One ought, every day at least,
to hear a little song,
read a good poem,
see a fine picture,
and if it were possible,
to speak a few reasonable words.
Born on this date, 1749
Goethe’s
words remind me of the incredibly privileged Life I have …. and of the number
of people for whom it isn’t possible to do what he suggests. My brother recently
sent me a PP (Power Point). It pointed out that if we had 100 people
representing the population of the Earth, 80 of them would live in poverty, and
70 would be illiterate. 50 would suffer from hunger and malnutrition. 1 would
own a computer. And 1 would have a university degree.
A
little song? Maybe. I’ve lived in many poor places in my Life … and people did
sing. But. Read a poem? See a fine picture? Unlikely. One of the most desolate
places I’ve ever been was Mobile Alabama in the 70’s. Perhaps speak a few
reasonable words. To be honest, I’ve heard those more in barrios and in
Nicaraguan villages and in tiny Italian hilltowns than I’ve heard in most of
America these days. I thank God for Bill Moyers every day! And the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation.
Goethe
has pulled me back. I’m “retired” … and yet the days fly by filled will all
kinds of stuff. I’ve put his quote in my laptop Kalendar each day. I am blessed
to have XM satellite radio … I can listen to beautiful song every day all day
if I want. I can find poems and beautiful pictures online. I can communicate in
many ways and try to say a few reasonable words … and listen to many from
around the World. How blessed I am.
I won’t
get far … but I’ll do what little I can to make it possible for us all to
follow Goethe’s path.
Brian+
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