today i want to scream at the sky
and pull it down upon my head,
to rage and rage and rage and rage
until consumed by self-conflagaration
that i may burn the world to a cinder
and not wonder to myself –

“where does the darkness come from
that seeks to consume men and women
in a parody of death come wandering?”

today wants fire and ash.

it is not your fiery presence
in the great proclamation of being
that is noticed and outstanding;

rather –

it is your silent heart’s absence,
your bleak, dark, black hole emptiness
that screams out as obvious and forlorn;

and you, you my friend are an empty space,
a vacuum of loving possibility
in the great and proud crowd of joy
that could have been
just a little
more
with you…

the thing is
when you start unbecoming,
when you slowly fade
from the minds and the eyes,
you stop believing
you ever existed,
and you were always
a figment of
your own imagination

even the great black wounds of the past
that hid the small, good things
heal over slowly like an iced window
revealing that there was still life
in the midst of the crashing death

Kudos to Morden Mayor Brandon Burley, council and staff who responded positively to requests from the organizors of the upcoming 1st Morden Pride event on June 22.

In committee of the whole this morning (June 10) council agreed to the request to hold the Pride Rally starting at Morden Park and ending at the Access Event Centre, giving access to power at both locations and permission to raise the Pride Flag at the Access Event Centre.

When asked if he had any concerns regarding the event Morden Police Chief Brad Neduzak stated he had none and there were no plans to increase police presence, essentially treating the event as they would any other community event.

Council made a point to mention they were aware of a possible counter-protest being organized.

In explaining the city and council’s position the mayor read sections of the Human Rights Act and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“It is our obligation to act in the best interest of all in our community,” said Burley. “We treat this as we would any other gathering. We are not permitted to act in a discriminatory fashion simply because we may or may not agree with it.”

After acknowledging the city had received numerous requests to deny or block the event the mayor stated “we have the moral obligation to follow these acts,” in reference to the Human Rights act.

Further to this Deptuty Mayor Nancy Penner mentioned the city’s policy of supporting diversity and inclusion and she will bring greetings from the city as the mayor will not be available due to a pre-scheduled travel commitment.

None of these approvals required a motion from council.

the great, the black slick
has consumed me, mostly,
swallowing nearly every part
save my gasping mouth
which breathes and screams
while breath and hate persist
until i drown or am pulled free.

unwilling, unable
what’s the difference?

“I can’t work with that person!”

“Why would you want anything to do with them?”

“There’s no way I am going to be involved in this project if they are part of the team.”

Etc, etc.

I’m sure at one point or another you have heard these statements/questions or variations on their theme.

People have a way of getting on people’s nerves and often it causes us to make business decisions based on personality.

One of the software companies I worked for once signed a deal with an American distributor for well over $100,000 (big for us). They were blunt with their assessment –

“It wasn’t that you had the best or most functional product,” they explained. “It was your people. You have amazing people.”

That is the kind of environment you want to foster because like it or not major, far-reaching decisions are often made on the basis of a personality.

Now here’s the thing. That may work out for you if you have amazing people but when you’re the one making the decision in the other direction why in the world would you limit yourself on the basis of someone else’s personality.

Repeat after me – “I do not have to like a person to work with them.”

Sure it makes life a LOT easier if you do but when you start making critical decisions on the basis of not wanting to work with so-and-so because they are a jerk, well, at the end of the day you are only hurting yourself and your organization.

Heck some of the best partnerships are made between people and organizations that despise each other. What do they have in common? Business acumen. They can look past personalities to the profit margins.

Hollywood is a great place to see this live and in action. Marilyn Monroe and Tony Curtis, Abbott and Costello, David Duchuvny and Gillian Anderson etc. None of them liked each other but they made it work for the bottom line. Professionals.

When a personality legitimately impacts the team then sure, you gather your evidence and make your case – but if it’s just two people who rub each other the wrong way, or even two businesses that cannot stand each other – do not let petty judgement and bickering get in the way of what makes sense.

Make it work.