Give and Take

Two names topped the news this morning. After a long and celebrated career as a bluegrass musician–eight Grammys including the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004–Doc  Watson was dead at 89.

On the other hand, Donald Trump dredged up the claim that President Obama was not a native citizen, but had been "born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia", despite the fact that this urban legend, popular with Republicans, has been thoroughly discredited. 

There's a lesson here...

Doc Watson was an authentic musical pioneer. Despite his humble birth and blindness, he created a unique guitar style, shared his talent with others, and raised universal awareness for an obscure genre of genuine American music. He was rightly described as a national treasure.

Donald Trump is a real estate mogul and a buffoon. He is himself humorless but a boundless source of laughter for others. He has lots of money but little understanding of true value. Trump is simply a national joke.

Watson's life is a testimony to the human spirit, to how much can be made from so little when God gets it right. Trump doesn't have a life, but he is living proof that you don't have to be a genius to become rich.

The lesson: If you want to get your name in the news, either (1) give the world your very best or (2) with both hands, take all you can get and behave foolishly.

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