feed the bird

I was driving today on a cluttered and crowded freeway. I looked about me as I drove at barely fifteen miles per hour. Crawling. Frustration. People seethed and looked absolutely miserable. I smiled to myself. Poor humanity. Arriving in Orange County, I drove a nearby side street trying to take a short cut to work. There was a strip mall and a long street lined with shops. I saw men and women bustling on the sidewalks. They were peering at cell phones or checking their reflections in the glass-fronted shops. Outward appearances. The wrapping paper. It has been said by numerous theologians that America suffers from a spiritual malady. A sickness of the soul. It would seem so. An amazing man by the name of Swami Prabhupada brought Krishna Consciousness to America in the 1960’s. He stated that many people in the U.S. are only concerned with the outside of themselves. The television, magazines and movies tell us that if we wear certain clothing, drive expensive automobiles and chase after flesh… we will be successful and happy. It probably works for a time…  Yet, even the softest skin becomes like leather to a person that has touched it too much. Prabhupada stated that our souls are like a bird in a golden cage. Our souls want to be fed and free. The bird cries from within the confines of its lonely place. The owner ignorantly polishes the gold cage and neglects the bird. The message is: feed the bird. Thank you to Brian Fick for the image that was previously published in Skateboarder Magazine. Skate and feed the bird.  - Ozzie