Martin Luther King and Joni Mitchell

I’ve been listening to the punditry on Martin Luther King. Like Jesus, Buddha, and Gandhi, everybody wants to claim him as their own, but only if they can re-craft him in the image of the god of their own imagination.

On NPR’s “Q,” Joni Mitchell (hippie, non-hippie, anti-hippie icon) said that, like lunch, “Free love, a ruse for guys, there is no such thing... Art is a lie that gets you to see the truth.”

Loren M. Lambert © August 28, 2013

You May Stir, but Not Shake, & You May Rape, Imprison, Torture, Mutilate, and Slaughter, but Not Poison

Our interaction with Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria has schooled me that while a dictator may rape, imprison, torture, mutilate, and slaughter the innocents within his or her borders, he may not poison them. That would not be just bad and frowned upon, that would be really bad and might lead to condemnation by the UN.

It is a dismal commentary that humans, here, have rights, and that these rights are much diminished elsewhere and not our concern.

Loren M. Lambert © August 21, 2013

The Perfect Set of Clothing

I want to buy a set of clothes that restrict me to do anything in them except be a clothing rack. I want these clothes to look really good, no matter what state of health my body is in. I want these clothes to have superfluous strips of cloth dangling off that serve no purpose, and that are uncomfortable, and that I'll have to pay a lot of money to keep clean over their lifetime. 

Oh, yeah. Perfect. A suit.

Loren M. Lambert © August 17, 2013

Passion

Some think it is reason which makes us human and gives us our unique dimensions. It is not. It is our passion.

Reason is the poorer twin to our passion. Reason is often cold, cunning, and calculating. At times, it is the sole standard bearer of the despots and the insensate. When tired, cold, hungry, downtrodden, and oppressed, it is reason that will fail us first.

This is not the case with our passion. It is our passion that ignites our souls.  Passion is not some tawdry emotion to be suppressed and then only unveiled briefly in our romantic tumbles, or unleashed upon our betrayals. No, it is our very core, our essence. It is passion that galvanizes our strength, warms our hearts, reaches for something superior, and prevails over all adversity.

Embrace your passion. Foster its emergence until you stand tall as a vibrant warrior, effulgent and crowned, towering over the frey.

Loren M. Lambert © August 15, 2013

Mayberry and Meisner

I represented a case in Mayberry, Utah (Manti, Utah). It went like I thought it would. The witness failed to show, so the case was dismissed. Why did he not show up?  He was untruthful to the police and didn't want to compound the trouble he caused. It was an assault. The only witness was my client and the alleged victim.

The evidence was shoddy, but the prosecutor would listen. I have no doubt my client is innocent. He's the one that got pounded on. I don't like to win this way because the prosecutor is not confronted with his own misjudgment. He can blame it on the witness and not on his own bad decision and go on feeling smug.

I’m taking a Meisner acting class. It has taken my skills to a wonderful level. It's like being “in the zone.” Acting is magical when done well. It allows us to escape into a mystical world as if it were real, permitting both actor and audience to experience the power of a heartfelt story, whatever that may be. It is cathartic and entertaining, while it connects us to each other and to our humanity.

I have found that acting is as easy as riding a river, charming a snake, having good sex, taming a tornado, or tipping a shark. Some are born naturally with these skills; the rest of us have to work at them. For me, only a couple of these skills came naturally. I've had to work at the others. I think if I had started at age four, I'd have slipped into it without a hitch. But life and alleged maturity tends to beat out of us our capacity to live truthfully in our imaginations.

Loren M. Lambert © August 14, 2013

Yoga Breathing in Water

To sleep (at times when my mind would rather keep me awake), I let my body take over by inhaling slowly for seven seconds, holding for four to five seconds, exhaling slowly for seven seconds, holding empty lungs for four to five seconds, then repeat. Soon, the mind is focused and I drift off.

I tried to breath like this underwater (except, of course, for the inhale). Try it. I know I am interested by the meaningless, but I was puzzled to learn I couldn't seem to get all the air out and hold it before needing to inhale, even though I was taking the same amount of time. It seemed to add an element of greater difficulty and panic.

I know it means something – some automatic subconscious reaction, something to do with the water pressure – but I still thought I should have been able to do just like out of water (except, of course, for the inhale).

Loren M. Lambert © August 13, 2013

Different Religious Core Beliefs

Most religious core beliefs are practically identical. People like to emphasize their small differences and sometimes demonize their competition. While some differences are important (e.g., "We advocate infanticide," or "We think people should become members or be tortured," or "We preach the gospel of slavery"), most are about as important as what color I should paint my toenails.

Loren M. Lambert © August 13, 2013