"What The World Needs Now..."

"Expedition Chess" by Dar Freeland

images & text © 1997-2011 Dar Freeland | all rights reserved

This morning I've considered many things regarding how we have been interacting with one another. I am speaking of humanity - the World community. America is polarized politically, families are arguing about money and behaviors, people are judging others relentlessly. This is also true among the people of the World collectively. Who is happy?

The Arts, which used to be a sanctuary or respite from so called "literal life"....it is becoming trampled with greed and invalidation - stolen for profit by those who do not create it, to advance their own purposes and shunned by those who would judge it as anything other than the mirror that it is. Art is a beautiful statement of our inside life, the one we don't allow anyone else to see. It is that recognition on whatever medium that gives art its immense value. We see ourselves in it.

One simple statement on that - Art is your MIRROR, world. It is a simple regurgitation of what its creator sees around him.

Art allows us to look in the mirror, and decide again. It allows us to think about life. It allows us to consider, recognize and make adjustments in our paths - because we are the CREATORS of our own lives. If we don't look at our lives, act on what we see, take part in our own evolution, we are just taking up space. Is that the life we want to live? I do not.

To those who would think that yelling is key - all yelling creates, is more yelling and a closing off of people to one another. Person to person, family to family, country to country and beyond. It does NOT provide any sort of SOLUTION. To become informed and educated is important, but not a solution unto itself. It allows one to yell with more articulation, yet the solution remains up to US to implement.

To those who would judge a musical artist like Sting (a prolific humanitarian) or any other artist/musician/creative who chooses to PRACTICE and DEMONSTRATE PEACE instead of going with the "norm" and engaging in an endless stream of bickering, political judgement and isolation - I say think again.

And guess what else...to judge a creative for "taking money" because of the payor's actions in life is ludicrous. If ANY business person assessed/judged and sentenced the actions of the buyer before selling to him - capitalism would cease to exist. A person has to sleep only with himself at night, and taking a stand is an individual right and responsibility - not up for discussion with world opinion. In other words, a personal choice and nobody's business.

All creatives are ENTITLED to make an income from their art. It is called WORK. He is NOT here solely for the world's entertainment. That went out with the Fool who performed for Kings.

Compassion and tolerance is the only key that will set us free from the polarization that is literally tearing the world apart. Assuming that the current trend of World "Scolding" and political name-calling rants on TV or any other place, is going to produce a USEFUL or TRANSFORMATIVE result...I say to all think again. Look in the mirror. What we see is our own ugliness looking back at us and we don't like it. Wake up everyone - we have the power to see things differently. No one else can see things from inside of our own heads...that is up to us.

Why are there so many prominent people leaving the planet? Why are planes falling out of the sky and wiping the entire "chessboard" clean? Why are there so many earthquakes right now? Powerful, jolting, destructive quakes? Is the earth asking, demanding that we wake up from our illusions? Is the movement of the earth its (metaphorical) art - showing us our own inner earthquakes, the devastation to our minds and souls? Is the earth demonstrating that in the face of our refusal to do so on our own, it will INSIST we unite - if not through our own evolution and wisdom, then through its powerful mandate? Let's face it - no matter the worst offenses of man...the earth herself will win.

Maybe if people used the Arts, used their power of discernment and thought...maybe if people stopped yelling and judging, pointing fingers, blaming and name calling - just maybe we could move beyond all of the apparent inconsolable unhappiness around us that we are all contributing to and in so doing - helping to create more of...a World Tantrum.

Maybe we could open a door - demonstrate and welcome some love, tolerance and peace into our own homes - one thought, one sentence, one person, one family member, one topic, one community, country and one world at a time. Jump with me off the anger wagon, choose again. There is absolutely nothing useful about acting or feeling this way. It is a useless waste of energy, effort, resources, choice and our own lives.

When was the last time we felt real, sincere, deeply rooted, immovable JOY? How about today?

--dar freeland

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