A lawyer and a pope died on the same day, and both went to heaven. When the pope noticed that the lawyer had a larger mansion, he questioned Saint Peter about the allocation of rewards.  The justification was “Well, we’ve had 265 popes up here, but this is the FIRST lawyer!”

I have to confess, when I read this for the first time, I laughed so hard I got hiccups. It gives the world’s most perfect joke (**see below) a good run for its title, even though the whole idea of lawyer jokes is one more sad commentary on how humans can pervert a good idea. The jokes, while they take their humor from the frequent human experience of getting shafted by the kingdom of Law and its knights, fail to take into account the fairly significant number of lawyers out there who actually perform their function with compassion, and a sense of altruism. There are those in the legal field who make it their goal to assist normal folks in obtaining justice from our legal system, guiding them through the tortuously complex legal maze. But there are far too many other lawyers whose sole purpose is to find more billable hours, regardless of their client’s ability to pay, or whether or not they are guilty or innocent. To them, its all a game, one which they are the only ones who know the rules, and they use the needs of normal people to find justice to fuel their own avaricious ambitions. It’s unfortunate, perhaps, that the good lawyers get tarred with the same brush as their less moral colleagues. But, for my money, there is no better way to deal with bullies (for that is what they are, the same kids out on the school playgrounds who tortured other kids for their lunch money, grown up to hide behind the law, but continuing the same behavioral pattern) than to laugh at them. Even the most evil of men are afraid of being laughed at, and justly so……

**In a recent world-wide poll, researchers asked people to vote for the funniest joke ever told. The winner was this…. The 911 operator received a call: “My buddy and I are out hunting, and he accidentally got shot. He looks like he’s dead; what should I do?” The operator says, “The first thing to do is to make sure he is really dead….” The guy says, “OK!” and rushes away from the phone. The operator hears a gunshot, and after a short moment the guy comes back on the line, “okay, now what?”…..
______________________________________________

‘”Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing.” — Walt Kelly, Potluck Pogo

I suppose one might say that this principle is the driving force behind this entire process of gathering, collating, and creating Pearls of Virtual Wisdom. At least, that is my primary focus of intent. I look at the world, and I am dismayed; my entire life I have watched as our society rushes ever closer to oblivion, with each and every person alive heedless of the part they are playing in their own impending demise. Those of us who struggle to bring our brethren into knowledge of the very real danger of not paying attention, of choosing deliberate ignorance over rational thought, are forced into the admission that it may too late. There may not be enough time, before everything falls apart completely, for humans to come to their senses, and stop the madness of our mindless march to extinction. In spite of the overwhelming evidence that pouring carbon dioxide into the atmosphere at a historically unprecedented rate is causing ecological changes that will eventually kill us, the average American is worried that they might not have enough money next month to drive their 5mi/gallon SUV down to Florida to visit Disney World. This is just how the one percenters want it; they don’t want anything that cuts their profit margin to be allowed into the public consciousness. And they, with their money to protect them, don’t believe that they will die along with the rest of us. Pogo’s observation above tells us why it is happening, to all of us…….the Grim Reaper doesn’t care if you are rich or poor, he just wants his dance with each of us…..
_______________________________________________

“The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures. It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the grass and breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers. It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle of birth and death, in ebb and in flow. I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world of life. And my pride is from the life-throb of ages dancing in my blood at this moment.” — Tagore

I have a wish….I wish that every human alive today could experience what Tagore has described for us. Whether one can agree with his world-view or not, the sheer beauty of his expression draws the reader into acceptance. I am unfamiliar with Tagore, so I cannot say for certain if their background is Oriental or Occidental, or even if they are male or female. But not knowing takes nothing away from this litany. Seeking this state, of oneness with the whole universe, is the goal of every living creature, whether they are aware of it or not. All of our human behaviors, as grandly outrageous as the spectrum may be, are all formulated within us for the purpose of finding this connection to…hell, we’ll just go with the most obvious word….the Force. The Force, as described in the Star Wars anthology, exists as a part of reality, and our knowledge of it is the connection we seek, whether we know it or not. It is where we came from, and where we will eventually return, and all our actions on this plane of existence have their basis in the need in us to find and maintain that connection to everything…..
________________________________________________

Oft in the stilly night,
Ere slumber’s chain has bound me,
Fond memory brings the light
Of other days around me;
The smiles, the tears,
Of boyhood’s years,
The words of love then spoken;
The eyes that shone
Now dimmed and gone,
The cheerful hearts now broken.
— Thomas Moore (1779-1852) — Oft in the Stilly Night

I don’t know whether other folks are like me, but when I find a poem that grabs my attention, I experience a giddy delight, just for a moment. It’s like the cadence, or the meaning, or something about the piece echoes in my soul as if it had always been there, and I get that odd, deja vu-like sense of “oh, there it is! I found it!” It’s probably why I spend so much time at looking for good pieces of it, trying to re-create that feeling of serendipity, and its companion, joy.  Each of us is alone here, inside our own head, and how we choose to find our sense of basic happiness is important, if only to ourselves. Some folks like music, some like tennis. I like to read, and poetry is one of my favorite methods of making myself happy. If I don’t, who will?……
__________________________________________________

“When a man’s knowledge is deep, he speaks well of an enemy. Instead of seeking revenge, he extends unexpected generosity.  He turns insult into humor, … and astonishes his adversary who finds no reason not to trust him.” — Baltasar Gracian

Sometimes it is uncanny how a powerful idea insinuates itself into the public awareness. The concept proposed here by Mssr. Gracian is one of those powerful concepts, one that can apply itself to individuals, and to governments as well. It is the same concept as demonstrated in the Christian tale of Jesus of Nazareth, the same as in the ancient Hindu writings regarding Krishna, and the same as the precepts of Sun Tzu’s Art of War, where it is said, “The surest way to defeat your enemy is to turn him into an ally.” This principle, of seeking connection rather than controversy, choosing negotiation over dogmatic intransigence, echoes through the annals of history. It is unfortunate in the extreme that in today’s world, none of the world’s leaders seem to be aware of this, though history has proven it to be the most effective, efficient solution to conflict, with longer-lasting results than any other course of action. SIGH……I’m SO disappointed…….