Believe it or not, when we were young and growing up we decided that we could make a little money on the side by selling earthworms (night crawlers, really). I can't remember what the price was, but maybe my brother who reads this stuff religiously can remember better than I since he is in a less acute stage of senility.
We would go out in the night time when the grass lawns were wet, flashlight in hand and, on our hands and knees, we would snatch the worms and pull them out of their holes and drop them into a tin can. As a matter of act, we did not have to open the can of worms, we really never wanted to close it. Maybe because we are thinking about our worm cans, not cans of worms. There is a difference, you know. I am sure there is. I have a friend who comments on the material found on this blog who often cautions me about opening a can of worms by saying things that might get people upset. She wonders if I would be adept enough to put the lid back on without causing too much discomfort. Ah, poor lady. A can of worms is nothing but moral spaghetti. I eat it up.
It is always interesting to have situations in which the straight lines disappear and the wriggly ones seem to be taking over. I like to think that an agglomeration of moving parts is more fun to deal with than the more straightforward tug-o'-war, strength versus strength contest. I, in fact, find myself making some of these wriggly mixtures happen because some moral, legal and doctrinal discussions do us more good if they are cans of ideas rather than high speed, straight line games of "chicken."
So, consider this. Wriggle and writhe; twist and turn.
Hover and flutter; slip and slide.
Stretch and squeeze; shrink and swell.
Smoothe and slick, yet snot it's not.
For a worm, life in a can is a good bet;
Unlike a sardine, he won't get "et".
This comment,I love, from the lady who likes cans of worms:
ReplyDeletepaul, as i read your blog today, I cannot help but send you my reflections on its topic. As you have mentioned "a lady responding", I also feel it is good that I write back.
Now, I am not upset, mind you. My word of clarification is rooted on extensive years of experience confronting people- my clients- as the need be. So I am not intimidated by opening a can of worms. To the contrary, I thrive in this type of intervention. Double check your exit polls on my presentations the other night, please.
What I call " can of worms" in this context- the context of the written word-is proposing ideas, reflections, and comments out to the realms of outer space- as in a blog- subject to readers' state of mind, attitudes, background knowledge of the subject, etc. THAT is the configuration of an authentic can of worms when the writer is not given a fair chance to clarify, or restate his thoughts. In "public places", the blog, for example, the key is to tickle minds, so to speak, and to be open to different takes on a subject. When people do not have that two way forum opportunity too often it backfires in their conclusion that the writer is often opinionated or presents obscure topics the reader is not apt to discuss at the moment.
In conclusion, Paul do not step into a comment for the sake of writing a response. Rather, invite people to group discussions in person where time allows ides to flow and clarifications to stick.
Take care.
I hereby post the results of exit polls.
ReplyDeleteSpanish speaking: 3 persons: Dynamic and helpful for relations with family.
English speaking: 2 persons: Animated and frankly straightforward. I got a lot out of it.
You got a lot out of your can of worms.
One person, English speaking, said that she really "connected".
Sounds like good stuff to me.