wrestling with congruency
We move operations south
to Newark, Watts, Bronx
East LA and ten thousand
other empty places.
We begin to make toys for souls.
Peaceful and playful
thoughtful and joyous toys.
Now
unafraid and knowing –
we will walk this earth
giving gifts.
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Tags: Christmas, gift ideas, gifts, Santa
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December 14, 2007 at 12:00 pm
That image is beautiful, as is your poem.
i was shopping yesterday- which is something i do not enjoy in the least- and thought about how Christmas is for the poor. All manner of poor but mostly poor in spirit, of diminishing & diminished hope. And how we seem to have forgotten the fact. i thought that p’raps that was why a woman yelled at a cashier, a couple pushed by me to get to a certain toy or why my husband and i almost got run over while walking to our car. Me, calling the driver names, fuming in my stomach.
i believe it’s because we’ve lost sight of what matters, forgot that the gifts we buy break or we outgrow ’em; the real gifts being those intangible but full gifts that build and enrich the spirit. It’s like we’re acting out because we’re doing it all wrong and we know it but can’t seem to be able to help ourselves. i’m doing it wrong.
Anyway, your poem gave this to me. It was a good gift. Thanks. Oh & sorry for the essay.
December 15, 2007 at 12:51 am
This is the original post:
If I were Santa
I’d move operations south
to Newark, Watts, Bronx
East Saint Louis and ten thousand
other places lost from sight.
We’d make things for the soul.
Toys of warmth and wonder
peace and laughter
education and courage –
then walk about the world
giving them as gifts.
December 15, 2007 at 1:25 am
Christine –
First, I radically revised the poem. It is an evolving work not quite where I want it to be – but I did want to post it before Christmas. So it is still subject to input.
Next, you are always welcome to editorialize here. at any length necessary. I like it.
Regarding your insight:”It’s like we’re acting out because we’re doing it all wrong and we know it but can’t seem to be able to help ourselves.” Interesting angle. Do you think most of us know it at some level of our being?
And regarding “I’m doing it wrong”, I think we all are. Education in America seems to churn out more consumers than thinkers.
Consumers = more predictable = more profit potential
Thinkers = less predictable = less profit potential
best regards
December 15, 2007 at 9:07 pm
the world can never have too many santas, maybe it would be good for everyone to have to be a santa during their life, kind of like being in the military in poland.
ps. christine, blog? no link on your name, just curious
December 15, 2007 at 9:29 pm
Oh, we know it, qazse.
It’s like Paul said, but ima paraphrase- i do what i don’t want to do and struggle to do what i ought to.
& Jak, i don’t know why that happens. i think i am in qasze’s distinguished blogroll somewhere abouts: All The Elbows.
December 16, 2007 at 12:50 pm
Jak – I like that idea very much! I still don’t like how this poem is. I was going to do it as a participatory poem originally and probably should have. Oh well.
Christine – That is a great quote and so true. Kinda ties in with Shaw’s “all men lead lives of quiet desperation”
If you want to have a link back I think you can do so by embedding you own hypertext/link at the end of your comments: http://cahughes.wordpress.com/
Thank you both,
Peace