"self-help and what is"

A piece of froth I sent off to the local newspaper yesterday. I doubt if they'll print it, so I think I'll put it here:

SELF-HELP AND WHAT IS

When it comes to the wondrous world of "self help," nothing beats making a little room for what is.

This may be easier said than done, but maybe it's worth a shot since what is, is, after all, what is.

What flummoxes this ability that everybody has is the willingness to put endless amounts of frosting on what is already a perfectly good cake.

A kiss or a laugh or a cold wind may be perfectly obvious and complete, but then, sure enough, I need to gussy it up ... as for example, by writing about it.

In academia, the rule still applies -- "publish or perish." The intelligence and capabilities of the individual may be perfectly apparent in the classroom he or she presides over, but then there's that other stuff that needs to be tacked on. The other stuff: "See? I really am intelligent and capable!"

In conversation, a topic may be earnest or silly, but is the topic really the topic or is there "other stuff" going on? "Other stuff," as in what I think about the topic and how that reflects on me and how well or poorly my friends may think of me on account of the other stuff I ice the topic with?

There is nothing wrong or naughty about icing the cake of what is. Its only difficulty lies in the fact that the habit of icing the cake can blind anyone to the pure and relaxed enjoyment that might come from what is.

I get so busy giving my sainted opinion or analysis of a situation that I lose track of what the situation actually is... a Facebook mentality, you might say.

A kiss.

A laugh.

A cold wind.

Does it get any better than that?

Really?

Check it out.