For “Joe”
“There’s time to live and time to die
When it’s time to meet the maker
There’s time to live, but isn’t it strange
That as soon as you’re born, you’re dying…
…and reborn again??”
“Clairvoyant”
– Iron Maiden
What if instead
During the human “dying process,”
When you hear the term “end of life,”
It gets replaced with “end of chapter”
Since another will surely follow
Not to euphemise death, per se
As to pretend it does not occur
But rather change the perspective
As a continuation of an energy
That once materialized into
This dimension from another
(Why else, is it called, an arrival?
Because the Stork, comes from….?)
On a journey to yet a different realm
Serving purposes in various stages
The anticipation of their “arrival”
Smiles, coos, first words, crawling,
Eating, pooping, wiping, bathing,
Standing, walking, birthdays, speaking,
Peddling, dancing, singing, learning,
Playing, reading, engaging, testing,
Passing, failing, falling, trying, growing,
Developing a personality, understanding,
Making funny faces, laughing, crying,
Joking, lying, confessing, truthing,
Skiing, swimming, skating, sledding,
Stealing, returning, begging, apologizing,
Driving, speeding, crashing, healing,
Maturing, working, earning, saving,
Spending, wasting, drinking, recovering,
Dining, dating, anticipating, marrying,
Procreating, starting this process again,
Guiding, teaching, sharing, learning,
Traveling, sightseeing, experiencing,
Maturing, retiring, resting, sleeping,
Remembering, forgetting, forgiving,
Eating, pooping, wiping, bathing,
Smiles, grunts, last words, waving,
The consternation of their “departure”
This is where the story splits
They go on in a chapter you can’t read
While you re-read the chapter, they were in
Or burn the book depending on circumstances
Either way, it is all just energy
You experience as it occurs
Good, bad, indifferent, wasted
Remembered or forgotten
“All matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream, and we are the imagination of ourselves.”
– Bill Hicks
“Heaven Can Wait”
“Can’t understand what is happening to me
This isn’t real. This is only a dream
But I never have felt, no I never have felt this
way before
I’m looking down on my body below
I lie asleep in the midst of a dream
Is it now could it be the Angel of Death has come for me
I can’t believe that really my time has come
I don’t feel ready. There’s so much left undone
And it’s my soul, and I’m not gonna let it get away
Heaven can wait / Heaven can wait
Heaven can wait / Heaven can wait ’til another day
I have a lust for the Earth below
And Hell itself is my only foe
‘Cause I’ve no fear of dying
I’ll go when I’m good and ready
I snatch a glimpse of the lights’ eternal rays
I see a tunnel I stand amazed
At all of the people standing there in front of me
Into the paths of rightness, I’ll be led
Is this the place where the living join the dead
I wish I knew this was only just a nightmare
Take my hand. I’ll lead you to the promised land
Take my hand. I’ll give you immortality
Eternal youth, I’ll take you to the other side
To see the truth, the path for you is decided
My body tingles. I feel so strange
I feel so tired. I feel so drained
And I’m wondering if I’ll ever be the same again
Is this in limbo or Heaven or Hell
Maybe I’m going down there as well
I can’t accept my soul will drift forever
I feel myself floating back down to Earth
So could this be the hour of my rebirth
Or have I died, or will I wake from dreaming?”
Heaven Can Wait…….
– Iron Maiden
Plus a little magic
Comedians are funny
Leaders lead
Comedians do not lead
Leaders are not funny
It confuses things
Comedians have
No one to lead
They are individuals
Leading themselves
Making people laugh
By telling the truth
Or embellishing
Exaggeration to make fun
Unfortunately leaders
Manipulate truths
To lead people
Incapable of
Leading themselves
In the end, nothing
Really ever changes
The question then is
Would you rather laugh
By hearing some truths
Or be lied to assuming it
Does someone else good
“Laughter is the corrective force which prevents us from becoming cranks.”
― Henri Bergson
The same goes for magicians
They do not describe how
They will perform the illusion
(Except for Penn & Teller
But, that’s another story)
They do it, and you are in awe
Trying to figure it out now & later
Yet, if they say they are going to
Pull a rabbit out of an “empty” hat
You focus on the hat and how….
