Dad's World

Maybe Ill just turn my beautiful experience over to my dad altogether!! He's terrific.

Dear Vivi,
The theft of your wallet is very discouraging. The amazing
coincidence of Ariel's walking onto your car on the train late at night,
though, is a reminder that the people who know you do care about you and do
reward the time and attention you invest in them. Your excellent blog entry
juxtaposes three instances of theft, which are shocking exactly because the
thieves care nothing for the impact their actions have on the lives of
others, NOT because the thieves want to have an adverse impact. The spyware
hacker, the crooked stylist, and the eurotrash cocaine/meth addict who stole
your wallet, all live imprisoned in a selfhood that has no natural
connection with the lives around them. They view the outside world, when
they are conscious of it at all, with the mixture of fear and resentment
that paralyzed the hatcheck woman. Just imagine; you actually wanted to
talk to her about something she did! The realization that there was a world
beyond her own petty plans and solipsistic imaginings was obviously
something she couldn't handle, so the only response she was capable of was
flight. By wading into the world of fashion, which is by definition a world
of surfaces only, you are exposing yourself to a higher-than-normal danger
of encountering such behavior, so you have to defend yourself accordingly.
Of course, you approach what you do as art, as a medium of expression, and
as a means to realize your own drive to improve the lives of others.
Surely, you are not alone in this, but neither are you in any sort of
majority. Most people you encounter do not have the education or the
upbringing that allows them to open themselves to others, or to enter the
lives of others without fear. One hopes that, from time to time, the
accident of encountering you will bring a glimmer of a hope of something
better into the life of such a person, and allow them to open themselves to
love, but, in your Zayde's immortal words, "Keep your hopes high, and your
expectations low."

Love,

Dad
Exes and Ohs