It Only Takes One ....

   

The Cranston fire begins and by nightfall reached 7,500 acres.

 

This past few days have been hot in Palm Springs, no, let me rephrase that, it's been HELL! Days of 118º, 119º and finally 120º with unusual humidity have pretty much sapped the energy of just about everybody leaving in its place a kind ennui that is hard to snap. I even have to rouse my poor dog to go out and do her duty!

     Walking my dog, this morning at 5 a.m., through the smoke and ash it was 88º, down from the 93º of the day before. After a certain point, hot is HOT! Barely able to see the mountains to the west because of the smoke, I began to reflect walking towards them the effect one person has on our lives.

      This fire had been started the day before by a single man who was seen and caught after throwing three incendiary devices from his car. Not even a resident of the community he was forcing to flee, his actions caused in it's wake the evacuation of thousands, houses being lost and untold damage to the forest in this mountain eerie that is often a refuge for those that live in the desert below.

All highways in and out of the mountains were closed.
All highways are two lane, twisty, winding roads.

   His actions made me reflect on the actions that one person can cause and the consequences they set in motion.

   One of the first person's that came to mind was Alexander the Great. Through his energy and force of character he conquered, in his time, most of the known world. With his actions, he set in motion a force needing thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands to make his actions take flight. What he started changed history, changed the world. It ALL started with just Alexander, one man.

     There are many historical figures that through their actions and energy have caused great movements in history. Julius Caesar, Christ, Mohammed, Genghis  Khan, Charlemagne, Napoleon, our own George Washington, Queen Victoria, Karl Marx, Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mao, Winston Churchill, FDR, John F. Kennedy, Ho Chi Minh, Martin Luther King; historical personages that left their mark on the world changing it in ways barely imagined in their own time.

     In the world of business there are many figures that have probably eclipsed elected figures. The Medici, the Lords of England with their far-flung empires, The East India Company, the Astors and Vanderbilts, the Mellons, J.P. Morgans, Rockefellers, Andrew Carnegie, men that all changed the world of commerce and oftentimes the directions of their very nations. In our own times consider what people like Bill Gates, Bill Grove an immigrant that founded Intel, Jerry Yang, founder of Yahoo, Wozniac and Jobs co-founders of Apple Computer, the world's most valuable company, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook,Stever Bezos, founder of Amazon and now the world's wealthiest person .... have created.

     All it takes is one, sometimes two.

    What is not understood though is that while one or two figures have a creation, a vision, a message, for it to succeed they need followers, believers. While the person that started this fire most likely acted alone, he has fellow fire-starters that think much the same way he did. A firemen in this county was recently convicted and sent to jail for doing the same thing. His reason? More fires meant more days of work. We may never know the why, but we need to be vigilant to reduce another such action.

     A great leader, a single person, can cause many to follow them and their vision. That vision can be for the benefit of all or harm many profiting only a few. History is filled with these figures. They can be so wonderful creating a form of admiration they are forever admired or so vile as to inspire continuing revulsion. The sad part, even these people, horrible as they may be, still are remembered. However, that is not all bad. They set the standard for what we as a people should never want or ever follow. They remain the signposts of what one person can do and show us the path that should never be followed.

     You may wonder how can such vile actions be considered art. They may not be art for most but these actions are definitely a form of design, just not one most people would ever consider. Make no doubt, every one of the actions required to start a fire were done with a very definite design. For a people, a country or a world to survive the impulses of the "one" at the expense of the many, we need to be vigilant. Vigilant for evil as well as for goodness, but even more vigilant to distinguish between the two.

Thank you for reading my blog. I invite you to take the time to read earlier blogs where my emphasis is to explore the ways art and design affects our daily lives ... and always has. I share with you what inspires me with the hope that it will inspire you as well. Comments are always welcomed! 

Be sure to check my ETSY store ... KrugsStudio.etsy.com. I am adding many new and exciting, collectible birdhouses and craft items. Many of the items talked about here will be for sale there!