INFLUENCE
A Song For Jerry's Kids
"Just a song before I go, a lesson to be learned
Traveling twice the speed of sound, it's easy to get burned...
In the early 1980's, I made my home in Kings Beach, California, which is located a short
distance from the Nevada border in north Lake Tahoe. Having a healthy back then, I worked in
commercial construction and indulged in various side trades on the weekends, such as tree
cutter and 'rich-man's house fixer-upper', a rather lucrative specialty that is sometimes
engaged in by the common working people in wealthy resort areas. All things combined,
working six and seven 10-12 hour days, I earned a fairly healthy income for those simple times
and would think nothing of blowing a couple of hundred dollars in the various casinos and barrooms
that inundate the general area.
Even though since my senior year in high school I had not doubted that there is a Creator, I
then truly believed in my heart that God doesn't much give a damn and having little direction
or meaning in my soul, I was depressed most of the time. Since I was normally exhausted
in the evening from long hours of manual labor, I spent most of my free time either watching
television or sitting on the porch, enjoying a cigar or two and observing the world go by, so to speak.
I would occasionally pay a visit to the local 7-Eleven store nearby to obtain some
refreshments of sorts and there would be this face on a cardboard stand near a jar full of coins
on the counter. That face somehow seemed to have a life of its own; the eyes, having a
faint twinkle of a smile, would stare back at me and say, "Please help my kids".
There was a young man who lived at the lake whose body was severely contorted and twisted
with the physical symptoms of Muscular Dystrophy. He used to spend his days riding around
the lake on his special bicycle, which had signs on it seeking donations for the Muscular
Dystrophy Association. This brave young man would spend the entire year riding around
the lake on this special bicycle collecting funds for Jerry's kids, even though it was obviously
painfully hard work for him to do so. Looking back, I imagine what he struggled to do was
considerably more difficult than the six and seven-day workweeks I was putting in. I used to
work very hard, harder than most of my peers on construction crews and figured I was better and
tougher than most, that is, until I came across this young man. Though admiring him from
afar, in spite of my abundance, I never once gave him a nickel.
For several years after the high-rise construction work had come to a close at Lake Tahoe due to
a building moratorium, I traveled from town to town and state to state, following the work
around and basically remaining the same directionless, depressed, non-God-fearing individual I
had come to be, continuing to think in my heart that God does not particular give a damn. After
all, since I had my health, some friends, some good times and plenty of money, what was it that
God had ever done for me? And whenever I would stop at a local 7-Eleven store, there was
that same familiar face staring back at me from out of the cardboard sign, those same eyes would
again, seem to come to life and they would continue to say, "Please help my kids".
I would not wish to insinuate that the moneys raised by the Muscular Dystrophy Association
are not of paramount importance; rather I think the least Americans who have their health and a
steady job can do is to triple what we may have meagerly donated in the past and when the
government pretends to care by giving us some sort of miserly tax refund, the best thing we can
do with it is what a properly run government would have done in the first place---that is, use it toward
the betterment of our nation's health. But, the real value individuals such as Albert
Schweitzer, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., the young man on the bicycle above and
Jerry Lewis provide is something called "INFLUENCE". I reckon that Jerry himself has
absolutely no idea how many jaded and dejected old bikers, social misfits and other assorted
bar-people he has inspired to in some way, give back to the less fortunate and in doing so,
he has helped us all to feel a little better about ourselves, hold our heads up a little higher
and make our own way a little more merrily on down life's weary road.
So remember the next time you stop in at your local 7-Eleven for a six-pack or two, pause to
consider if you were the one in the wheel chair, the one with AIDS, the one who can't hear or
see or the one who has no home, no shower, no phone, no job and no immediate hope of obtaining
any of these, that you might be grateful if someone had shaken a few coins loose in the
direction of your own particular problem. For the influence of someone like Jerry Lewis
and other similar humanitarians extends far beyond their own particular cause, whatever it
might be. Those who Jerry has inspired to help his kids in our own small way have also gone on
to help other areas of need as well and our own meager contributions have in turn, inspired
others and so on and so on. . .
It is wise to understand that our historically important examples of leadership in
humanitarian, athletics, business, politics, entertainment and other areas of human endeavor
did not achieve recognition on their own, for they all had a mother, a father, a brother, a friend
and/or other individuals who influenced them toward love and positive effect along the way.
For the inspiration of one can lead to the encouragement of a great many and we never know when
we are nice instead of mean, when we say "hello" instead of ignoring, when we compliment a small
child instead of making him or her feel inadequate, that the one we are treating as we
ourselves would like to be treated may indeed, be the next Mohandas Gandhi, Helen Keller,
Mother Teresa or Jerry Lewis.
There are not causes as if there were many, leading to confusion, nor is God divided
by religions and philosophies nor other vain superstitions of the masses. But there is
one cause, given to us by the great Father of lights, from whom there is no variance, nor
shadow of turning. For as we would have people treat us, so also, we should likewise
treat them. ¹ This is the great command and the true vision, the Just Cause and there is no
other cause that matters, for as the wise author of Ecclesiastes taught, there is nothing
better than that we should eat, drink and enjoy the good of our labor and that we should fear
God and keep his commandments. ² All of God's commandments and all valid
issues are contained in this singular foundation of Human Rights, that we should love our brother
and sister as ourselves. ³ When we help Jerry’s Kids, we are helping the
homeless and when we help the children of AIDS, we are standing for Human and Civil Rights and
for protection and preservation of the environment of our children's future. For to
ignore our neighbor is to ignore the God who created our neighbor and truly, there is no way to
care about our Creator other than for us to treat his creation as we ourselves, wish to be
treated.
