Selling Your Soul to the Status Quo

Want to gain fame and fortune?
Sell your soul to the status quo.
Don’t mind slaving away everyday
to support you and your family?
Your body’s been sold to the status quo,
But, your soul can still be your own.

I once knew a custodian
He was sad about his menial job…
He wished he could contribute more…
But, then he started talking about music…
How he spent nights practicing
And weekends doing gigs.
His sadness slipped away to endless energy
and awe inspiring and all consuming smile.
His body had been sold to the status quo,
but his work, unappreciated by others,
uplifted the souls of those in the building.
On nights and weekends, his soul
uplifted those who played, listened,
and danced.

Today, my physical therapist asked if I’d
gone to other physical therapists.
Said he couldn’t stand the constraints
of the physical therapy status quo.
It was rigid, stale, and lifeless.
It ate his soul and spat out little satisfaction.
So, he found a fringy approach to PT…
to working with people whose bodies
have been tortured by the status quo.

Increasingly, the status quo provides
no support for imagination, creativity…
no space and time for caring about
and for ourselves, our families, our
friends, and countless others who
need even a kind word.

Bodies compensate for bad habits and
injuries — both physical and mental.
He works with the body as sets of
interdependent relationships.
He pokes and prods the relationships,
Probes the dynamics,
And restores the reciprocity
In the relationships.

People who’ve climbed the ladders
of success in the status quo
May have gained fame and fortune
In their little corner of the status quo,
But, what price has been paid?
Where’s the breathing room?
Where’s the flexibility to stretch
into unknown divergences?
Where’s the space to relax, breathe,
and foster old and new relationships?
Where’s the time to look at things
from different perspectives, and
play with new ideas and approaches?

The status quo doesn’t care for
bodies and souls.
The status quo just needs bodies
as zombie workers and maintainers.
The status quo just needs souls
for the energy to maintain itself.

~ @ 2024 by Jeffrey W. Bloom (May 14)

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