Adaptation

The old ways

The old ways were as big as the sky, as wide as the earth, as heavy as stone, as light as feathers. People these days don't think much of them.

So I ask myself how the old ways can be so reasonable and yet so unconvincing. And when people abandon reason and end up so far apart, why bother explaining?

So if I want to look after myself, first I have to find myself. I look around and get the lay of the land to find my own way. I'm looking for evidence of how to do the right thing. Once I know how to do the right thing I know how to keep myself safe. Left, right, ahead, behind, I make the rounds and make my way back. I carry the torch, take up the mantle, welcome new ways with an open mind.

Now these newcomers have to channel the old ways with no spin and no hype. That's means they'll last. They lend a hand by being normal. Common courtesy and good will help each other out. They pitch in by not picking sides. That's how I know they're the old ways.

If you want to embrace the old ways, you'll have to learn on the job and stand your ground. Expect it to shift, but never know when. And don't miss the cues so you can keep up.

So my words are like sunlight at noon, when the sun's scouring light is too intense and people don't like it.

When new ways are the same as the old ones, they're comrades. When they aren't, they keep their distance. I appreciate that new ways that aren't old ones keep their distance. That's how I know which are friends of the ancients.