A Thought

Something has happened that made me consider the opposing forces of construction and destruction. One might look at them as good and evil. This thing that happened wasn't big. Rather, it was as small and mundane as could be. All that happened was that while trying to put my taxes together at the eleventh hour, I just tore my bedroom apart in search of various documents. I had not so long before finally put my belongings into some kind of order, wresting them from the chaos that had accompanied my third move in as many months. This final move having been in late November, I can figure that it took some four and a half months to achieve. It took a few minutes to scatter it all to hither and yon.

Could there be a better picture of construction and destruction- of good and evil? I wonder if we all aren't merely looking for our way to make our mark. If all of human effort is simply in service of trying to impact the surrounding universe, it's not so hard to understand why people do what they do. Looking for a motive for evil in money, love and other areas sometimes comes up empty. I think that the bad guys as much as the good guys may simply be trying to make a difference.


I think that trying to do good has immense effect when successful, but no effect when not. Doing harm is quick and easy. I think that in itself may be adequate reason for some to do what they do. It may not pay, but it will unquestionably have an effect. It really dampens my spirit to see that play out. Some time ago I read an article about graffiti artists defacing historic, famed murals around Los Angeles. It would surely have been too much work to create anything of their own, and there would have been all too little chance of actually succeeding in gaining material reward or critical acclaim. Destroying the work of a real artist. on the other hand, was guaranteed to result in attention from the media.

Making any headway in improving the quality of life for humankind would be hard enough without such people, or at least with fewer of them than the rest. Regrettably, I fear that we have just a small band of people trying to create with mindless destroyers hanging off their backs. The creators may be better, with nobler intentions and greater will to see things through, but I don't know whether that is any match for those with such dismally low ambitions as just knocking down anything that tries to rise up. We'll have to hope so.