July 15, 2025

Before the American Dream was Just a Dream – 1980s Pt2

Crrow777

“Even if it seems certain that you will lose, retaliate.”
― Tsunetomo Yamamoto, Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

The following is an excerpt from The Book of Samurai:

“It is said that what is called “the spirit of an age” is something to which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is due to the world’s coming to an end. For this reason, although one would like to change today’s world back to the spirit of one hundred years or more ago, it cannot be done. Thus, it is important to make the best out of every generation.”

There was a time when I found fault with the stated idea that the world is therefore coming to an end. But that was long before I made an effort to stop believing in things. Clearly, the world will one day come to an end. All created things will see their end, without exception. More importantly, the above text from The Book of Samurai demonstrates how past eras have always been viewed. In the same way that I view the bygone 1980s, my parents remembered the bygone 1950s. This is of course partially colored by nostalgia. But there is also a fondly remembered “something” that has passed, which we now view as a loss.

For my part, I find a valuable lesson here. Even though I have read the following truth many times, the words above help me to pull it into focus as more than a passing fancy. Nostalgia based on passed eras now gone does not exist. Nor does anything that might happen in the future. The only reality I can possibly claim access to is this moment. And in mentioning it, “it” is already gone, being replaced with the next moment… also now passed.

In these ideas, I comprehend why the novice monk counts his cyclical breath in an effort to focus his mind on now, where everything actually exists. Even once identified as a goal, it is not so easy. It is not easy because of my habits. My days are full of them – habits. And I know full well that if I fail to break or change these habits, I have little possibility of changing much of anything in an intentional, meaningful way. Sometimes, when examined, my life feels like a nonstop conglomeration of habits. And what is more, I have given away endless moments of “now” in order to dwell on the nostalgic past or nonexistent future. If this is a self-made trap, how can it be anything but common?

Clearly, I have a lot of work to do, and I do not yet foresee a time when this will not be true. At least I am now aware of where and when everything exists. Truth be told, I first read this many decades ago, but there I am looking backwards again. It reminds me of that old Bill Preston song – “Will it go Round in Circles.” But unlike the song lyric, I have a story and a moral, and it is my intention to improve.

So in this moment, I would like to wish you all a happy, healthy and higher-minded new era… but that moment is already gone.