“I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations, neither are you here to live up to mine…I am that I am, I am, I am, I am…” This seemingly simplistic view of existence is actually quite profound, seeing as how no one else has to live your life but you, the concept that we should “live and let live” has been largely diminished in our modern world of nanny governance and nation building; to be sure, I’m not some douchebag cultural relativist, I don’t apologize for thinking many cultures’ treatment of women and other groups is deplorable and never okay, but is it our job as America to “re-educate” the nations of the world that we deem to be “less civilized”? Do we even have a fucking leg to stand on at this point??! On a more micro- level, I’m a firm believer in the notion that genuine & lasting personal growth is impossible unless you have first come to a point of complete and total acceptance of all that you are; that doesn’t mean you have to be satisfied with the status quo, but you have to completely accept who you are and where you are at---otherwise, whatever corrections you may assemble will be heaped upon a flimsy foundation, and the gear you don’t want to face will still be lurking in the shadows. Holy shit, I’m starting to sound like the Al Franken character Stuart Smalley (“…I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me…); how crazy is it that he’s a senator now, I think it’s cool. So, in conclusion to this deeply stoned ramble of a post: be who you are, do what you gotta do, and dig that. I am that I am. Word.
