Mar
Lizardly Counsel
Maybe you remember the old cartoon with Tooter Turtle and Mr. Wizard the Lizard. It was a featurette in the King Leonardo cartoon show. Each episode, the Turttle wanted to try to be being someone new. The wizard granted his wish. Inevitably, Tooter Turtle got into a serious jam. The Wizard would bring him back with the words Drizzle, Drazzle, Druzzle, Drome, time for this one to come home. The lizardly Wizard would then give the Turtle a little lecture that went something like this:
“Be what you is, not what you is not. Folks that what is, is the happiest lot.”
As children, most folks had great ideas of what they would like to be. How many of us wanted to be a fireman or policeman or great leader? And how many of us settled into a more mundane yet satisfying life? Nonetheless, the children of my generation had all the accessories necessary to pretend to be anything new wanted. Toymakers produced the accouterments for being a cowboy, soldier, super spy, spaceman, and almost any other dream at the time.
Children can afford the momentary desires to be someone else. Adults cannot do so easily. Maintaining a false identity often carries a heavy price. Many an operative, spy and undercover policeman has regretted his secret life. One thing that often happens is that they come to like one or two of the people against whom they are working. The operative can never reveal his true nature to this friend, and often has to continue working against him. This is but one of the many hazards of leading a dual life.
Whether it is spying or tricking or just pumping up one’s ego, living a pretense is at best uncomfortable, and at worst regrettable. It is in our nature to live best when we live as we are. Mr. Wizard the Lizard was right. People who are true to themselves are the happiest lot.
