Eyes Wide Open

Working with teenagers for a living creates a mercury-rising-in-Death-Valley-heat intolerance for excuse-making; there are only so many times a person can handle hearing, "But THEY did it FIRST!" in a grasp for absolution. One begins to understand the worn-out sayings about friends jumping off bridges. The sad thing is that this is the kind of reaction most of us-- and I'm including myself here-- revert to when we are called on to change our actions.

There was a story on a local news station tonight about my community considering banning plastic bags in an effort to prevent waste; a conversation that is happening in a number of cities. One woman contributed the comment, "I know it's good for the environment, but everybody is already wasting," to the affect that we shouldn't ban them.  Not only did this make my mercury spike, but reminded me of two lines in the Gotye song "Eyes Wide Open":

But it was like to stop consuming's to stop being human 

And why'd I make a change if you won't?

It wasn't until I watched the music video a few weeks ago that I considered "Eyes Wide Open"  as a song not about human relationships, but a song about the environment. The post-apocolypt in me thinks Gotye's got it right.

Some people offered up answers (questions)  

We made out like we heard  

They were only words  

They didn't add up  

To a change in the way we were living  

And the saddest thing 

Is all of it could have been avoided
 

But it was like to stop consuming's to stop being human  

And why'd I make a change if you won't?  

We're all in the same boat  

Staying afloat for the moment

We walk the plank with our eyes wide open... 

Let's care enough about each other and the world to be honest about our negative habits.