"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."  George Bernard Shaw

 I have spent my summer in mourning.  I am not done yet.  I don't know when I will be done.  And I am okay with that although it has not been my favorite time of this life.  I am tired of the utter hypocrisy of this life....in me, in others, in the world, in the church, and in general.  I am sick of the system that we are waiting so badly to see change.  I am ready to find the people who have the courage to do what it is they want to see done instead of those who think that we are the cusp of something really "big."  (whatever that means!)

The institutional everything is sick.  I can't say that loud enough so let me say it again....whatever institution you find yourself in, it is sick, near death, almost finito.  The revolution is happening and most of us are not standing up and cheering.  Most of us are running scared trying to hold onto the vestiges of this world so that we can be something right now.  But the future is coming baby and you better hold on.  "I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked."  (Alan Ginsberg)

This is the cry of the prophet calling out in the wilderness.  No one wants to hear it.  But even the Democratic Party is allowing the prophetic voice to be heard.  It is a voice calling for justice instead of wealth and prosperity.  The voice is guiding us back to authenticity, community, grace, and truth.  We are being lulled to sleep right now in our "mega-churches" and comfortable houses in the suburbs.  But God has not given up on the city.  God has not forgotten the poor, the widows, the homeless, and the orphans.  He sees and is crying out, "Justice, justice in a world that is punishing my children."  I am not making this up.  The prophet never owns the words, he or she must simply speak them.  Who will hear the voice of the Lord?

"I think it was when I ran into Kerouac and Burroughs - when I was 17 - that I realized I was talking through an empty skull... I wasn't thinking my own thoughts or saying my own thoughts."  (Alan Ginsberg)  Is it not equally true of you and I that we are merely mouthpieces for who knows what?  Does anyone think today?  Does that seem like a harsh statement?  Then prove it untrue.  Stand up and start thinking.  Let the truth become your rallying cry and honesty be your vessel.  I see the people sticking their heads in the sand in denial.  They cannot begin to deal with the truth because they are not being honest with themselves.  What does this make them?  The same as us....people who are scared and scarred and who know danger when they see it.  They can't begin to get into the justice game because it might hurt them deeply. 

I spent my summer trying not to think....obviously it didn't work.  In the end, we all have to face it.  Are we going to be more than we are and honestly assess ourselves or are we going to go with the flow and let the river of life dictate our next move?  Maybe a few will join me at the next boat rockers convention.  I hope so, but I am not holding my breath.  I have watched all summer long and seen the best of minds pull their heads back into their shells.  We will always settle if it means that we are safe and secure.  But I am looking for anyone who will have the courage to make room for "good deeds to run wild."  Where are you?

"We all started seeing things differently. Everywhere we went, we were sizing things up. I felt sorry for guys who packed into gyms, trying to look like how Calvin Klein or Tommy Hilfiger said they should."  (The Narrator)