A STORY. 52. WALKING WITH THE DEVIL

The last words of We’ve Just Begun are echoing inside you.

we've got what it takes
we're going on
we're not done
we've just begun
we have just begun
we're going on

yeah

we're not quitting

no

we're not quitting

when are we quitting

when it's done

we're not quitting
when are we quitting
when it's done

That’s what has to be, you know. No quitting until it’s done.

You look outside. The rain is quitting. The distant sky is clearing. There’s still rain coming down, but it isn’t a downpour. All the same, you’d rather sit warm and dry in the Cafe, until it’s stopped.

Plus there’s another title that pulls you.

Walking with the Devil. 

So many of the people around - walking with the devil - most of them nice people, going along. But the higher up they are, the more they are not nice people. They know what they’re doing.

You put in another quarter in the jukebox. You start listening.

Justin Trudeau,
Canadian Prime Minister,
Admirer of Castro

Fidel Castro,
Communist Dictator,
Mass Murderer . . .  

You like the way the piece starts.

 You keep listening. To the words and the music.

walking
walking with the devil
walking
singing hallelujah

walking with the devil
singing peace and love

walking with the devil

it's not all right
                by me

walking with the devil
head buried in the sand
walking with the devil
smiling, hand in hand

it's not all right
it's not all right
it's not all right
                by me
                by anyone
it's just not all right

You come to names and figures.

Ho Chi Minh
just another Communist dictator
death toll: 1-3 million

Vladimir Lenin
just another Communist dictator
death toll: 17 million

Mao Tse Tung
just another Communist dictator
death toll: 40-80 million

Joseph Stalin
just another Communist dictator
death toll: 20-60 million

F.D.R.
American president
and friend of "Uncle Joe" Stalin

just another useful idiot

useful idiot definition:
someone useful to evil

walking with danger
singing hallelujah
walking with evil
singing peace and love

The words stir you. So much walking with evil. And so many people not seeing.

Not so easy getting the devil to stop walking around when so many people are eager to walk with him, and even more people won’t see what’s going on.

You can feel yourself pulled into the world of the piece. Injustices staring you in the face. Smiling denial.

walking with the devil
head buried in the sand
smiling, hand in hand
                 with the devil

it's not all right
it's not all right
it's not all right
                by me

it's not all right
it's not all right
                by anyone

godammit
it's just plain not all right

No it isn’t.

The piece ends.

You look outside and see the rain has stopped.

There’s something special about the air after a good rainfall. It’s cool. Clear. You’re ready to get out into it. 

Both pieces are loud in your head.

Everything else is gone. Love. Tenderness. Heart ache.

How to have space for those very different worlds?

To be continued . . .
A STORY. 53. WHO IS THIS PERSON I CALL ME?
https://elsaiselsa.substack.com/p/a-story-53-who-is-this-person-i-call

A STORY. ALL THE CHAPTERS ... UP TO NOW
https://elsaiselsa.substack.com/p/a-story-table-of-contents-up-to-now

Posted June 4, 2024