I was in a large medical office building waiting for the coffee shop to open when in walked a man pulling a long-handled ice chest behind him. This fellow had a smile that seemed to fill the room. You know the kind of smile like someone that just got out of jail or maybe high on drugs,or just happy to be alive and having some great spiritual truth. "Are You with the coffee shop?" I asked. "Yes,coffee will be ready in five minutes" he replied.
We talked over hot coffee for awhile in his small shop. When I asked him who knocked over the twin towers he just pointed matter of factly at the floor. He knows. I enjoyed our chat and I will see him again this Thursday. I figure I will take him some turnips with greens and multiplying onions from our wintergarden.
There is no institution,media outlet,fraternity,human being , angel of light,religious organization or charismatic charlatan that can cause Me to hate this man or his country of origin. Together we will move on to brotherly love and understanding one person to another,and not all the wealth of the oligarchs or millenia of religious hatred can stop us.
Ahhh nice story korn. I agree. We're too smart to fall for their divide and conquer bs. Many non cotoers are also waking up to their little scam as well. Hope it's not too little too late.
ReplyDeleteBtw, "across the universe" is one of my top 3 favorite Beatle tunes. Thanks for that ;)
Radical moderates at Your service,the spearhead (no Kall pun intended) of international relations and world peace right here from the farm.
ReplyDeleteKorn
ReplyDeleteRight on.
but, but, but wait. You are a righty and I am a lefty.
You and I are supposed to hate each other. Unless of course
COTO KNOWS and
COTO GROWS
Beautiful, Korn. I twice hitchhiked acrpss Iran in the seventies, camping out by the side of the road in a tent. It was a safe country and the people seemed to really like Americans despite the Savak situation. It is crazy the zionist press demonizes Iranians when they are pretty much pro American. Funny world.
ReplyDelete"When I asked him who knocked over the twin towers he just pointed matter of factly at the floor. He knows."
ReplyDeleteI had to use my brain to figure that one out. LOL
Divide and conquer. One of the oldest tricks.
A good twenty years ago or so, I started out to bridge any such divisions. It works wonders and it still works after all these years. A little friendliness and an exchange of smiles is all it takes.
Korn, great idea for thursday. Do it. I'm sure the guy will be overjoyed.
:-)
ReplyDeleteMY LITTLE U.N.
ReplyDeleteKing,
When I left home at 17, I wound up in Texas and looking for work. I went to a nearby restuarant and interviewed for a waiters job. The manager was an Egyptian Spaniard. He liked me and sent me to the The Maitre D' who was a German man, who hired me.
I went to work under a captain who was Jewish and he trained me to wait properly and cook dishes, flambe and prepare Caesar Salads tableside.
The Restuarant owners were a Lebanese family who ended up treating me like a family member.
The family would come to the Restuarant after Sunday brunch and prepare a meal for the staff at which time they would go over any business which took very little time.
After the meal we would sip Ouzo, Arak and their other concoctions and talk politics of which at seventeen I had only brainwashing but an A grade in History, my favorite subject.
Naive, was an understatement as I listened to the Paul, the German talk about his U-Boat officer days WWII, and the Jewish, Donald discussing the days of war service in the US.
When the discussion got too political and moved to the 'H&H' of the war, Albie, the Egyptian/Spaniard would mediate and tranlate some for the Mexican busboys and kitchen staff. He would assure the peace.
Meanwhile my adopted Lebanese family would just smile and always comment on the goodness of all of us and the harmony that existed between people when not under the regime of fascism and propaganda.
Texas was booming in 1975 and the family was thriving well under the economy and their chosen Orthodoxy. Loyalty, kindness and appreciation were the hallmarks of this group and they indelibly shaped my world.
They pushed me to enroll in JC and continue my
education and devised schedules accordingly. What ended up finance was not the history and humanities degree I wanted.
Like your new Iranian man with the cooler, all these figures could never raise any suspicion from me and they left me with the constant reminder that anyone I meet is likely the better of the two and I should work hard to make sure that is not the case.
"anyone I meet is likely the better of the two and I should work hard to make sure that is not the case."
ReplyDeletebrilliant words to live by.
We've missed you Kat. I hope you will make it regular.
ReplyDeleteI have been recycling. I will post pics soon.
ReplyDeleteKorn, love the peace bro and for me being a 22 yr old man of 2 different ethnicity's =) it's comforting to find some common place that proves we our all in this together and no matter what race our religion we are.
ReplyDelete-much love
The univ I attended and the city around it had plenty of Persians and etc. By the time I moved away 25 years later, Palestinians were running restaurants and small stores. Even tho the part of Hawaii I live in now is very ethnically mixed, I find I miss the middle easterners quite alot. And the Italians, and, and, and....
ReplyDeleteI'm sure when we move from here I will be missing the Japanese, Hawaiians and Filipinos, and of course the Portuguese. Our differences are just the spice of life!
you guys are reminding me of a song... sing it coto !!!!
ReplyDeletePS: the flag on Ray's sweater should be upside down in the name of accuracy....
ReplyDeleteHow about his PhRMA Hit from 61
ha! "take Jeremiah Peabody's polyunsaturated quick dissolvin' fast actin' pleasant tastin' green & purple pills............ I remember that one... and the words.. hahaha
ReplyDeleteWelcome to indridcleric, a new member of the cotocrew
ReplyDeleteYou do? Wow you look great for ninety JG.
ReplyDeleteWhy thank you patrick! Actually, I'm closer to 300 years old. I'm still a very young vampire ;)
ReplyDelete