…late and soon – wrote Romantic poet William Wordsworth (who I gather enjoyed ‘laying pipe’ to his own sister [I don’t know if she was a half-sister, step-sister, or, the-real-McCoy, however]). And I fully agree with him – a-century-and-a-half after he penned those words in his response to industrialization and the factories sprouting up in jolly ol’ England.
In 2008 U.S. of A. – I’m wondering myself…how the average human being navigates the emotional, intellectual and spiritual maze we’ve woven for ourselves! Patricia and my favorite poet, William Butler Yeats (Patricia is a sometime film producer; ex-commune gal; and, advocate for America’s war wounded), suggested that we would reach a point where the best lacked all conviction, and the worst were full of passionate intensity.
It’s that whole “passionate intensity” thang that gets me so confused: whether we are talking about Rush Limbaugh or X-wife #2 ;or, a host of other folks whose names I deign not mention – I just can’t figure out how they keep truckin’ with all that chutzpah and hubris. Sure, I know as-well-as-anyone – that what goes around comes around – and those who go around hurting others will eventually get their come-uppance one-way-or-another – but what a swathe of destruction these folks wreak about them on their paths to nowhere.
I mean, I truly am one-of-those-folks who attempts to live-and-let-live, and, as a teacher and former therapist – I ceaselessly attempt(ed) to awaken people to their potential and the possibilities – and sometimes I think I’ve done a damn fine job of it. But I know for sure, that I’ve never, ever actively (consciously) tried to fuck-up another human being. I know that I’ve made a number of mistakes with-a-few (my own kidz for example) – but I tend to be of the “live and let live” mind. I think that this life is tough enough for all-of-us without me adding any misery to someone else’s life (just ask my college students what my posture is on giving tests). Yet time-and-time-again – I find too many people willing to fuck-up-my-life.
This pattern seems to have started back-in-my-senior year of high school with a dick head teacher named Mr. Voss (or was it Vos?). He apparently took umbrage to my kissing Girlfriend Judy in-between classes (did he covet the Homecoming Queen for himself?). Anywayz, one day, after lunch, the sonavubitch accosted me right outside my 5th period biology class and started talking shit to me like “You really think you’re hot shit don’t you?! With your long hair and holier than thou attitude – you really think you own this place, don’t you?!” And because I didn’t even know-the-guy, and had never taken a class from him – I attempted to move by him into my biology class – and the fucking ass-wipe pushed me against the wall to try to further make whatever his point with me was – at which point my biology teacher and another student stepped in to move dick-head Voss away from me. Then, to cover his stupid ass, dickhead Voss went to the principal to report that I had accosted him and had made contact with him!? And we wonder how blood feuds start.
And to this day, I have assholes after me – who don’t abide by the creed of live-and-let-live: whether it’s the Los Angeles County Probation with fabricated sexual molestation allegations; or wearisome consultants trying to sell bullshit education methodologies (and the idiot doesn’t even know how to punctuate properly); or, racist, bigoted agency members of my current placement – who can’t tell the difference between a drug-addled gang member with gaping holes in his educational etiology or a college-bound A.P. student…
Mother Mary – I need my permanent vacation from this world – so help me win that Goddamned lotto!