Not to be distracted by sleight of mind
Of course, when no effort is made
To actually produce a rabbit
You realize slowly that there was never
Going to be any rabbit anywhere
That it was intended to string
You along from distraction
To distraction while no magic
Ever gets done, just a series
Of hyperbole for its own sake
Plus the ego of the petulant magician
With just enough audience members
Left to keep others from leaving by
Cajoling them into staying because
This time, he will do it….just watch
Not realizing, the suspense is killing them
If only the entire audience would just
Wake up, pack up, and leave the performer
He would have no one to perform for
Trouble is, we are a
Hopeful gambling species
A collective Charlie Brown
Trusting that this time
Lucy will hold the ball
So we can kick it forever far
Meanwhile, each time
No matter how many times
We trust and trust and trust
We land flat on our back
Winded, bruised, ashamed
But willing to trust again
Shame on us
So busy laughing and crying
At the comedy and tragedy
We fail to recognize
Our own ability to perform
Our own magic
Of being kind,
Helpful and compassionate
To our fellow space travelers
In other words……
Since we are all one……
To our selves
The entertainment for the next 4 years is not new. You’ve seen this entertainment through and through. Nothing will change or get done, but hopefully, at the end, you will be laughing and not crying boo-hoo.
My apologies to Jim Morrison
To alter the overall experience
The collective is having now
As the distractions are
Coming in full steam ahead
By intention or circumstance
AI, man-made, or nature
Sadly, like a runaway train
Each will have to run their course
Inevitably crashing or slowed by gravity
“If you don’t want it
It remains the same
It’s a heart of darkness
That wants to play that game
If there’s no defiance
It remains insane
If it’s all compliance
It’s ’s a runaway train
It’s a runaway train. “
“Runaway Train”
– Geddy Lee
Fortunately for the first two, AI & man
Nature is a self correcting system
Nature made human, human-made AI
Nature likes to show off to get our attention
To exhibit as to who is really in charge
If we can only learn to follow her,
Our mother earth, will we learn balance
Until then, we have no alternatives
But to ride out the runaway train
Everyone’s own solipsistic universe
Is immersed in with everyone else’s
Keeping them separate when necessary
Or intermingled when it is required
All depends on shared energies,
Openness, reception, and awareness
To seek out other’s help is to recognize
That the other person in your world…..is you
The same thing goes in reverse, so it would seem
When you help others, you are helping yourself
I can not prove anything
But merely present
Both sides of a situation
“The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true.”
— James Branch Cabell
It must be my contrarian
Nature not to stand for
Anything, save hoping
That truths may reveal
Themselves in mirrors of
Words, content & context
Projections and perceptions
There is no proof in any
Beliefs or feelings
That are as substantial
As the cold dark
Vacuum of space
We pass through each moment
Save being a part of it
While also rushing through
The God Particle
At non break neck
Breakneck speed
Including everything and nothing
Leaving the same in our
Track less wake behind us
In moments, microseconds,
Jiffies, minutes, days,
Weeks, months years,
Generations and lifetimes
Measured in inches or centimeters
Miles or kilometers
Eons, lifetimes or infinity
It is all happening all at once
Yet, we get to experience it
Miraculously and linearly
For no purpose or meaning
Other than what we assign
Whichever momentary reason
Tickles our fancy
For a serotonin surge
While carrying our baggage
Of old faded memories
Alongside future plans
(That’s a lot to carry)
Yet, can not hold on to
One moment to the next
Having come from
No where, now here
Not digitized or compressed
Into a zip or hard drive
Rather a gray spongey
Infinite capacity brain
That is very slowly
Allegedly evolving
With no extra hardware
Co-powered between
The mind and heart
Seeing as how there is
No separation
Between those
Likewise it is the same
Between ourselves
And all of infinity.
Wouldn’t it be great and evolutionary if one were to involuntarily vomit after ingesting (hearing, and or seeing) toxic (useless for the soul’s advancement) information.
Same goes, after one’s bullshit meter stays pegged at max.
“You’ll be listening to some guy, saying, well, he’s fairly intelligent.
Ah, he’s full of shit.”
– George Carlin
Hurl, spew, heave, wretch, purge, egurgitate
Like drinking excessive or dangerous amounts of alcohol, your body (in order to protect itself) expunges the overwhelming toxins. Usually in the form and / or color of food sitting underneath it.