Be not deceived by vain persuasion of religious perversion or intellectual mockery of
deception, for a vote for Jerry's Kids is a vote for Noah and a vote for Noah is a vote for
Abraham and a vote for King Cyrus of Persia. A vote for King Cyrus is a vote for King
David, a vote for Confucius and Lao-Tzu of China and Buddha and Asoka of India. And a
vote for these is a vote for Socrates, Leonardo, Shakespeare and Einstein; a vote for true
science, true philosophy and true education. A vote for the search for the truth is
a vote for Isaiah, a vote for Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Anwar Sadat, Nelson Mandela
and Cesar Chavez. And a vote for these great champions of Human Rights and peace is a
vote for Albert Schweitzer, Jonas Salk, Samuel Clemens, Eleanor Roosevelt, Helen Keller and
Jacques Cousteau. And a vote for any of these is a vote for Peter, Paul and Mary,
Sitting Bull, Red Cloud, Abraham Lincoln and the Creator of Mount Rushmore.
To sit in council with these is to practice true patriotism and in turn, is a vote for Danny
Thomas, Elizabeth Taylor, Elton John and Ryan White, Comic Relief, Farm Aid,
Live Aid, George Harrison and Sir Bob Geldof, friend of Mother Teresa and the impoverished
nations of Africa. And a vote for all of the above is a vote for our beloved friend Jerry,
America's good Samaritan and great friend and patriot of Mount Rushmore, who in the tradition of
King David and the mighty prophets of Israel, is truly a man after our Father in heaven's own
heart.
And let no man or woman deceive you, for there is one Creator and God, our Father in
heaven and there is one true and Just Cause, for this is the sum of the whole matter, that we
should love our neighbor ourselves. For in practicing such, we will not steal, we will not
rape, we will not murder, nation will not rise up against nation and we will not destroy the
fragile home of our children's future. There is a voice from the thunder of Elijah's
fire, sounding from the ancient land of Persia. Echoing from the nations of Europe,
from Russia and India, China and other countries of the Far East, boomeranging from the
Australian Outback and reverberating from the drums of Soweto. A voice of many waters, emanating
from the great rainbow of Noah's ancient ark, sounding around the globe and back and hiding
among the American patriots whose faces are carved on the face of Mount Rushmore. And
this voice says: "Please help my kids." And may the great circle of the friends of
mercy, love, peace, justice and freedom be unbroken. *
...Just a song before I go, a lesson to be learned." 4
Muscular Dystrophy Association
DEDICATED TO: Kasey and Jean Kasem and
to Ed McMahon, long-time friends
and contributors to our Creator's great love network.
Credits:
1. Luke: 6:31 (paraphrase).
2. Ecclesiastes 2:24, 5:18, 12:13-14, paraphrase. Most religious people who study
the Bible tend to greatly water down and twist what it actually says toward the bias of their own narrow
traditions; i.e., most can not fathom that the true God might actually wish for us to truly
enjoy ourselves, as noted in particular in Ecclesiastes and Song Of Solomon, but
also referenced elsewhere. On the other hand, most intellectuals tend to scoff at and
dismiss Biblical concepts such as "fear" and "holy" in relation to God, in truth, not
comprehending what these terms represent. Though these terms are multi-faceted,
meaning several things in various contexts, it is perhaps proper to define the "fear of the
Lord" among other things, as meaning one who gives ear to God out of respect that our Creator
probably knows more than religion, education and science, what is correct for our own health
and happiness. Likewise, the word "holy" is often referenced in the Bible in relation to
acknowledging the "true God" (YHWH--"I AM") rather than worthless "gods" that cannot help
us. Old and New Testament authors tended to themselves scoff at astrology, mediums and
vain religious rituals found in various cultures (vain that is, because they realize no
practical benefit), as well as to worthless erudite education with no practical application for
actually helping in the real world ("I count them as dung"---i.e., bullshit). Holy by
definition, it would seem, is that which is true and correct and proper in true perspective as
to what will make us happy, healthy and whole. "Holy" and "common sense" are not
synonymous terms, as often what is believed by the masses for generations to be true is not
correct toward positive improvement. However, that which is holy makes perfect logical
sense when understood in correct perspective toward practical application in our everyday
existence; "the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable".
3. From Ecclesiastes, Jesus and the authors of the Old and New Testaments combined.
4. "Just A Song Before I Go" by Graham Nash; Crosby, Stills & Nash (1977).
*FootNote: Inspired by the most influential and ongoing commitment of American actor, comedian
and humanitarian Jerry Lewis. Some would revere saints, preachers, pontiffs and prelates,
while most of the rest of us owe our sanity (such as it is) to Jerry. Jerry doesn't
pretend to be a saint--that's why we barroom folk like him.
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