Did Pink Petunia’s picture cause you to smile? I think being alive, right now, at this very moment in history has magical, wonderful and terrifying qualities. But then again, other than being zapped from a drone laser beam, when in recorded history has some portion of humanity not gathered at Stonehenge certain that God was about to return at the exact moment of the winter or summer solstice, or some supreme being (evil or good) was about to alter their lives and they would instantly become – happy and full of purpose. To me, it is a sad idea to live your life waiting for an outside force to trigger on the force that should come from inside you. It is possible to live happily poor but you do need an internet connection.
I think happiness is a choice we make each day.
It only took me 48 years to learn that my happiness was derived from telling the truth, or accepting the truth. I guess I’m a slow learner. For example, I am a pasty-white, middle-aged male blessed with a thick head of hair, I do occasionally dye it dark brown, and I like to wear bow ties and wacky socks. I like to write poetry. I use a pen name. I wrote Bobby’s Socks because I had a story to tell about child sex abuse and why many victims commit suicide. I almost did that. (I know, HEAVY!) And that’s why I wear those wacky socks- to remind me, to smile, and not take my life so seriously. I wrote the satire Fishing for Light because I think we are easily manipulated by governments and hidden organizations that want to control us, control us right down to our genetic code with the food, water and air we suck into our pie holes. And I think we fish for our purpose outside ourselves, when the light we seek is typically found behind our eyeballs, we just have to be honest, stop and listen to it. But that listening part can be scary.
I’ll cough up another truth, I like Facebook. (I know, collectively SHRUG over at the slow learner.)
I’m not sure what to think about Instagram or Twitter, or Pin interest, Google+, or any other cyber marketing platforms. I do know that LinkedIn has not helped me get a paying gig. But I do like YouTube, but YouTube might be a bit too permanent a truth for me, I don’t think people read much, but video, well, that is really easy to find and it’s passive, not active like reading. And people act odd when a camera is pointed at them, I’m already odd enough. Although I do plan to adventure into YouTube Land to share what I deem as – art. But I digress…
There has never been a time in recorded history that I am aware of, assuming the folks on Ancient Aliens are wrong about prior interstellar visitors, that allows for the instant flow of personal information. We know within moments if a country has been invaded, we get to see in almost real time human beings die on a television or computer screen. I hate violence. We know within moments when a child was born, photos taken by the parents – then the baby date-time stamped, vitals shared and social security number determined before they leave the hospital. Or we have the face shared from a high school football teammate that had died that evening. Those pictures take me back in time like vacation picture post cards – I can almost see and hear people I know, or knew as they emerge from my past. It is almost like characters I create in my novels, I have these living things saying and doing – you know, things.
For me, I have spent most of my adult life walking, not running, the other way, as I ignored social media while I chased business success. But as I approach my 50th year, to be truthful, I have found the real pot of gold comes from the eyes of my Facebook friends. Because I think as the Biblical verse says, “The eyes are windows into the soul”, right? I know, I know, I went to the back of the book – newer part, not the older pre-Noah and the space aliens getting earth babes pregnant part, and then the reason for that nasty flood. (Say, that would be a cool rock band name – Noah and the Space Aliens?)
But I digress… sorry …sorry… but I’d buy a ticket to see, Noah and the Space Aliens!
For an artist to truly connect with their audience they have to garner the courage to bare their truth, to share their perspective, and then accept the response, good or bad. I think people, in particular children, know, and sense, when they are being manipulated and lied to. I did. If you want some examples, turn on e-television or watch TMZ and join in the fun with the current Roman mob, and point your thumbs up or down to like or unlike the realty stars primary talent which is to accidentally, on-purpose get caught on camera drunkenly stumble from a trendy night club, or get into a fight, or that needy turd share another photo of their mostly nude sub-human body with their dead eyes wistfully gazing off into deep space. (Insert – COUGH) Can someone please make it and them – to go AWAY! (Of course, I’m old and uncool, after all, this is their business brand, they, like the porn star get paid to do something – shocking- for our entertainment. I wonder if they are the moral equivalent to the court jester.)
Sorry, I digressed again … sorry…
But to my shock and surprise, I have grown to like Facebook. I rather enjoy my friends sharing their life details, happy or sad. My grin or frown emerges because I can remember that mother or father as my high school locker mate, my elementary school kick ball team mate, or my Sunday school class mate. Or, the girl I had a huge crush on, but I lacked the courage to talk to her, but now I grin because she’s a proud mother of four. Or the friend’s father, during my commercial real estate days, who I tried to lease a big manufacturing facility to, he wore round John Lennon like shaped glasses. I liked his glasses, I thought they were cool. (And for me, growing up within the Bible belt was not a cool location to be spawned onto the earth’s crust, so any moment to connect with something, or someone interesting was a moment to be remembered and savored.) Or, the statuesque friend’s mother who asked me, well, about me, because I rarely told anybody what I was thinking, but she cared because she told me she cared. And I care now because I remember her when my Facebook friend shares photos of her grandchildren. I think that’s cool.
Astronomers tell us that it takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds for the sun light we see to travel to earth. So, in a sense, we are always living in the past tense. But I think that past tense has gotten shorter, and shorter, and I don’t mean that the earth’s orbit is leaving the Goldilocks Zone and we are all doomed. But thanks to Facebook, and the like, I can stay in contact with the now mothers and fathers that I once knew as pimple faced teenagers. I get to see the photographs of their children, their vacations or they might share too much information. That’s okay with me, I’m thankful that they share, even if it is an opinion I don’t embrace. I’m glad they decided to share. I love the pictures of happy children because it tells me there is hope for this world. I love the comments, quotes and the what-not, or them simply showing me a picture of their lunch. Why? Because it tells me they feel empowered to express their opinion, I think that’s a good thing, it tells me there is still freedom to express in this world. But, mostly I smile from those happy, soulful eyes that I see from the mothers and fathers families who are my Facebook friends. In truth, those happy eyes stir me to feel, well, happy.
NS
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