The presidential election, Christmas shopping, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and finally Christmas – these are major stressors that lead up to the relief and the celebratory beginning of a new cycle – a new year! How does one cope with it all? How do you manage to survive and enjoy the promise that the future holds?
This year we also have a political cliff to fall off thanks to the idiots we have elected to represent us in governing our country. Doesn’t it occur to anyone that our so-called “fiscal cliff” is the result of legislation dating back to the Reagan administration? In reality, there is a political “cliff” waiting to happen every day in government. We have a system of government that is designed to play on our emotions – politics is based on manipulation of the public will that allows for the empowerment of those who are willing to play the game. Most of us are not – that is why we elect others to do that dirty work. It is a ridiculous mistake to be then outraged by the folly that goes on. It seems much more logical to blame the media for following the drama rather than the facts behind the issues. Facts are really boring, while the drama sells advertising.
We all seem to love the high drama of the human condition. Isn’t that a huge part of what makes pop culture what it is? If it isn’t our political stage, it’s our reality entertainment shows. If it isn’t the spectacle of watching the fits and stops of our society, it’s the painful reality of our friends and families. If it isn’t the mistakes that we make every day in life, it’s the absurdity of what we do to others in order to make ourselves feel better. All the drama that plays upon life’s stage provides the fodder for so much of our social interaction – our common focus for the measure of comparison that gives us a sense of belonging to the great life that we share with others on this planet. This is pop culture!
So, getting back to the stress of the holiday season – the stress season, if you will – are we not all a bit stressed out by now? Can Black Friday be considered a “holiday”? I love this time of year – I loved it during all the years that I worked in retail, and I love it still. As a patriotic American, I celebrate the capitalist element to gift giving. I say let there be a chicken in every pot, and an electronic device in every hand. I hate going to malls, but could not resist making an appearance at the mall on Christmas Eve – just for the fun of it. For many, ignoring the stress of the season it a means of coping with someone else’s perception of reality, while dealing with their own – Christmas Eve shoppers are either in panic mode or simply just enjoy getting it done. There is both efficiency and beauty to behold. Black Friday shoppers, on the other hand, are the suckers who have put far too much importance on a part of life that is really of very minor significance. Black Friday certainly can be considered a holiday – the celebration of a very dark part of the human condition – it is one hell of an example of pop culture.
My reason for dropping in on the last minute shoppers was to purchase a gift for my terrific spousal unit. We had agreed not to purchase each other gifts this year because we had made a purchase that suited us both – a common purchase that pleased us both equally. Ah, but the rub with this plan is the knowledge that one, or both of us, might ignore the agreement and purchase the token gift to share on Christmas Day. As the very imperfect example of humanity that I am, my strategy called for protecting myself from the possibility that a token gift might be given without reciprocation. There were three possible scenarios here – one that we would both have the small, token gift for each other; or she might have her offering while I did not; and finally that I would have one and she would not. Many years of marriage has taught be that it would be better to be the one with the gift in hand. The worse-case scenario is that she would feel that I had broken the agreement, but the counter to that would be my thoughtfulness. I will not bore you with the final outcome to this tale, but move on to tying these paragraphs together.
The final purchase, the token gift, can always be a book. After decades in the book business, after decades of marriage, after decades of appreciation for our pop culture, my selection was the new biography of Leonard Cohen – I’m Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen, by Sylvie Simmons. Cohen’s “Anthem” expresses my mood very nicely – “There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” It also describes our common human condition – we are not perfect, but our ability to step back and look at the drama, look at the humor, look at the hope of our lives is what allows us to enjoy life. Hallelujah!
"Anthem"
The birds they sang
at the break of day
Start again
I heard them say
Don't dwell on what
has passed away
or what is yet to be.
Ah the wars they will
be fought again
The holy dove
She will be caught again
bought and sold
and bought again
the dove is never free.
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.
We asked for signs
the signs were sent:
the birth betrayed
the marriage spent
Yeah the widowhood
of every government --
signs for all to see.
I can't run no more
with that lawless crowd
while the killers in high places
say their prayers out loud.
But they've summoned, they've summoned up
a thundercloud
and they're going to hear from me.
Ring the bells that still can ring ...
You can add up the parts
but you won't have the sum
You can strike up the march,
there is no drum
Every heart, every heart
to love will come
but like a refugee.
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.
That's how the light gets in.
That's how the light gets in.
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