#4 Lilly Bye of Birdland

Post date: Aug 28, 2015 11:01:59 PM

Today I send you the fourth of a five piece art series about my dear friend Lilly Bye and what she learned when cloistered with her feathered friends in Birdland. This piece is titled and inscribed on the bottom as follows: "#4 Lilly Bye of Birdland......learned the importance of family and friends and the acceptance of all others regardless of their political or religious persuasions". The piece is 9 1/2" long x 6" wide x 5 1/2" high.

We live in a world of pseudo intellectuals, self serving politicians, coercive talking heads and sycophants who will agree with anything/anyone for a free drink, meal or ride. Basic values, morality and simple caring for/of one another is on a rapid decline. Perhaps per Lilly Bye's suggestion we should reexamine the importance of family, friends and acceptance of all regardless of ethic, racial, political or religious persuasions.

The family has always been the core and glue which has held mankind together in its simplest form. Those who try to subjugate it for their personal gains should be merely cast/fed into a den of hungry lions. The state nor any bureaucracy can provide the love, nurturing or guidance of a mother and father, along with other members. All is not always perfect in life, but the best chance for success for decency, respect and reaching out to others with goodwill starts and is most learned in a family environment.

Friends are basically extensions of one's family. They are the support group which reinforce and defend values and morals of their associated family. In times of crisis, they are the ones who can be truly relied on. When it comes to simple joy, they can help turn a common event into utter happiness. Some we will share our life with for a short period, others for many years. Regardless of the amount of time, we will always be left with a trove of good and happy memories. Man is a gregarious creature and struggles in life when mostly alone It is during those isolated periods when he makes his greatest mistakes. That is when he needs friends the most. As decent human beings we should a reach out and make sure none are without friends.

When it comes to choosing friends we shouldn't allow those intellectuals, politicians or talking heads to make the decision of who/whom we select. No friend will ever be our total reflective image, but they will be there when needed most for whatever reason. Certain cliques and factions will try to separate and pen us into herds of animosity for their power grabs. Friendship is their enemy. They prefer ideological robots with no feelings. An honest and decent man doesn't choose his friends simply because of another's ethics, race, politics, or religious persuasions. He chooses his friends by what he finds and feels is in their hearts.

(To see photos of the above art piece go to https://sites.google.com/site/jmdodigartphotos )