Heaven
Songwriters: David BYRNE and Jerry HARRISON
Everyone is trying to get to the bar
The name of the bar, the bar is called heaven
The band in heaven, they play my favourite song
Play it one more time, play it all night long
Heaven, heaven is a place, a place where nothing, nothing ever happens
Heaven, heaven is a place, a place where nothing, nothing ever happens
There is a party, everyone is there
Everyone will leave at exactly the same time
When this party's over, it will start again
It will not be any different, it will be exactly the same
Heaven, heaven is a place, a place where nothing, nothing ever happens
When this kiss is over it will start again
It will not be any different, it will be exactly the same
It's hard to imagine that nothing at all could be so exciting, could be this much fun
Heaven, heaven is a place, a place where nothing, nothing ever happens
Heaven, heaven is a place, a place where nothing, nothing ever happens
In this sleepy little town, I often leave my doors unlocked. In the rare instances where the possibility of danger has presented in this first half year of living in Holly Springs, it has never yet felt like a risk of being robbed or assaulted. The vibe is, if not "gentle", "settled". It's like Heaven: a place where nothing, nothing ever happens.
When I feel fear, it is a largely undefined panic about dying alone here or making nothing here or finding nothing here. A fear of being trapped in Heaven.
The town is isolated. Very little news of anywhere else seeps in. There are computers in the library but Internet access is restricted; there are some places in the Web patrons are not allowed to visit. Lots of light fiction -- romance and other fantasy -- and Civil War-related books and DVDs. The library is not open on Sunday.If there exists any complaint among residents about the isolation, it is not widespread. Most people seem OK with not knowing what's going on in the world beyond the town limits.There's more community interest in a "ball game" (doesn't matter what kind of "ball") at the Christian Academy this weekend than in the confirmation of a new U.S. secretary of defense.
A superficial intimacy characterizes Holly Springs: everyone knows your name, knows your "people"...where you went to (high) school...where you go to church. Longtime residents have a deeper intimacy with their historical knowing of the place and the families who live here. I have heard a few of these stories but rarely direct from the person who lived it; these stories usually come secondhand. It feels like another kind of isolation or separation -- isolation from the past as well as the present.
You can find peanuts and headache powders here 365 days a year. There are lots of churches. There is no place to buy a New York Times or knitting needles. No place to get a VW serviced. There's no place to sit at a cafe table and sip a glass of wine. There's no place to buy a pair of shoes (okay....there is a Wal-Mart on the edge of town but, of the prior list, only the shoes are available at Wal-Mart.)
There's no theater -- movie or otherwise. There's no bookstore.
In their interactions with me, community members are...how to describe it...
Kind: having, showing or proceeding from benevolence
No; implies an intention and awareness that doesn't fit my general experience of this place. Guests who brought gifts to the holiday housewarming were possibly motivated by Kindness -- and perhaps conventions of "etiquette" as well. But "kind" it is not how I would describe the basic nature of Holly Springs.
Nice: pleasing, agreeable, delightful
No; implies a satisfaction, an agreement and a pleasurable sensation that are mostly absent from my social experience. On the surface there are smiles, graceful gestures, smooth silky voice timbre; and yet my soul is rarely stirred during a social exchange. The landscape, the wildlife and flora and fauna are frequently pleasing, agreeable and sometimes even delightful.
Cordial: [This was the word I assumed would fit. And then I looked it up]: courteous and gracious; friendly; warm: a cordial reception; 2. invigorating the heart; stimulating; 3. sincere; heartfelt and discovered
No.
Polite: showing good manners toward others in behavior and speech; courteous; civil
Civil: Marked by satisfactory (or especially minimal) adherence to social conventions and sufficient but not noteworthy consideration for others
Yes. These last two come closest. Notwithstanding a widespread tendency to show up late for appointments, not return phone calls, fail to follow-through on suggestion/invitation/etc and blithe trampling of other-than-Christian perspectives, Holly Springs is a polite and civil place.
Some think "polite" and "civil" will make a place "safe."
As a person who questions the possibility of making anywhere totally safe through behavior alone, I call that viewpoint absurd.
As a six-month resident of the polite and civil town of Holly Springs, I can testify that polite and civil have turned the place into "Heaven... a place where nothing, nothing ever happens" which is astonishing: the way Heaven happens now
and then you die
and get some more Heaven.
