'Tis The Season...

We have all heard of the concept of peace, love and understanding, the comfort and joy thing as well as the rest of the myth that gave rise to the holiday season. Although being jolly has many of it's own rewards, we find ourselves facing some pretty serious times, that require a serious look as well as some fairly drastic action. I am personally accused of being "too happy", with no explanation or elaboration. I'm still not sure what that means, but I am sure that without a healthy dose of humor and levity, I would have devolved into a hopeless state long ago. I fear that many have forgotten the good that comes with our shared myths of giving and re-birth, focusing instead on acquisition and intransigence.

Especially in the United States of America, there seems to be a mood of dis-ease. Often, it is blamed on one group or another with little attention to the larger picture. We seem to delight in letting people help themselves to "resources", even human ones, cash, greed, government hand-outs and nature's many bounties. Frequently we point to their successes as proof that capitalism works. When greed, exploitation and self serving ways bring our economy to it's knees, we turn away, not wanting to face capitalism's failures, telling our people to "spend our way out" of economic decline. This is the time of year that we see this most poignantly. Our leaders are short-sighted enough to continue tilting at windmills obscured by the media fog. Endemic misunderstanding has led to institutionalized ignorance. As we have seen, most issues are couched in inflammatory rhetoric, rather than insightful reflection on where we have come from or indeed where we might be headed.

Trying to get a grasp on reality in the maelstrom of media snippets can feel like a drowning man trying to grasp the greased hull of his capsized boat. At least if you are set adrift on a raft, there is the possibility of hope. When everything we grasp seems to fall away like sand on a steep slope, we can't help but take two steps back for each one forward. During the seventies and eighties, many of the social change advocates chanted the mantra, "Kill your television". Today, the times have changed enough to shout down this basic admonition. Many folks believe that they are informed and educated by the idiot box. The entertainment that this technology provides, and the constant advertising that is given life in this media format, both dull the senses and couch lies in the guise of authority. Without a highly developed sense our own value, of analysis, of truth, much of what passes the censors can lead to artificial truth, manifestation of the imaginary or even a sense of self-loathing.

The technology that took us light years beyond Guttenberg has devolved into a source of universal values that, for the most part, detest fact and turn their backs on reality. Oddly enough, our comedy most clearly resembles life itself, but the heroes are frequently trite dupes, boorish idiots or out of control consumers. Through marketing, we highlight the seedy side of these characters, and their ability to ally themselves with our own "reality" and sense of self. I have tried to pour myself into this mold, unsuccessfully as you might have guessed. The stories that grew out of this attempt could be inspiration for an entire book, but my hope is that others who think critically about what we are doing will have the same experience that I did. I am not stronger for the effort, nor proud of the time that I spent in search of complacency. Instead, the fire that was kindled in me during war protests of the sixties, has been tended and indeed fed by the things I have learned by participating in the current consumerist culture.

Standing in line, waiting for a store to open, the day after Thanksgiving, hoping for a "chance" to buy a two-hundred dollar television three years ago was possibly the lowest point in my search for the New American Dream. Even as I grabbed the box that held the device, I felt like a disembodied agent of consumption. By the time I had straightened my knees, from squatting down to pick up the box that held my reward, an entire pallet of identical items had disappeared and their purchasers had turned to the next "quarry" on their list. I guess my only wanting one item was my nemesis, because once in hand, I had time to reflect on the feelings that came with my action. Turning from where the pile of televisions had been, I could see dozens of faces of people who arrived too late. I saw the faces of those who I had run past on the way in who were disappointed. I nearly gave my television to one of them, but then I realized that the same expression might come across my wife's face if I came away empty-handed. If I had only waited, the same television is now half price, but the folks selling them cannot stimulate the "demand" that Black Friday inspires.

Lest I leave you with a sense of foreboding or despair, there is a move toward sanity taking place. It is the un-televised revolution that we heard of in song. An inspired marketing campaign has begun this year in which the Saturday after Black Friday is being billed as "Buy Local Day" I think Sane Saturday is a better name, but whatever we cal it, the sentiment is the same. We need to build community to overcome the exploitation and desolation of our consumerist culture, share our own abundance and reward those we care about, our neighbors, rather than faceless and unnamed corporations. We are part of an interconnected web of life, whether we know it or not. This post is my plea for everyone to start living like it, rather than acting like we are apart from that which gives us life. The give away is the most powerful tool for magic in the world. It has the power to change lives for the better, both those of the giver as well as those of the receivers.

Saturnalia Wishes

This Holy Day Season, it is well to reflect on our past and renew our commitment to the future. In times past, prior to the injection of Christ into the season, (Whose Birthday, by the way, was nowhere near the solstice) these were times of great festivities, gift giving and rather than being a commercial extravaganza, it was a time of rest for business. No commercial business was allowed. A jar of preserved plums, candles or other small token was the rule for gift giving. Useful items that showed your friends that you were thinking about them were given. Re-gifting carried no stigma. (This was like, two thousand years before Seinfeld) Slaves were allowed to wear the best clothes of their masters, and slave owners were obliged to serve their charges if only for a few short days. It was the topsy-turvey time of year when children were allowed sweets, to stay up late, and to make the rules. The period of time between the seventeenth and the twenty-third of December was set aside for rest and relaxation, renewing personal ties to friends and family, letting by-gones be by-gones and Partying.

