only we could know how, or even if humanity fits into such a grand scheme.