A Little History

Today is warm in San Francisco. The fog burned off early and Dani and I went garage sale hunting. We ended up in the richest parts of San Francisco trying to find a sale where we could buy some, dirt cheap, rich people stuff. We had no luck. We did have a good time doing it and ran in to some cool shop owners when our garage sale hunt went bad and it turned in to antiquing.
We found a shop with some old furniture and lamps. The owner was a wild haired dealer with stories from 33 years of collecting. He seemed fascinating and we immediately liked each other. He told me to see a movie called “My Best Friend,” a French film about antique collectors. In exchange I recommended that he see a film called “The Rape of Europa.” In this documentary they chronicle the movement and mass thieving of Europe’s art and antiquities by Hitler and the Nazi’s. It is an uplifting story of how the human race can come together and save history.
I felt that this movie was contradictory to the times in which we currently live. I don’t know why the idea of the Allies saving art seems so foreign. I guess because we are witnessing the destruction of so many things by corporations, governments and extremists. Hitler stole the art of Europe so blatantly. Now, it is disguised, hidden from the public. CNN doesn’t cover it unless it has a car chase or some senator is in the bathroom with a prostitute. What’s more important?

In their eyes they have glow.
Theres are great distances between their hands and thoughts
Each of their actions only for work
The gift of nothingness gone for the sake of their mortgage
A tattered pair of long underwear and overalls
Wrinkles on their eyes watching their books burn
Flames reaching for the sky
Fire magnified in their eyes reflecting the rage
If they burn our history than we will have to live it again and again
The anguish of hell on earth, revisited
Walking in circles watching
Witnessing again what already happened

James