Lists, lists, lists. Somewhere, probably in Italy at this time, is a person of international fame, if not fortune, who teaches and writes — Mr. Umberto Eco — a man who collects books, even if he does not read them all.
If, if, if.
I was a pledge for a fraternity to which my father belonged in his college days — Delta Tau Delta.
In the pile of papers I found yesterday, after clearing out a bunch of books I don’t need so that others may enjoy their literary/financial worth (sorry, Mr. Eco, I can’t hoard books my whole life — I must learn to let go of my physical possessions as I get closer to my natural death and the loss of all connections to our civilised lives here on Earth), a list of fellow pledges at DTD:
Name, hometown, classification/year, major, local address, local phone
Russ H., Knoxville TN, sophomore, communications, 970 Sunnydale, 693-9353
Bill Smith, Jamestown NC, sophomore, architecture, ?, 974-3843
Greg Scaione, East Brunswick NJ, freshman, political science, ?, 974-2689
David Lucas, Lexington KY, freshman, civil engineering, East Stadium Hall, x-4752
Mike Hinton, Fairfax VA, freshman, aerospace engineering, Greeve Hall, x-8098
David Rice, Knoxville TN, ?, undecided, Hess Hall, x-4062
The year was probably 1982, possibly 1983. Like going through the ritual ceremony at DeMolay where I observed archaic symbols and recited passages I was supposed to share with no one, feeling more at ease in Boys Scout, I was turned off by Delta Tau Delta after going through the pledge/plebe ritual at Delta Tau Delta.
All that secret society mumbo-jumbo seemed outdated and also…somehow…wrong.
The same was true with some Boy Scout rituals like Order of the Arrow — the whole “rites of passage into adulthood” thing shrouded in stuff we’re not to tell young ones or those who were not deserving of being tapped out.
The only way I could keep from sharing these special words, phrases, hand signals and such was to forget what I saw and heard.
There is no privilege in rank. Prestige is a crutch on which those without self-esteem lean, it seems, when I look at those who seek rank and privilege.
Those who do not seek but are given special rewards for their sacrifices to the greater social good are a different category.
I can understand why wise sages promote collections of instructions for social behaviour that encourage us to act naturally and let those whose natural acts selflessly benefit the species receive recognition from the rest of us.
The ant and the grasshopper.
Tomorrow or later this week, the judges who sit up high on the U.S. Supreme Court will issue their ruling about a social safety net nicknamed Obamacare.
I have seen the effects of this net, the result of national legislation, in that my mother in-law and father accrued a large cost in medical care by private practice doctors and public hospitals without having to pay a penny themselves; on the other hand, my former brother in-law has complained, amongst others, of having to pay higher out-of-pocket medical insurance premiums the last couple of years to pay for the social safety net.
The cost of running a local business in the U.S. includes socialised programs we call Social Security, Medicare and income taxes for general social government expenses, to name a few, if one has employees on the payroll, the business owner, too, that is.
A natural-born citizen takes no test or learns a secret ritual to earn full social safety net rights of citizenry. A person not born in this country who becomes a full citizen must take a test and pledge allegiance to gain access to the social safety net legally.
I have a story to tell that takes me out of this realm of day-to-day worries about pledges and social safety nets but I am here to tell the story because of them.
In other words, a system for which I had no direct say/vote in implementing has directly benefited me very recently. Some of the people who voted for the national legislation in Congress are members of secret societies such as fraternities, Masons, and Skull and Bones.
How many of us get full benefits of a social safety net without lifting a finger to help others in need?
Or do we give more than we receive?
Is there any way to measure our place in the economic and noneconomic portions of our society? Does there have to be a balance or do we push our debt forward?
What if we paid it forward?
What is a secret smile shared between two strangers worth if it lifted the spirits of a dying person, lowering the need for, and thus the cost of, pain medication?
It’s about time to return to the story of Agirita and her new friend.
Their story is our story.
Allegorical, cynical, satirical.
I met a smile I liked before a metaphor is like a simile.
Rick is back for a brief moment: he thanks Chrispine, Avance, Ruth Ann, Stain, Matthew, Princess, Molly and others.
treetrunkdings 