WHO IS JAMES YOUNG ?
(Photo of and by the author)
I wish no one would assume anything about me. I don’t follow the usual paths of other people. I think I would describe me as convoluted. When I was a baby Mom called me Jimmy. As I got older it became Jim. Maybe I’m a fool but I just love it when people address me using my name. I’m almost 81 and I can’t believe it because my mind feels like 25. How did it happen so fast. I eat a litany of super foods to try to keep my brain clean and working good and so far so good.
Life has beat me up and kicked me hard but damnit, I am a hard survivor and as strange as this may sound, I don’t regret any of it and it gives me plenty to write poetry about.
What a wonder it would be if we could hit a rewind button and play back our lives just like a recorded television show. Would we do that if we could or would it be such a “loaded” journey that we could lose our mind a little, having all of those emotionally charged life events repeating and coming at us at once.
I know it doesn’t really matter, but personally I am straight.. Us humans put so damn much importance on that aspect of who we are. we can be so judgemental when it has no bearing on anything . I don’t want people to judge me in a negative way about this. . Sometimes I am way into emotional feelings much more than other men. I adore the feeling of being emotional.. You might say I am an emotional junkie for the flood of oxytocin I get. Nobody knows what up beautiful journey it is to explore emotional except a writer. I do everything I can to explore everything emotional. I know I’m treading where some people can’t go because they are afraid of feeling pain or they just don’t want to step out of their comfort zone. They may not want to relive things.I’m a writer as such I have a really good memory about my life events and I am able to reflect on them and look at every facet of those events like it was a diamond, and write about it.
Several loves have come my way in this life and I feel respect and distant love feelings and I hope I was a gentleman when we had to part ways but I suspect some times it was painful for both of us. I still have tears . I could list a few names and I would probably start getting pretty emotional about it . But ,that’s another story. I fell in love with Joan and we have been together almost 50 years and I am so proud of that. I know this is not common and I don’t take it for granted ever. We have a very special kind of love and I feel uncommonly lucky
I’m not a bad guy, what you see is what you get. I have no secret agenda or Nefarious plot. All I want to do is explore your artful mind and appreciate the artist that you are with genuine kudos. Little do you know that I wouldn’t have anything to do with you if I didn’t respect your writings because that’s just who I am. I don’t lie to people. If you ask me a question like-how do you like my poem, I will tell you if I think it is good or if it stinks. I don’t get many friends that way but who wants those anyway. I only have a very few good friends and I love them fiercely.
I’m more likely to want you for a friend if you are a woman because quite frankly I don’t like men. I can’t even talk to men because I get so mad. Every time I turn on the news, some man has done some evil in the world.
I only want to talk to women. It’s not about sex, so please never think that….Women have better brains. Something inside of me goes a little crazy what I see a woman being abused in any way. I know it’s just me, I know that women are strong and can stand on their own 2 feet without my help, it’s just who I am. It’s interesting how society allows women to be put down. I love strong women, no matter how weak physically .
Men are idiots automatically in my mind and they are pretty much preoccupied with hiding who they really are, full of superstition, full of lies, quick to put you down to make themselves seem more important.I know for a fact that testosterone makes men into fools, I’m a man.
If you talk emotion to a man, you can watch his eyes glaze over and assume the thousand yard stare. When you talk emotion to a woman she always knows what you’re talking about and replies in kind. As a poet and an aspiring music writer I only have a casual interest in a man’s opinion about what I write or say.I usually don’t even read poetry or articles written by a man.There are a few men in my life whose opinion I value greatly. I’m thinking of my brother Bob. When he tells me he likes my poetry, you have no idea how I swell with pride.
A happier person you have never seen in your life than me. Every day is filled with joy, love and laughter and compassion and empathy and tears of joy, and tears of joy in trying to achieve some kind of beauty in trying like Hell to be some kind of a wordsmith.
At my age, I know it could be lights out at any moment. That doesn’t really bother me very much because I’m so loving what I’m doing every day. I finally found a sort of personal paradise in writing things. Quite frankly, I find this very exciting and not depressing at all to be old. I feel like I’m on the cutting edge or walking a tight wire. It’s exciting and thrilling every day. You know how it’s better for an artist to suffer to create a masterpiece. I feel that walking the tight wire of life at this age is an advantage as well and one that a lot of other people don’t have. An added perspective if you will.
This is the sum total of what I’m interested in. Keeping Joan and I as healthy as possible by making sure we eat all organic super foods, having wonderful friends with beautiful minds and no evil vibes, listening to beautiful music, reading beautiful poetry and stories, trying to write music, poems short stories and whatever, and feelings that wonderful joy of being a writer every day and loving every day as a treasure.
It’s been nice chatting with you, I gotta go. I’m listening to Taylor Swift’s midnight album and I’m in seventh heaven and I’ve got some serious writing to do.
