K.I.S.S.

Sometimes I go through “dry spells” in terms of my writing.  It is not that I have nothing going through my mind.  It is actually quite the opposite.  I have all sorts of things that I am pondering and considering, but I also have some important things that I have been doing, namely, getting some “me time.”

In my “me time” I like to do quiet things.  Take naps, cuddle with my cats, work on my fish tank, go to the fish store and look at all the amazing creatures, sit and stare at my fish tank, paint things to put on my walls at home, bake and decorate food to bring to people, cuddle with little kids, play with kids and let my imagination go free like it hasn’t done in over a decade, print out my book and bring copies of it to people to read, wade out into the ocean as far as I can and feel the sand between my toes as the waves flow softly around me. 

All of these are rather quiet things.  Out of that whole list, the only thing that really requires me to utter even one word is when I play with little kids.  This is a totally different kind of speech though.  It is imaginative, creative and free of any inhibitions.  There is no judgment.  I can be as crazy of maniacal as I want, and the more I am, the more the kids love it.  I don’t get funny looks, but instead, I get giggles and hugs.

Another thing that everything on that list has in common is simplicity.  These are all things that I can do for relatively cheap or for free.  They activate things within me that are at the crux of who I am.  They are activities which have been going on for centuries: creating art, engaging in nature, making food, feeding people, bringing people gifts.  These are all simple things that stand the test of time.  They don’t go out of style.  They don’t get old or “uncool.”  They have always been around, and they will be around for as long as this world is any place worth indwelling. 

I am reminded of an acronym that my dad taught me when I was younger: K.I.S.S. which stands for “Keep It Simple, Stupid!”  In other words. “Slow down and stop trying to overdo everything!”  Some things don’t need to be added to, and the more we add to them, the worse they become.  They get heavy and burdened, full of pointless additions that just add weight and make for more work.

In my opinion, the things that matter in life are the things that everyone has access to.  We all have access to people, nature, God and ourselves.  If we would all just cut out all the other unnecessary things in our lives, our world would be so wonderful.  Right now, I am just going to focus on the first two.

People consist of our families, or friends, and even strangers whom we have never met before.  We ALL have the same basic things in common. 

Nature consists of everything in this world that is not made by man – plants, animals, mountains, deserts, rivers, lakes oceans and the sky.  Out of this come other things that we need, like food, shelter and clothing.  Those things should also be kept simple.  They shouldn’t be so over processed.  If we got rid of all the crazy things in our world, we would be able to get back to basics where everyone had their own land that they worked, and we could all provide for ourselves and our families.  Some may think that we have come so far since then, given the lifestyles of some of the affluent, rich people in our world.  The only thing with that is that along with the rich getting richer, the poor are getting poorer.  The divided between us is growing larger and larger all the time, separating us from one of the basic rights that we should all have – access to other human beings.  The rich and the poor are both isolated, just in different ways. 

*** The following are broad stereotypes that do not include every person in either category ***

The rich have no need for anyone because of their wealth, so they live solitary lives void of any meaningful human interaction.  The poor have no outwardly redeeming qualities, making their presence undesirable to the rest of the world.  They too are left void of meaningful human interaction.  What a blessed thing it is to be neither rich nor poor.  It is a blessed state which is becoming rarer for every day that the divide between rich and poor becomes more and more vast. 

The only way that I can see to reverse this process is for everyone to get back to basics.  I just don’t see it ever happening though, and here’s why:  What rich person would give up his riches, or what person would take a poor man under his wing, asking nothing in return?  The poor receive their help, yes, but it is primarily by way of government assistance.  This is a cold interaction, leaving the poor feeling like they are a waste of space, because they are often treated as such by people in government-run programs.  What we need is for people to give their hearts and their financial support to the poor of our world.  To do one or the other is great, but the most powerful combination, in my opinion, would be if the rich of the world would open up their cheque books, and then tap into their humanity and get their hands “dirty” by physically and emotionally reaching out to the less fortunate. 

Thanks for "listening."