Art tries to teach me a point or two about God

I was attending a seminar where Art Mele, my former employer was giving a lecture (about what I really don't know). I wasn't quite paying attention. So, in typical fashion, I was sure to be called upon to respond to a point he was making. It was something about God and His love, I guess, I dunno.

 

Well, I knew he was going to call on me, but I waited until he'd walked all the way through the audience, who were all seated at tables, and sat down next to me. He showed me the notes he was reading from. They were handwritten and not exactly clear. The writing was smudgy and a little incoherent. I guessed at the point, but was only partly right. He endeavored to make the point to me, but it just wasn't resonating.

Later we found ourselves at a dining spot overlooking an iconic building in Santa Monica, down near the pier. It was a two story brick building that had a candy store on one of its levels. I noticed smoke and a ladder leaned up against the building. Art wasn't paying attention. He was still going on about the point he'd been trying to make earlier. I pointed out the fire to him. 

 

"They are finally burning down that old building," I said. 

 

He seemed unconcerned. I stared at the beautiful lights of both the fire and the neon store signs and decorations. It was a perfect picture of beauty and destruction, a single moment where both could exist, before the fire took the building and its lighting with it.

Earlier, while I had been waiting for Art's lecture to begin, I was discussing the finer points of Gun 'n' Roses live performances with my dad. I guess we had both seen the seen the same concert and found them to be tolerable, which was surprising since we were both of the same opinion that they generally suck. That's about it.