The Roman Saturnalia was timed to reward the mostly agrarian population after fall planting, and after harvest, with a grand celebration, honoring the God of Growth & Abundance. In times of old, the chance to revel and relax was no less necessary than it is today. Sadly, it seems, the push in modern times is toward making everything perfect. Norman Rockwell may not have created the unreasonable expectation of universal bliss and the perfect family but he definitely codified it in the psyche of most Americans. This in turn has led to tremendous feelings of lack, isolation, ambivalence, and for many, depression. We hear about commercial interests during this season ad infinitum, yet the things that matter most, the needs of people we care about, are glossed over or ignored. I would hazard a guess that in the days of honoring all men, the eternally giving nature of each of us was rejoiced in, and no one felt that they were "from another planet." Feeling part of a larger community, especially one that was whole and aligned with the Gods and Goddesses must have been resplendent. Military exploits were suspended, war could not be declared during this time, "normal" behavior was frowned upon, and all were able to abide by relaxed rules regarding social class, etiquette and decorum.

It seems that we have reached a time where if one has significant resources, these rules are relaxed at all times. The slaves never get to wear the master's clothes, not even for a week, and the idea of suspending our expectations never occurs to us. Week-long revelry is suspect, frowned upon, and considered a little too hedonistic. The idea of encouraging everyone to do it on a specific week seems to us to be over the top. Maybe if we could associate it with football, or perhaps basketball, it could be placed in context, but to get things right between the individual and a community, or to get things right between humans and the Gods, now that's nearly treasonous! It is at least anti-capitalist, and that is who happens to be ruling the day. The "Keep Christ in Christmas" people are to be commended, but capitalism has subverted and co-opted the holiday beyond what yard signs can undo. Unbridled greed and consumerism have taken the last vestiges of sanctity from the Christmas Story and are morphing to increase revenues by appealing to other faiths as well. I believe that it is high time that we put our attention back on the solar cycle, the ancient reality of restful reflection, and honoring friends and family in ways that do not encourage depletion of resources, frustrate the primal urge to have fun with the people we love or cause us to flit about in search of "deals" on the very things we hope will create an accord with folks we are obliged to recognize.

The perverse twists and turns of logic, the convoluted rhetoric and the ultra-hype of the Christmas Spirit today have taken on a new hue. Many would welcome the return of gifts like a candle, or preserved plums over Mp3 players, digi-cams, or Best Buy gift cards, but how do you fight the urge to "prove your love" when the daily fare in advertising is to give diamonds or a car? This is where we need to get creative. Recognize where the urge to make gifts bigger and bigger each year comes from. Realize that through re-aligning ourselves to things that are eternal and that really matter, may put us at odds with the current culture of "have more for less". Many may not understand at first. We must be willing to stand up for what is right, even if we stand alone at first. It may take years, but if one spends their holy days stressed out and exhausted, trying to be all things to all people, nothing is going to change. People who love you will get more and more disillusioned, and feel ever more isolated. Have fun, unbridled joy at visiting with friends and bring a tiny gift rather than a huge one. Your unrestrained joy may turn some heads at first, but it may change minds as well.
I am going to do my part by buying a few dozen candles, perhaps some figs, or walnuts to share, and invite over a small number of friends to drink a toast to life, perhaps play a little cards, or dice, and nosh on some snick-snacks. I urge everyone to take a break from the elaborate rituals of modern Christmas, and return to something you can believe in, a well deserved break from keeping up with the Jones'. Take a break from work, at least a week, from bills, they can wait, from your senses if you prefer, but most of all from expectations, for that is the most sublime. When you come back to the life you knew before the holy days, you will see it with fresh eyes. Things you liked about yourself, and your life, you are welcome to pick up again. Those you do not, will be easier to let pass. New Year's Resolutions anyone?
It has been said: "You have to be out of your head to be in your right mind." What better time to do it than just before a long winter's night? Or during one for that matter. It is time to start realizing the dreams that have carried us through the dark oppression of Capitalism. It is time to honor or neighbor and friends. It is time to take our place in Nature's chain. Instead of continuing to suck resources from the planet, repeatedly buying gifts, no matter how useless, extravagant or inappropriate, let's get down to basics. We love one another and appreciate spending time with the folks we care about. From this foundation of love, all things will grow. Economic factors have no place in holy days. Give them no quarter and they will find their rightful place among banality and vulgarity. Blessed Saturn, thank-you for our continued wealth, our overflowing cornucopia, our fertile soils, our sustenance and the opportunity to serve the planet for another year!