For example, listening to corporate/government/propaganda media randomly is like a single glass of wine or a cold beer. You stop by, listen, and move on. No harm, no foul. Its lasting effects / affects are usually gone within an hour.
But when you listen over and over, imbibing excessively on the same drinks, (fear, hate, division) delivered by different bartenders (show hosts, aka talking heads) at the same bar (networks) you involuntarily vomit. With nary a chance to make it to a porcelain throne.
Since it is your brain, overwhelmed by the deceptions and distractions, it produces a gray bile, different from “regular” puke, so you would at least know when to stop. Leave the bad bar. (Turn off the TV or radio)
Drink some coffee (listen to music / read a book) to let your brain and imagination recuperate. Question why it was necessary to even seek out such toxicity. …
Perhaps, recognize that the perceived inadequacies of self are the cause of both alcohol consumption and deceptive distractions. Realize that you are enough without substances or sour sentences strung together to strangulate your sense of self.
Is like discarding
A distinct indelible memory
Or, an indoctrinated one
Part of your existence
Is tethered to your beliefs
Without a Bluetooth pairing
Or a wireless connection
To a local area network
Or even stored in a “cloud”
It is just an infinite coupling
In the elusive ether of
Something you can not
See, touch, smell, or hear
Yet, you “know” it is there
Imagine that
How one conducts themselves…
Treat people, work, save, spend
Share, speak, drive, eat, etc…
Stem from neurological
Electrical impulses
Which can not be undone
Or replicated similarly
Where are memories stored
Whatever happened
Happened back there
In both nonexistent time
Plus, un-locatable space
If people believe
That they believe
In the “same” “God”
A small series
Of questions
Will bear out that
Nobody does
But are willing
For the sake of
A convenient label
That they do
My guess is that it is
A safety in numbers thing
Making it fair
Arrogant or
Egotistical to say
I will believe
In your God or
What you believe
When you can
Disprove my
Solipsism
That is how
Easy it is to
Alter a belief
More than you
Fear death
For death will only
Kill you once
Fear will kill you
Constantly and
Mercilessly
Mind numbing
Cognitive dissonance
Dichotomous information
Coming through
Multiple outlets
Generated from
The exact same source
(Advertisers)
Via constant content
Through news and sports
Scandals and cover-ups
Recycled and repeated
Content to confuse with
Competing contexts
Chaos and conundrums
Reveals clearly what
Not who is in control
That of the multinational
Greedy pig corporations
Serving humanity by
Destroying its habitat
Through consumption
Of temporary items
Ready to replace
With recycled rubbish
By reminding you
You are not enough
Without abysmal
Emptiness filling stuff
“I don’t know what word in the English language, I can’t find one, applies to people who are willing to sacrifice the literal existence of organized human life so they can put a few more dollars into highly stuffed pockets, the word evil doesn’t even begin to approach it. ”
– Noam Chomsky
Let this sink in.
“Chomsky is credited with revolutionizing the linguistics field by introducing the Chomsky hierarchy, generative grammar and the concept of a universal grammar, which underlies all human speech and is based in the innate structure of the mind/brain.”
– College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
In an effort to unbend reality, next time you are at a store, look at the stuff you are not looking for. The stuff, usually hanging “randomly” on an extension of the shelf you are walking by.
As I write this, what comes to mind is a “brand”- piece of plastic square two-piece sandwich holder. Retail, about $ 4.⁰⁰ with probably a $ .⁷⁷ COGS bottom line expense. If purchased by whoever, it will probably get used about five times before it ends up in the trash. Then, going back to the disposable sandwich, clear double sealed bags that do the same thing with less hassle.
Whether it be that, or whatever eye-catching garbage is for sale, stop and contemplate that somewhere it was manufactured using petroleum products to make it, cardboard, plastic, and ink to package it. Shipped from thousands of miles away, stuffed into a metal container, unloaded near a shore, transferred to a warehouse.
Organized to be redistributed to competing retailers, for just-in-time inventory to hundreds of various retailers. Only to land in a landfill. Which will require more petroleum to power the bulldozers used to bury the discarded plastic.
