how we live
This old guy hangs out all day and meditates. In India they are called sadhus and are considered holy, in America they’re called street people and are considered bums. The sadhus beg for food and do nothing to contribute to society except of course for giving their blessings and maybe selling a little ganja. In America they beg for food and sit on the park bench all day waiting to be blessed.
“Sons of bankers, sons of lawyers turn around and say good morning to the night.” sings Elton John in his hit song ‘Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters’. “They know not if it’s dark outside or light.” Some people’s lifestyles are like that, but some are not. A billion people are farmers.
There are fishermen that live by the sea, there are guys in the military. Some people live in a nursing home and are given drugs every day whether they want them or not. Chinese workers square dance in the empty parking lot after their shift ends. Well, ok it’s not really a square dance but kinda looks like one, its patterns weaving in and out, stepping through and stepping over.
There are people in Sri Lanka who live on coconuts. I mean they don’t ‘live’ on coconuts but their occupation is harvesting and processing coconuts. Some people are airline pilots and wear bars on their shoulders. Some people are doctors and wear a white coat with a stethoscope around their neck. This imbues them with a patina of infallibility, like they must really know some stuff. That’s a doctor. Turns out what they know mostly is the names of pharmaceutical drugs.
Rich people and peasants live in the same city. Officials of the police department or the water department or the welcome committee, are identified with ribbons and badges. I don’t think garbage collectors are officials.
Some are sailors from Spain working on a 1200 foot container ship in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, steaming for Miami. Some are working the low level drug business in south side Chicago, a little pimping now and then, with their beretta. Some people are orbiting high above in the international space station, looking down at the earth, looking up at the stars, looking down at the stars.
We live in so many different ways, in response to the question inferred in the title. As many ways there are as people there are.
Some are preacher’s kids (like me) who didn’t know it was ok to dance until they finally did. Some are preacher’s wives which is probably worse than being the kid - you have to enforce the rules and support the guy, the preacher, your husband.
Some people are living for the moment, some are living to marry that girl, buy that car, become VP of the company. There’s some power, there’s some stature. Now maybe I can become an elder in the church too (closer to God). Some people are catching alligators in Florida, some are turning loose wolves in Montana.
However we live, we live. Our life goes by, and mostly we’re focused on our expectations of life, hoping they will come true. Isn’t that the truth? Our life goes by - like a one way escalator, or one of those moving pathways at the airport, no getting off either. Well yes there is getting off, but we’re trying to avoid that.
Our relationship becomes, not to our life, but to the expectations that we have created about our life. Then we have to beat on it and pray on it and push it and shove it to make it come true. But our life goes by, and whatever it can be goes by too.
As the son of a preacher man, who was dedicated and certified, I think I am qualified to offer a suggestion: live your life for your life, not for your expectations. Let life come to you and show you something. It has its own rhythm and its own style.
That would be the best lifestyle of all.
Rohn Bayes...your style is lean and mean...noice....