Graeme Sykes, November 10, 2006 – Because it’s Monday, and about Two Years later
I just finished my first Kurt Vonnegut novel, Galapagos. I enjoyed it. Usually I don’t read Science Fiction, at least not since I was a 15 year old pre-pubescent day dreamer. Galapagos is unlike 99% of science fiction though, it confronts modernity head-on with an abusing rationalization of accepted logic interspersed with timely tidbits of historic wisdom in a manner that is both humourous and disturbing. Or something like that. i just love how our Big Brains are the real protagonist – how true! Big brains are our blessing and our curse. Would a bigger brain help us stop global warming, end poverty, find meaning in life, etc? Or just cause us more grief? Would you take a smaller brain in exchange for guaranteed happiness? Once a week I visit family friends who foster a special needs boy named Chris. He has the mental capabilities of a 2 year old though he is 14, and he has no conception of death. he smiles and laughs and enojys himself so much but will never be able to develop beyond his present state. He’ll likely never love, never have an ego, never know fear and never be depressed. But he knows happiness.
My next book, which I’ve been waiting patiently for, is called the Golden Spruce. It’s the true story of a madman (arn’t we all mad) who develops a patholigical obsession with a sacred old growth spruce tree on the Queen Charlotte Islands. This tree is singularly unique in that it blooms golden needles, like a biological el dorado in a sea of green. His pathos leads to tradegy, as is expected, and our world loses a connection with the spiritual. But I’ll have to read the book before I say more.
I’ve been politically active of late, in a populist sort of way. 3-4 nights a week I volunteer with the Western canada Wilderness Committee. I canvass door-to-door, promoting our cause and diseminating information. It’s great. Canvassing has been compared to sword fighting, and there is an element of mental jousting involved, though a good canvasser will shift the interaction from combative to concillatory in short time. The experience is beneficial on so many levels. Personally, you learn to overcome many fears, you develop keen observation skills – the ability to read and relate to all sorts of people, and you take moral satisfaction from contributing to positive, real social change. It’s first hand democracy, the power of numbers to change our world. The most surprising aspect of all is how my emotional response is completely counterintuitive. On the surface, you would expect that having to absord sad statistics on distructive practices in political and social arenas would be disheartening. You may also expect that having to confront an endless stream of unwelcoming, fearful and rude strangers would be punishing. Yet, through perserverance and a growth in understanding these realities only serve to stoke the fire. It’s remarkable. Each door becomes a new opportunity to connect with somebody and improve their life. That’s really how I see it. Because ignorance is powerlessness. I know so many people who choose to ignore political issues mainly because they are convinced that involvement is fruitless, time consuming and unrewarding. They would rather watch a hockey game and escape the daily grind. In a way, that’s how I was raised. But the truth is far different. When people take the time to honestly evaluate a political issue, do some reading, talk to people and reflect on their own experiences, they invariably come to sensible conclusions. Then if they are given a medium or avenue to act on their opinions, if they have a means to impact the politics which dictate circumstances, to help shape the future of their given issue… they feel empowered. And that empowerment is so incredibly rewarding. It energizes. The value of a television set instantly diminishes.
Okay, I know that sounds a bit like a preacher, but I’m feeling pretty passionate about these ideas. Maybe I’m just tired of our lame duck political lives propped up by the mainstream media. So for the next little while I’m gonna get more involved and see where it takes me. Go WCWC!
Let me sign off with some lyrics from a song that’s playing at the moment. It’s by Sam Roberts. I’ve always loved poetry about the sea, which is weird, cause I’m a total land lubber. Here goes…
She’s got me mystified, heavy now
Deep down to my soul
You try to keep the wheel steady now
Easy as she goes
I can hear on the wind a tale that needs to be told again
The horizon bends at either end and the sea can’t tell a foe from a friend
I know it was only a dream
As delicate as a dragonfly wing
I was never satisfied with any life till she called my name
The air on the high ground was rarefied, every day the same
And old fears were always near but the world don’t wait
When your faith won’t leap
And I know it was only a dream
As delicate as a dragonfly wing
Then we watched as the Southern Cross led the sailors home, constellation borne
We set sail in a heavy gale and to the sea many of us thrown
And there were times when my courage failed but I never bowed to the storm
Whatever path you choose to walk, in the end, you walk alone
Ooh, it’s got me mystified, heavy now
Tongue-tied to the anchor chain
You try to keep your hand steady now
But it slips again
And landfall surprised us all and she broke on the rocks like a china doll
You can hear the siren call for the last dance at Poseidon’s Ball
I know it was only a dream
As delicate as a dragonfly wing
I hope it was only a dream
As delicate as a dragonfly wing
This entry was posted on Monday, November 17th, 2008 at 9:59 am. It is filed under correspondence from a friend.
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