Here's the first draft of my homage to Howard Luck Gossage for my class at SVC with instructor Casey Brewer. I will edit this as I go.
Your happiness demands your pursuit.
Butlers fly to your aid!
During these times of dwindling economic advancement, good gentle persons often find themselves in the unpleasant quandary of having to decide between what they Want and what they Need. Food, air and shelter always seem to top the list of our most elementary needs but did our ancestors scratch and scrape out of the primordial ooze all those millions of years ago only for their future progeny to scratch and scrape and settle for what was necessary? What of the requirements of our hearts and souls? The American founding forefathers knew that having our needs met was not enough: ‘Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’-these are not idle words. John Adams, our second president, offered this subtle call to action: “I must study politics and war so that my sons will have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons must study navigation, commerce and agriculture so that their children will have the right to study poetry and painting and music.” Hear, hear, President Adams! Hear, hear! Poetry, painting and music, indeed! And let us add The Theatre, the Opera House, The Ballet. Of course! Why not Cycling, Hiking or Mountain Climbing? What else might we add to the list? A simple test from Carlos Castenada: “Does this path have a heart? If it does, then the path is good. If it doesn’t, it is of no use.” And so here you are, at the brink of your heart’s desire, ready to plunge into the pursuit of your happiness and yet again and again you are called back by the murky, muttering voice of household duty and obligation. “Write the sonnet, of course,” it says “But, mind! The rose garden needs tending.” “Forge that raging river!” it purrs, “Oh, but alas! The sitting room will not dust itself!” So you postpone your ambitions until they are nothing more than carnival glass baubles, locked away in a ill-remembered jewelry box. Did John Adams and his brethren study war and politics for naught?It is at this daunting tipping point that the OnStar Corporation (Detroit, Mich.) offers you a chance for reprieve from the certain deathbed of regrets that await you. As faithful OnStar subscribers, you have entrusted a measure of your family’s well-being and safety to us. Should you require aid along a desolate highway, you know you need only call. If the oil in your sedan were to fall to an insufficient level, you would expect an electronic mail indicating the deficiency. You are accustomed to abandoning the mundane aspects of driving to us, leaving you to pursue your happiness: The Drive.
It is in this spirit that we offer you the chance to happily chase your pursuits, leaving to us, once again, the drudgery of household chores. To that end, The OnStar Corporation proudly announces the ‘Win the Services of an English butler for a Year’ Promotional Contest, exclusively for its current subscribers. To enter, simply write a short essay (no more than 200 words) telling us what happiness you would pursue were you to have access to a genuine English butler* who could relieve you from the never-ending deluge of domestic tasks. Login to your OnStar account before August 31st, click on the ‘A Call for Butlers’ link and you may submit your entry there. A mishmosh of legal rules and qualifiers are available at the site as well. Please note: This is not a contest for the lazy or the uninspired; if you are one of the 50 chosen winners, a blog will be set up in your name and we would encourage you to fill it regularly with your written, photographic and video accounts.
Choose the hearty path.
We’ll take care of the laundry.
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