The Lure of Money

A stranger's offering, photographed after the fact.

   A stranger offered me a fifty dollar bill.
   It happened as I walked into a Walmart. The bill was folded, concealing most of the paper's surface. My reaction was suspicion. Nobody gives away that kind of cash.
  I told him, "Is that thing real? Or is this some kind of publicity gimmick?"
  He smiled. "Take it."
  Part of me wanted to accept the bill. Another part of me didn't. It felt unseemly to reach for cash when it probably wasn't cash.
   But what if the guy was legit? Fifty bucks is a lot of money. My defenses crumbled. I pulled the paper from his hand. I spread apart the folds. 
   Bummer! It wasn't real money. The paper was an advertisement for a tax preparation service.
   I turned to the stranger to express my disappointment. He no longer stood there. He had moved on to another sucker.
   By falling for his ploy, I'd sacrificed a smidgen of dignity. Next time I encounter such a circumstance, I'll say no. I'll recover that lost smidgen. 
   It's hard to ignore the illusion of free money.

Getting to the Bottom of Cliches

   Pardon the cliche, but do cliches get a bum rap?
   Photographers and writers are urged to steer clear of cliches. That advice is usually right on the money. People don't want to view or read the same old same old.
   But once in a blue moon I'll photograph a cliche. For example, when former president Bill Clinton raised a baby over his head--a tried and true cliche of behavior by a politician--I took the easy route and snapped the photo.
   By the same token, when writing I try to avoid cliches. My readers deserve something that doesn't sound like a broken record. Yet ever so often, cliches do slip into play.
   Cliches deserve a bad rap, but should they be avoided like the plague?

Trashing Propriety

    Does litter encourage criminals?

   Visiting The South Bronx, a part of New York City, I noticed trash strewn about. Most of the litter appeared on walkways at public housing sites.

   People in one such neighborhood, depicted in the photos, warned me to be careful. Teenage boys and young men were committing robberies.
   As a boy in the early to mid 1960's, I'd visit my grandparents in The Bronx. I didn't see much trash. Why is litter tolerated today?
   Criminologists argue that when neighborhood decay is tolerated, citizens become less involved. They disengage from participation in affairs of their neighborhoods. In a sense, they toss in the towel.
   Criminals thrive on indifference.

Memory of a Memory

   A broken Budweiser bottle triggered my memory of another person's memory. Sound weird?
   The story begins in Nazi Germany. During one night, mobs all over the country destroyed Jewish shops. They beat Jews senseless. Some victims lost their lives. It was the infamous Kristallnacht, also called the Night of Broken Glass.
   The police stood around. They feared intervening. So did most citizens.
   A boy, a member of the Hitler Youth, witnessed the horror.  He noticed a woman--a non Jew--confront a police officer. She demanded he stop the violence. She was vocal about it. She didn't mind that other people watched her. The officer told her to shut up for her own good.
   The woman's courage remain etched in the boy's mind. Later he became a missionary. I met him a few years ago in Zimbabwe. He was old and infirm. He regaled me with stories of his life. To my regret, I neglected to take his photo.
   Acts of courage are remembered long after they've happened

What is Conscience?

Rub marks are visible on the back panel of a Mercedes Benz I backed into.

   Oops! I backed my car into a Mercedes Benz. It was unoccupied in a parking lot. The damage to the Benz was cosmetic, a few rub marks on the back panel.
   Should I drive away? The Benz's insurance could handle the costs of repair.
   Or should I admit my guilt? That'd be risky. My insurance premium could increase.
  I looked around. Not a soul in sight. If I left the scene, nobody would know.
  My conscience kicked in. I penned a note identifying myself. I placed it under a wiper on the Benz.
  Hours later my phone rang. The owner of the Benz spoke with a foreign accent. He sounded like someone who'd grown up in Pakistan or India. I apologized for hitting his car. He expressed gratitude for my contacting him. We exchanged insurance information.
   Conscience is a GPS directing us on the road to righteousness. If we stray off course, it keeps telling us where to go.

Prolific Distraction

   Does social media stifle our potentials?
   I visited the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Most patrons concentrated on the exhibits. But in almost every gallery someone stood apart, peering into a smartphone.
   One man, seen in the photo, fixated for several minutes over his phone. He was mesmerized by the screen in his hand, not by the canvases on the walls.
   Obsession with social media and internet is dumbing people down. Instead of pursuing their talents to the fullest, they're gazing like zombies into screens. Even if they succeed in life, they won't reach their potentials. 
   That assertion might sound far fetched but I'm convinced it's true.
   Achievement requires concentration. The more we expose ourselves to distractions like social media, the less focused we become. Less focus means less concentration. Less concentration means less achievement.
   One artist featured at the museum was John Singer Sargent. He was prolific, creating several thousand works of art. He did it one hundred years ago. Before television. Before the internet. Before social media.
    Would Sargent have been that prolific today? Possibly not. Online distractions would intrude into his time and creativity.
   Self discipline enables people to reach their potentials. Ridding oneself of a smart phone is an act of self discipline.

Choice of Words

   Wildlife abound on this property. While driving by it (but not on it), I've seen turkeys, foxes, and other creatures. Seeing those critters put me into happy moods.
   Now the vibe has changed. A  'Keep Out' sign has been posted. That expression is gruff.
   The landowner could have used a polite expression such as 'Private Property or 'No Trespassing. The same information would be conveyed.  
   Politeness uplifts humanity. Grumpiness brings it down.

Crash Landing

   A swan sat on a road, injured by a freak accident. It had flown into a telephone line and crash landed. A policeman directed traffic around the bird. Later, an animal control officer took it away for treatment.
   This species of bird, a mute swan, is aggressive. It attacks animals and people that infringe on its territory or get near its offspring. It displaces other species from feeding areas.
   While snapping the photo, I felt sad for this mute swan. There is sat, helpless and humbled.
   It's the same way with people. Everyone, no matter how dominant, eventually gets taken down a peg.