A Voice in the Darkness

Posted on September 12, 2003 in Reflections

From out of the darkness, came this voice:

“I’ve often noticed that people don’t read others well, that they will readily give their hearts to a deceiver and stomp on an honest person. I’ve learned to beware of rouged over faces in women and cunningly coifed hair in men. I don’t trust the person who always knows me before they know anything about me. I know that they will be able to seduce even those closest to me, make an issue of the fact that I say nothing about them. They will tell you vile things about people you both know and yet when they are with them, they will treat these others as best friends. They will say distorted things about you to others. They will treat inferior views and inferior thinking as the equal of better ones because these better ones ultimately threaten them. If you should let on that you know, beware: When they attack, they will have the numbers on their side — all people who have not yet caught on to the regular betrayals that this person works against them.

“What you have for your protection are these things: first, your sense of self which includes the courage to keep loving yourself regardless of what mistakes you make when you are flustered. You can apologize because you know that by doing so you have surrendered nothing. They cannot because they lose everything — they are all face. Second, you have your sense of compassion. Find those who have also seen the injury that is done by these nasty nice and give them love. Give love to those who have not yet seen. Give love to yourself. Give love to the world. Not all of it will come back, but love will be there when other-engineered calamity strikes. Third, you have old age. When the wrinkles line the face and the hair falls out, you will have yourself. And they will search for themselves in jars and cans of hairspray, under the surgeon’s knife, in false teeth, and old photos of how seductive they used to look. They will not find what they had.

“Until nature enacts its harsh mercy on your behalf, avoid them if you can, smile and say nothing when they are present, and be yourself in all things otherwise. You know what they are up to and they cannot harm someone who dreams dreams rather than sells a face.”