A line of evergreen, covered in autumn to the east

The lake of mirrors to the north, nourishment to many a beast

The heart of the forest to the south, red as the sailor’s delight

Rolling hills to the west, behind them a fading light

In the past we look, many a scar to find

Into the future we go, all else must be left behind

In the present we lay, behold the orange-lit sky

In the present cracks the fire, for on it our dinner we fry

She lays next to me, arched against the pale horizon

She talks of dreams yet to be, of prizes yet to be won

Her eyes go into the distance, her talk of things to come

Slowly the mystery fades, of who she wishes to become

Unsure of who we are, I fear she may be

This I see, though she be laid bare next to me

“Who is this man?” I see her eyes ask inside

“Who is this man, laid bare by my side?”

What answers can one give? What promises to tell?

Are they not empty in the end, damning a liar to hell?

How can I, the pauper beside the maiden convince?

That for eternity, I could in truth be her prince?

The fears eternal to remain, until the answer I prove

This her hand asks me of me, “Please, my doubts remove”

“Myself”, as she looks at me, “I will never let free”

“If in a cage eternal, my heart must always be”

The love of youth fades with the sun, behind the hills beyond

The love of the soul rises with the moon, wishing to form the stronger bond

There is no time in the past, nor will there be time in the present

Should this man fail to assuage her, convince her of heaven’s consent

I say not a word, yet take her hand in mine

Towards the palm I turn, to see the lines so fine

The history of her life is there, however quick the pace

With my left underneath, with my right I begin to trace

It is into her past she lets me see

The girl sitting on grandfather’s knee

The shiny new helmet, and falling off the bike at ten

An awkward, cloistered girl full of fear so often

The heart races as eventually she embraces

Love’s first kiss ends up caught in her braces

Many a friend to follow, some true and some false

Not truly until college, does one so quicken her pulse

 

A night intended to study poor prometheus

Forever after branded her PROMISCUOUS!

A first night of love shared had she, a boy of mental age barely ten and three

Permanently scarred her heart for long after seemed to be

Off goes the cap, high into the air it goes

“Oh God!” she says, “After this the real world follows!”

Into an office she must go, the girl in her fades away

Up with the hair and down with the skirt, “There is no other way!”

Into the now this brings her, a world full of order full and proper

Yet one question still lingers, share my life with this pauper?

“My world is set to go, my path laid before me”

This she argues most vehemently

Eye to eye we look just now

The sweat no longer on her brow

Convinced her have I, this answer I do not know

But happiness there is, this her eyes do show

I see neither girl nor woman, neither breast nor womb

I see the person lying next to me, A soul lying in tomb

Across her her brow, my fingers do flow

Have no fear, be not afraid to let your soul go

Through her hair, my hand does intend

Intercepted by hers it is, a whisper – “No more pretend”

It is now I sense, on hers my eyes – they froze

And in that moment, our souls did Kiss the Rose

The key scene in the movie The Weatherman(not to be confused with Anchorman with Will Ferrell) was when Dave Spritz realized, “I’m fast food”. Fast food tastes good, but isn’t all that nutritious and is cheap and easily disposed of. This was, Dave realized, why he was always getting hit by fast food items. A burrito. A Big Gulp. A Frosty. Only fast food. This was the common denominator within his existence.

So my question is this; Are you fast food? If I had to posit an opposite to fast food, I suppose a home-cooked meal would be it. Are you a home-cooked meal? Is it easy to tell one from the other

Now it’s pretty easy to tell fast-food people from home-cooked people. Just wait for some real adversity to arrive and those with substance will stand right by your side. When you’re there weathering the storm of your life, those home-cooked friends will be right there with you. The fast-food people? The fast-food friends? If a storm is brewing and dark clouds begin to appear on the horizon, they’ll high-tail it out of there with barely a “Sorry gotta go!” Adversity is when you know your friends. Choose wisely. I give you a metaphor. Think of your circle of friends as your ship while at sea. A strong group of friends will be like a well-handled ship of the line. A group of fast-food friends will be little stronger than a coastal barque. One will hold steady through the fiercest of gale-force winds. The other will burst apart beneath your feet.

So what comprises a fast-food person? Weakness of will? Perhaps it should not be their shame if they are not naturally able to handle the attrition of day to day life. They know their limits, know when they will break, and do not wish to lose face in front of a friend who counted upon them in their time of need. Who are we to judge? Perhaps the label should be placed upon the foreheads of those who have the strength to stand by your side, but choose not to for their own reasons. Could they be afraid of the emotional cost to them should they try and weather the storm with you? Who knows such things. Is it a fault of theirs that they even calculate the costs of such a decision, if decision it should ever be? Should not a true friend act on their loved-ones behalf without thought of what could happen to themselves. Should they not cry, “I sail with you!” the first moment they learn of the impending storm? Think well of Aragorn. “I would have gone with you to the end.” Aragorn was no fast-food individual. Does it take the nobility of such a character to be a home-cooked person. I do not believe it takes nobility to act nobly, but I do think it takes character to be truly noble.

Character is what makes a home-cooked meal so valued. There is life in the spaghetti sauce made by our mothers. There is virtue in the pork ribs cooked by our fathers. There is strength when such meals are eaten with family and friends. Look around you this coming week and you will find life in your friends. You will find virtue within those you love. You will find strength insurmountable ready to give you the embrace you need after a hard days work. Most importantly though, open your eyes to those around you and be willing to see weakness. Weakness does not make one fast-food. Vulnerability does not make one fast-food. We all have weakness. We are all vulnerable at many points in life. Those who are home-cooked will provide us with nourishment when weak, and will protect us when vulnerable. They will replenish our resources so that we are ready to face another day in this world. Most important to remember when seeing their weakness, seeing them when vulnerable, is that they will need you.

Such is the meaning of life. Not just to count on, but also willing to stand and be counted upon. Not just to look for strength, but to be willing to admit the humanity in those around you. I suggest something to you. Find a park bench somewhere(The weather is crazy, this can be done before Spring) and just observe the individuals who walk by. Observe as if you are Sherlock Holmes and have but moments to figure out who they are. No longer think in terms of ‘fast-food’ or ‘home-cooked’. Merely look and see what burdens they carry with them. Perhaps that girl wearing the high-collared red sweater is in the midst of a storm involving her biology class professor. Perhaps that kid with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles t-shirt is in the midst of a storm involving the ridicule of the other kids at school. Perhaps that man in the business suit is in the midst of a storm involving a divorce settlement with his wife. What of the elderly woman, grappling with the knowledge that she is in the twilight of her years and soon is destined to dance with the reaper? Can she find comfort before being ferried across the river Styx?

Be willing to observe people, and you will find yourself observing storms. Reject them, or think of them and their storms only in terms of how it will affect you(as Dave Spritz did), and be thought of as coldly as fast-food. Be willing to understand those individuals, those storms, and you will find yourself being thought of as warmly as is a home-cooked meal.