Many people have either heard or read something created by the American artist Shel Silverstein (1930-1999). Perhaps you’ve heard Johnny Cash sing the Shel Silverstein song “A Boy Named Sue”. Maybe you cried when you got to the end of “The Giving Tree.” Maybe you stopped crying when you got to the end of “The Missing Piece.”

It takes a village of ations

I am in need of Shel Silverstein’s creativity and happiness now. The Free School of the New Message from God is currently studying the revelation “The Race to Save Human Civilization.” I have already written of the unusual circumstances under which this revelation was received. It is one of two revelations to be received in the city of Aleppo, Syria. I plan on writing a post about this teaching, but now I am in need of poetry to even approach the subject. I recalled this poem by Shel Silverstein as I pondered. It appears in the book “Where the Sidewalk Ends.”

If we meet and I say, “Hi,”

That’s a salutation.

If you ask me how I feel,

That’s consideration.

If we stop and talk awhile,

That’s a conversation.

If we understand each other,

That’s communication.

If we argue, scream and fight,

That’s an altercation.

If later we apologize,

That’s reconciliation.

If we help each other home,

That’s cooperation.

And all these ations added up

Make civilization.

(And if I say this is a wonderful poem,

Is that exaggeration?)

It takes a village of ations, to make a civilization. Do we need altercations? So it would seem. But we need a vigorous reconciliation to quickly follow every vigorous altercation. Of such I dream. I dream that we will help each other home. And I mean that, without exaggeration!

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Welcome to Mystery of Ascension! We are students and advocates of the the New Message from God. We are members of a worldwide community. We seek to assist the world in successfully navigating difficult times ahead. We seek to assist the world in successfully emerging into a greater community of intelligent life. You will also find some poetry. Find out more about us here. Contact us here.