Sunday, January 27, 2019

The Word from the Corner - Jean-Paul-Fozzy-Bear Sartre

The Word from the Corner
Posted on North Andover Poets Corner 01-27-2019
https://www.facebook.com/groups/northandoverpoets/permalink/1005932096263714/

No poem today. Just a story, remembering a good friend.

What is Life?

I was thinking about my late friend, the philosopher Jean-Paul-Fozzy-Bear Sartre. Of course you’ve heard of him. The name just trips off the tongue – Jean-Paul-Fozzy-Bear Sartre. I remember how he pondered the deep questions of life, meaning…and leftovers.

I remember when he asked me that existential question “What are we to do if life serves us nothing but cold leftovers? How are we to respond? How are we to live?”

Well, I remember, he looked at me and said something that stuck with me - “The cold leftovers given to us by life can leave us cold and empty, or we can look at them and say, ‘Hey, how nice, someone cooked! I’ll warm it up. Those vegan meatballs look delicious. I think they’re in curry sauce.’”

Those words changed my life. So if life serves you nothing but cold leftovers, remember to keep his words in mind: “How nice, someone cooked! I’ll warm it up.” May it bring you solace.

PS It's hard to find a good picture that captures the man (or bear as some have called him) so I'm sharing two that capture the two aspects of his essence.




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