Class Discussion

Any discussion of societal class will invariably invoke images in our minds of those with, and those without. We have no "caste" system officially in the West but there can be no doubt that we all view our position in life as "more than" or "less than" someone else. If we eliminate those that are eligible for Sainthood, the rest of us try to arrange our lives around the premise that humanity can be broken down into sub-groups. This helps us to deal with the dizzying tumult of human behavior.

Criminals, liberals, conservatives, whites, blacks, browns, Californians, Elites, snobs, ne'er-do-wells, gay, straight, Southerners, Mid-westerners, prodigies, losers, Commies, Socialists, Capitalists, in-crowd, the inner circle. These are just a few of the ways that we seek to differentiate ourselves from those around us. Of course, we all want to love and be loved, just as we all want to accomplish things and be recognized for it. These are fundamental needs that everyone has.

The bright side is that the motivation to separate ourselves from the masses can be healthy, promoting individual achievement, progress in culture and all types of discovery. The dark side of this part of our personality is also used to denigrate our fellow man, according to the set of rules that is either passed down, or adopted by us.

I suspect the belief that all humanity should be afforded the opportunities envisioned by our founding fathers is universal. The reality is, however, that though we are biologically created equal in terms of our physiology, and even spirituality, we are not all equal. A child prodigy is the single best evidence that we are not all born with the same ability. Though I might struggle a lifetime to achieve musical aptitude, I will never even come close to what a prodigy can accomplish at an early age. And though we are all born with the ability to reason, most of us will never achieve the insight of the great philosophers of human history.

So, then, if we are not all born with the same ability, what does this say about our erecting a class structure within our culture? We all want to surround ourselves with those that look, think and act like us. That's natural. On the bright side, that's called fellowship. On the dark side, that's the Taliban. If I haven't lost everyone by now, let' bring it home.

When the foundations of our economic security are shaken, as in the current global financial meltdown, certain things have happened to the human relationships Stephanie and I share. I dare say that the friendships are stronger, the familial ties are tighter, the encouragement (upon being affected by the economy) warmer. Of course, some of that is projection, or the reaction of others to our being out of our "role" in life- knocked on our keister by the reality of hardship. At that point, we are warmer, more open to giving and receiving love. As it happens, when we find ourselves in medical trouble, for instance, we begin to recognize the value of human relationships and the menial nature of all things transitory. Survival. It strips away everything temporal, all things unimportant.

Yesterday, I had the strangest experience. The burning ban had been lifted by our County in Georgia, so I built a fire pit and began burning all the yard debris from the pruning and tree work we had done. As I sat there all alone, something primal, almost spiritual came over me. I was hypnotized by the fire. I began thinking of all the things in life that matter. I didn't want to leave the fire, even after all that I had to burn was in cinders.

The cleansing fire. It burns away the trash. It leaves only embers. In life, it incinerates all but the core values. It produces the raw material without fetters. It then, becomes our clay to mold.