The Official Site of Author, Joseph D. Newcomer
Bank: Why don’t you let me hold onto your money for you? You: Um... Why would I do that? Bank: Well, so I can charge you to do it, of course! You: Wait, what? What are you going to do with my money? Bank: I’m going to invest it and make lots of money with [...]
Like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone.
Our culture has monetized basic human needs. We have been forced to define happiness for ourselves in such a way that it is now not only unachievable, it is unimaginable as well. Even when confronted with the appearance of happiness in others, our only reaction is suspicion. For most, our greatest common bonds are begrudging those who we feel may be happier than ourselves and choosing to be completely oblivious to whatever happiness we should have for the things we’ve achieved; the happiness we already own. I can’t imagine it was ever intended to be a relative term.
The way we are now; surrounded by what we’ve created, I think Mick got it right. Regardless of how satisfied we should feel, we’ll never get no satisfaction. Our whites could always be whiter. Our cigarettes, manlier. You see, we’re on a losing streak.
Now.
Now, more than ever.
Now, when people are destroying what they believe they are protecting, as so often is the case.
Now, when people feel righteous in their destruction.
Now, when people trust the false as though it is divine.
We are all being used.
Freedom is fragile. It can be destroyed with simple words. This is why those who charge themselves with protecting it choose their words carefully. It is also why those who vie to replace freedom with their own self-serving will seem to lack nuance, but it is a certainty that their words are chosen just as carefully. They will be novel in their boldness, and commonality. They will offer the only salvation from the shame of our weakest depravities in return for devotion and loyalty beyond rationality, they will profit beyond imagination, and they will wield their power without the respect they demand with it.
Those who are desperate to justify their tortured egos and flawed reasoning will bow at the feet of a savior whose words tell them just how right they’ve always been. They will revel in the strength of unity through shared sickness. Even the virtuous, in opposition…
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“That will be $600.00. Please drive around.”
“Welcome to America. Can I take your order?”
“Um, yeah, I’ll take the truth and a side of compassion.”
“Sorry, we’re all out of those, but we do have a ton of bullshit opinions and conjecture. Don’t worry though, it’s like the same thing at this point, anyway.”
“Can I add bacon to that?”
“Sorry, no substitutions.”
“But what about freedom?”
“You have the freedom to choose if you want to eat or not.”
“Uh, okay, I guess. Do you guys have Coke or Pepsi?”
“We only carry Flint, MI tap water. Would you like that Super-sized?”
Ari just turned four, and this still applies every bit as much as it did the day I wrote it. It is every truth that I’ve come to understand in my 40 years, so it’s pretty short, but someday, I hope she will appreciate it. Maybe you will too.
It’s no more about how you play the game than it is winning or losing. It’s just random, uncontrollable, chaotic moments, some better than others. String a few of those better ones together and you’ve got yourself a “good” life, and still, probably one for which you will be eternally and unjustifiably ungrateful more often than not. You’ll inevitably be more gracious in flourishes of fortune. You’ll probably be at your worst in times of unsatisfied desperation. You’ll find appreciation for that which you’ve casually left aside when you regretfully find a need for it and it is no longer at your, once aloof, fingertips. You’ll be most accommodating when you have something to gain. You will be anxious about everything, above all, death. You’ll do your best to be above these things, sometimes your decency will persevere, other times it won’t. There will only be…
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Joseph D. Newcomer 