Back when pharmacies had soda fountains and comic corners and were a cool place to hang out…

Scary movies were dark, ominous works of art, but didn’t ruin your sleep, fun was chips of ice from the ice man in summer and globs of clean tar to chew from the street pavers, love songs were double entendre, but we were innocent enough to “fall in love” with the obvious, comedians were side-splitting funny – and clean!, Norman Rockwell's nearly "corny" but skillful depictions of American life touched us all.

             …and life was more peaceful.

But then song writers, cinematographers and comedians just came out with it - not enough people were getting their subliminal message.  Popular music can now get down and dirty, movies blow people up and throw guts and gore into your face in real time,  pharmacies are “all business,” and the soda fountain, where kids could order a chocolate coke and hang out with their friends for hours reading comic books with “real stories,” have bit the dust!  Once the bottle was unstopped, art’s new expression just kept pouring out more viperous with each turn of the calendar. Human nature is such that we are never satisfied with the status quo where emotions are concerned.  We seek ever and ever more exciting experiences to keep the “high” going. The artists of the time know it! – and make plenty of money from it – literally at our expense. I believe there is a greater “high” that can be achieved through the arts that withstand the test of time. They touch us more profoundly, and their influence instills a well-being unrivaled by the worldly.  We “need” great art!

The arts are essential to a healthy society.  When they are not inspired by lofty ideals, they can drag us down instead of lift us up.  We need a return to the spirit of beauty in the arts and good, clean fun in our lives. When is the last time you laughed spontaneously in sheer joy at something unexpected that hit your funny bone? Have you ever been at a loss for words after listening to a great piece of classical music that transports you beyond the moment?  …or to a song that moves you to tears of compassion? …or seen a work of art that leaves you in awe from the realization that no one else in the world could ever create its equal? 

These are things of beauty, and they’re still there if we look for them.  Beauty is not in the eyes of the beholder: it is an Absolute accessible to everyone! If you have experienced what I’m talking about, welcome to my world!  …and don’t tell me that beauty does not inspire peace.  I’ve been there!