If through other means, it doesn’t end up floating in the ocean. Which gets there, by dumping it……in the ocean. Ooopsie. As part of the process of manufacturing the stuff we will throw away anyway.
“Ever wonder why we’re fucked up as a species?”
– Bill Hicks
Whether you buy it or not, look down the burgeoning soda aisle, with all of its brightly colored distinctive corporate packaging. Now imagine, if it was all just black lettering on a white background that read. Hi fructose colored flavored corn syrup with fizzy carbonation, forcing you to look for the “flavor” you wanted in small print. Next to the “diet” sodas, loaded with aspartame. Which aren’t really about diet and more for addiction.
Who knew a glass of water would sound so appealing right now.
“I write to expunge the darkness
So that someday
Light may shine through”
– Angelo Devlin
“Youths are passed through schools that don’t teach. Then forced to search for jobs that don’t exist and finally left stranded to stare at the glamorous lives advertised around them.”
– Huey Newton
My best perception
Of the parable of
Pavlov’s pups is
Not to play along
With pings of peals
As per programming
Of pupil patriotism
Per paltry pledges
Via public performances
Whew
Here’s where this came from….
Whilst attending a grandchild’s, for lack of better words, brain competition, (finally, not sport). Held early in the school’s gym.
Sitting on the bleachers waiting for it to start, before the participants came out, the bell had rung. Basically, a short, near what could be considered a brief “fire alarm” burst of sound to start the school children’s day. Followed by… a militaristic monotone recitation of the pledge of allegiance, way too loud.
I get it and understand
“The Pledge of Allegiance, ultimately, is coffee for elementary school students. “… And to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
FUCK, I’m at SCHOOL! Can we say it again? I need a second cup.”
– Lewis Black
However, the gathering attendees (alleged adults), much to my shock, horror, dismay, incredulity, put down their phones, and or stopped their conversations, to stand and face a flag, put their hand over their heart and……. FOLLOWED ALONG……. to no one, leading the “Pledge” for no reason whatsoever. Aaagggghhhhh.
Either everyone rose to play along and pretend they are patriotic by participating (maybe, they’ll get a trophy) or, more likely they are so indoctrinated in their behavior, since near birth, they fail fabulously at their critical thinking skills, to realize, that “The Pledge” was not intended for them.
“And Liberty…
The meaning of Liberty
The dictionary definition…
“Liberty means freedom from government restriction and control”.
Not only do we not have liberty.
Who has less liberty than the children, you make say this. (Pledge)
That’s the irony. They get the least liberty, you’ve had it. We don’t have, they got… [??] They can’t do shit.
We got the oldest children in the world in this country.”
– Doug Stanhope
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the worst of it. It was followed by an extended slogan of grade school gibberish as to thoughtless conduct of behavior towards fellow students.
Certainly not to behave in an individual way of decency, kindness for its own sake, but rather a group programmed one. Triggered to a tee to salivate subconsciously of social conditioning.
“You know what stickers I hate? The ones that say ‘We are the proud parents of an honor student at Mars High’ or whatever other innocent sounding name, that has been assigned by the indoctrination center where their child has been sent to be stripped of his individuality and turned into an obedient-souldead-conformist member of the american consumer culture.
Proud parents? What kind of empty people need to validate themselves through the acheivements of their children?
Here’s a bumper sticker I’d like to see:
‘We are the proud parents of a child whose self-esteem is sufficient that he doesn’t need us promoting his minor scholastic acheivements on the back of our car’ or ‘We are the proud parents of a child who has resisted his teacher’s attempts to break his spirit and bend him to the will of his corporate masters’ ”
– George Carlin
“Pity The Nation”
“Pity the nation whose people are sheep
And whose shepherds mislead them
Pity the nation whose leaders are liars
Whose sages are silenced
and whose bigots haunt the airways
Pity the nation that raises not its voice
but aims to rule the world
by force and by torture
And knows
No other language but its own
Pity the nation whose breath is money
and sleeps the sleep of the too well fed
Pity the nation Oh pity the people of my country
My country, tears of thee
Sweet land of liberty!”
– Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Does Pavlov ring a bell?
https://www.simplypsychology.org/pavlov.html
“Humanity” is not very pretty
When it sees itself
In a collective mirror.”
– Angelo Devlin
Looking at the world through a windshield. 