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RidgeBit Parts
I played bit parts in my reality.
Tho destined for a leading role,
I lacked duplicity.
A common denominator
to those who make the serious dough.
Still, I did ok,
thanks to my supporting cast,
who helped me carry the show.
I made a few rewrites along the way,
trying to strengthen the plot.
But all in all, I feel very lucky
to have had the parts I got.
If I artfully apply my craft,
I might still land a better role.
One that will help me realize
my last and final goal.
A part in the epic odyssey
entitled
"The Happiness Of Our Progeny".
Not just a bit part,
but a strong supporting role.
A contribution of consequence,
and comfort before the bells toll.
I believe all sincere efforts have value.
As insignificant as our parts might be,
they are all integral pieces of the whole,
and their absence wouldst diminish thee.
This was inspired by Robert Jordan, the protagonist in Hemingway's "For Whom The Bells Tolls" whose goals served a higher ideal than his own.
I have included John Donne's captivating original quotation from a work in which he explores the interconnectedness of humanity because of it's influence for Hemingway and because it's just freaking wonderful.
John Donne (1572-1631)
"Perchance he for whom this bell tolls may be so ill, as that he knows not it tolls for him; and perchance I may think myself so much better than I am, as that they who are about me, and see my state, may have caused it to toll for me, and I know not that. No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee."