Beyond The Wall

Poets and Dreamers and Clowns

 
By Charles “Tom” Brown
Copyright 2008

In this age of chaos and uncertainty, we can find comfort in the visionaries, the ones who look beyond the limited view of our world and see a world of hope and infinite possibilities. They brighten our days with their hopes and light-hearted way of seeing things. They’re our poets and dreamers and clowns.

Poets jolt our souls out of the dormitory of the ordinary. In beautifully executed lines they do more than just present old, trite truths in a new light; they give us new eyes. They collect experiences and shape them into forms that cause us to think. Their words encourage us to mine our lives for the jewels they contain. They’re like candles flickering in the darkness. They help us to notice every beautiful and tragic thing, and the power of their words can move us to action and laughter and tears.

Dreamers remind us that the impossible dream can be realized. They see beyond the limitations of things as they are; they see what could be. They are the ones who find solutions where none seem to be available, who see the rainbow where others see only the rain. They believe that life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

Clowns see the world newly-washed. They’re the pegs on which the circus can be hung, the hooks on which the magic is begun. Clowns tell us – if we listen – that something wonderful really can happen. With their rubber nose, feet like ducks, outlandish clothes, they mirror ourselves, stripped of pretension, stripped of protection. Clowns take the risk first and show us we can be real and let others know our pain, our need, our joy, our strength. There they are with naked feelings hanging out. That sigh, that tear, that laugh – don’t hide it, says the clown. Let it come. Let it happen. Let it be.

These visionaries remind us that the future is open and that we have a candle burning within us that’s ready to light the world. They tell us that magic really can happen.

The Sacredness of It All

copyright 2008

People often ask, “What political party do you belong to?” “What religion are you?” In using labels we get into this duality: am I a this or a that, as opposed to a human being? We all like to know who people are. We like to say, “He’s a this, she’s a that”. Then we think we know who they are.

All labels are restricting, though. They’re hard to wear. They’re hard to wear because we’re always growing. We don’t have a fixed definition, and this process of living is evolving us all the time.

It’s much easier to lose sight of our oneness and to feel separated from each other if we depersonalize and dehumanize each other. Once a person is labeled as “not like us,” the rules of civilized behavior no longer apply. Then we can justify feelings of unforgiveness and separation. It’s easy to erase “insurgents, enemy combatants, terrorists, and protesters.” In Iraq and Afghanistan our soldiers call the enemy “rats”. Psychologically, humans can kill rats much more easily than they can kill hungry, tired, frightened young people much like themselves. Once we have a label that doesn’t fit us, we can ignore the humanity of the labeled.

Labels encourage us to have a disposable mind-set: disposable products, disposable species, disposable people. We don’t see our brothers and sisters, much less all the animal species, as sacred. When we are in the presence of something we consider sacred, the natural response is to be humble and respectful and careful.

When we do see the sacredness of each other, we can begin to feel the failings and foolishness, the wonders and joy of being alive and being connected to one another. We see those “other beings” aren’t really others after all; they are us and we are them.