Ugh.
It's raining in Los Angeles. I hate the fucking rain.
Fuck that, "It washes away our sins," bullshit. Jesus' blood did that for me. Worst thing about the rain is the darkness. The confinement. Unless, one happens to like being damp & wet for no reason. I like specific parts of my body wet, for the intended purpose(s). Yes hetero.
The rain has me thinking about something. Haiti. Man, those folks really got screwed. First the political axis of the entire country got kicked & beat to death. Next poverty & famine got comfortable, no thanks to America & Europe. Then this earthquake shook them up terribly so, in which case they weren't even prepared for a mild shaker, much less something about the size of the quake that leveled a healthy portion of Northridge, California when I was younger. Now, disease, despair, death, renegades & vigilantes, politics, destruction.
After they pull through this, which they will, nobody will be able to take their resilience away from them. The moral determination one needs to forge ahead, through such gloom, is the defining line between man & animal. Life & death. I pray for them fervently, but I wish I could do more.
I was watching footage on the news, & thought to myself, "what can I possibly complain about?" Although we all have circumstances that demand our attention, how bad can they be, compared what the Haitians are going through? Unfortunately, it takes someone else's misery to make us appreciate our own. Well, kudos life. Mission accomplished. I saw footage this morning taken inside of an orphanage as the quake hit. Not only were these children living a life rife with variables, but to complicate that, their literal lives were now being turned asunder, in real time, while I watched. Needless to say, I didn't fuss at my little man today for not finishing his Frosted Flakes. I did, however, talk to him about the importance of appreciation, & how life is never really yours to begin with, like money.
A friend & I were talking about the similarities between Haiti & Hurricane Katrina. I said the only real comparable aspect is the unexpectancy of it all. Sure, people can always do more, but by the time that realization is formed, it's usually too late. Which seems to be the schedule of life. No matter how informed we are, there's no such thing as "totally prepared." It didn't help matters any that Haiti has no building codes, which sucks, but not as much as how the country has been treated over the last couple hundred years in general. Haiti's history, which I've learned about extensively over the last week or so, thanks to Dallas Penn & Combat Jack, is an awesome remainder that sometimes in life, you get the shit kicked out of you, only to stand up & get kicked, again. & again. For the most part, there's no legitimate reason that life won't continue to piss in your scrambled eggs, daily, until you die. If that doesn't happen, & by the grace of God you find yourself somewhat happy on this planet, be thankful. Some motherfuckers never experience that.
Come to think of it, I'm complaining about rain, while people walk past corpses. Kinda mate's my whole reason for writing this. Or maybe I just needed to write.
10 comments:
I like the rain. Personally it makes me thoughtful, and it seems to have done the same for you.
The rain brings up deep thoughts. Paired with the tragedy that has put our privileged lives in such harsh perspective, make for a realization of how fortunate so many of us are compared to the desperate people of Haiti.
Another quake hit again today, and from what I heard it was around a 6. I can't imagine being hit again once this tragedy has already left them so broken.
Good thoughtful post Tony.
Tony, I fux wit you on this one man... rain is another one of those things that makes you sit and just think while you wait and kill time, y'know.
My philosophy is this on the situations of the world:
There is a lot of good in the world happening to a few people, but there is a little bit of bad in the worlds happening to a LOT of people.
Its such a fucked up balance.
Nice drop, homey.
this is cool.
but hold up....
is that you rappin on the mixtape?!
shits bangin
i never knew.....
Ray-
Yessir. Thanks, mayne.
as a West Indian child, I used to get SO mad when someone asked me if I was a Haitian when I tell everyone I meet for the first time that I'm from Trinidad.
regardless of which, that earthquake took everyone by surprise. my friend has family over there & I called him when I could to make sure his family was okay--they are, thank God. but Haiti was nowhere near balanced before the earthquake like you mentioned. I'm just glad that the international community is doing what they can to assist the people though I do feel it's a matter of one country outdoing the other. good post as usual.
BTW! did you read/hear about the Carnival ship that docked near Haiti!? SMH.
*and I like the rain, it's an excuse to not do homework & watch old school Nickelodeon :)
Seriously, this rain is killin me. fully agree with ya Grand$ bout it killin your day. I been stuck inside all day and ima restless mofo, cant stand sittin still for too long.
Anyway my boredom is very insignificant when compared to the peoples of Haiti's plight. I've done what I can but it still feels like i havent done enough.
And ya, That Northridge quake was scary shit, especially cuz I was in like the sixth grade. First and only big shaker ive ever felt. It was a 5. something on the ricther scale, Haiti's was a 7. For every point on the scale the quake doubles in magnitude. Hard to even imagine such devastation.
I love the rain and I think Federal Ranga and LC are getting at something when they say it makes people sit and think. Maybe that's why a lot of people don't like it, too much time for internal reflection. I read in some book awhile back that the weather shouldn't have so much control over people's emotions. If we're sad and miserable or happy and excited, don't blame it on the weather. Anyway what's going on in Haiti is heartbreaking. I've learned a lot in the past week too. The whole situation def makes me want to stop complaining about what's going or not going on in my life.
My girl and her family (including my son) lived in N.O. when Katrina struck, and lost almost everything. It has taken her family YEARS to recover, and there are many who still haven't. I reflect on the feelings caused by that tragedy, and in my mind, magnify it a thousand-fold. It wasn't just a city in Haiti; their country was rocked to it's core, and they lost EVERYTHING! I feel ashamed when I even ponder my tiny problems when I think about all that they are enduring, and care very little about the 99 cent menu items that I'll miss out on when I donate what I can to them. God bless them. Great post, Grands.
Son you know it rains all of the time up here! A brother's apparel must be water repellent at all times. And the thinking game be on 1000. Good observation people, take advantage of the earth soothing itself. To this day I cannot understand how man uses water to drink and shower, yet will cower in the fetal position over rain.
But I will keep an eye on the evils of man. Tent towns don't sound like a power move, I see visions like the town in District 9. The capital and political structure is decimated down there. Who's in charge?
Hell they're lucky it hasn't rained down there yet.
hi everyone
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