Monday, July 25, 2011

The Map Was Broken

               I borrow those spoken words from Bill Morrissey in a song about two guys in the woods looking for the perfect watering hole to fish.  By all accounts, Bill’s life was full of internal roadblocks, yet was able to spew prolific poetry in song.  He found the path to Heaven in his sleep July 23rd.  I knew of Bill through his music, I knew of Amy Winehouse through her troubles.  I read a blog today who called her a genius.  Far from being the glittery pop culture idol who was only famous to me for being troubled who also left us this past weekend, Bill was real.  Who was the genius?
               When I was a census taker last summer, I often used the phrase the map is broken.  Addresses are one thing, the map of life is another.  So many people played by the rules expecting a comfortable life in their later years only see the greedy steal their humble blood, sweat and tears.  Big business doesn’t care about their people or the ones they claim to serve.  There’s money in building war toys and what do the broken spirits enjoy on television?  Shows like Survivor and Big Brother to see how the best scumbag wins the prize.  Glorifying slime balls is entertaining or enriching?  Others choose to ignore the big picture and just try to get by quietly hoping not to be noticed.
                 Is there any wonder why the news is full of heartache and the desperate?  They see others robbing every day and being rewarded handsomely for it.  The short end of the stick is just that, short.  And they see others, fat and sassy who learned the tricks of deceit, deception and double cross.     
                   Politicians posture in anticipation of the next election while holding the future of the world economy in the balance.  I don’t know about you, but they don’t represent me.  My proposal is that any elected politician can hold office for one term and cannot run again for at least five years for any other.  Maybe then they won’t be bought and will actually serve the people instead of their own self interests.  I call it my catch and release philosophy.
                At the end of Bill’s song, he promises to catch a fish and he and his buddy could eat it to sustain themselves and its beautiful spirit would become part of them.  With so many broken maps in this world, may cartographers find a peaceful path in this journey called life.

4 comments:

  1. My favorite Dylan line is "everything is broken." On the flip side is everything is beautiful. Politics, governments, corporations - they've got it all wrong, and eventually, this too shall pass.

    We know how to do it - we're pros at it. It's their loss, especially when it comes to the next election and beyond.

    Nice post!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The world is so out of balance, I despair of it being able to right itself. But I hope for the best. I was very surprised to hear that Bill had passed but not at all surprised about Amy. Sad to lose them both though.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I am honored you all read and especially comment on my posts. It makes my time and effort feel wothwhile.

    ReplyDelete