The Joke’s On Me
Each day passes, election day is closer to us. Perhaps today I will fill out my mail-in ballot, and be satisfied that I have expressed my will for the texture of the future for all that live here, not just here, for the world.
There is much that I wish were different about the country of my birth, but I recognize that everyone is subject to history. History is what we have to work with. History is the light and the darkness of our heritage. What do you mean? I mean the consequence of the naive idealism of Kennedy, of the irascibility of Johnson, of the hubris of Nixon, and of the decency of Carter.
Are we, am I, “dancing in the dark” and that’s just a hard, unavoidable truth? Are we really “free” as we have believed ourselves to be, — that is, a species with the distinction of exercising choice, free-will to direct the course of our life journey? (Do other mammals even entertain the idea of a “life journey”?)
Perhaps you can intuit that I’d answer the two questions that I have posed with a negative. Freedom oh freedom, that’s just some people talkin’ is a lyric line from The Eagles, Desperado that I’d subscribe to.
What is to be done now, what is my/your next move?
Hey there baby, I could use just a little help
You can’t start a fire
You can’t start a fire without a spark
…You can’t start a fire
Worrying about your little world falling apart
This gun’s for hire
Even if we’re just dancing in the dark
2 thoughts on “The Joke’s On Me”
“History is what we have to work with.”
I believe there is another, even stronger drive in our lives, and that is fantasy. Our imagination has a huge impact on the direction we take, what we believe, how we interact with our fellow humans, and the decisions we make on a daily basis.
Specifically what comes to mind is storytelling, either in the oral tradition or through books, movies, plays, or music. Through these narratives we are taught that, for the most part, the imaginary protagonist wins the day. That in the end, good triumphs over evil, be it Harry Potter, Hobbits in Middle Earth, Jason and his Argonauts, Hercule Poirot, Jesus, and on and on and on. Work hard, remain optimistic, have a true heart and all will end up the way we believe it should.
In the world of dystopian politics the problem arises that each side believes they have a lock on the “good” side and the “others” are evil. I certainly view those who support an authoritarian POV as short-sighted and only interested in their own enrichment whether it is financial or ostensibly spiritual. From my perch in life these people appear to be moving humanity towards an inevitable cliff of extinction, while those who I perceive as the villains believe I am the embodiment of the devil. Who’s right?
As the old saying goes, “Only time will tell!”
Time does indeed tell. Though the judgment of time comes too late to help us… That said, I too am a fan of the imagination. Possible new worlds wait for us to give them birth.
This from the 3rd stanza of The Dry Salvages by T. S. Eliot seems relevant: