It’s just another of many reminders that the “Holy City” is a nice chunk of paradise.

 As a 71-year-old financially secure psychologist answering mostly to myself, I can’t help but think I am free to retire there anytime I wish.

I don’t wish. 

I don’t wish because I love my home in Asheville.

Sure, there are a lot of transplanted neural divergents, convoluted values and control-obsessed liberals messing up my city, but that’s OK. I cause them far more pain than they cause me.

Besides, I also don’t wish because I love my work, and can’t imagine walking away from the opportunity to participate in so many special lives involving so many special moments.

Charleston sunsets, beaches, culinary opportunities and other nice things don’t compete.

One of the extra special things about what I do is the opportunity to learn from people.

I learn helpful things every day – without exception.

When you add up 48 years of helpful things, one would have to be terribly jaded not to be really, really grateful.

When there’s that much opportunity to learn and grow with people, one naturally drifts to learning from other exposures.

This past week, my goldfish taught me something.

Perched right beside my office computer is my small goldfish tank.

For years I’ve had this fish recovery thing going on.

Periodically, I go to the local pet store and purchase what they call “feeder fish.” 

Feeder fish are little goldfish that people buy to serve to their bigger fish.

It’s a circle of life thing.

I like to rescue feeder fish from a certain and probably violent death.

I put the little guys in my office tank and take care of them for four months or so.

At that point, when they are bigger and have had a fair chance at life, I transfer them to my backyard fish pond and let them have a chance at more of the same.

What with raccoons, bears, birds and other predators, becoming feeder fish once again is a 50-50 possibility.

I can only control what I can.

The other day my latest draft of feeder fish reminded me of something.

I’ve had this batch about two weeks, and I dependably have fed them three to four times a day, six days a week.

They fast on Sunday.

Along the way I’ve noticed that every time I sit down at my computer, my goldfish swarm to my side of the tank and race up and down imploring for me to feed them.

What’s the life lesson my little feeder buddies are giving me? It’s that dependency is a conditioned response, and once it is in place, it is next to impossible to extinguish.

Why is that important? Because people and goldfish have much in common.

When well-intended politicians create dependencies on government, they are similarly setting people up as prey for others who may not be so well intentioned.

I like to save feeder fish. Politicians like to save people.

We both ignore the law of unintended consequences.

Unfortunately, we have a lot of trained goldfish people in our culture who, in turn, have trained our politicians to be dependable feeders. 

You know, sort of like my goldfish have trained their rescuer to be their feeder.

In my mind, I can hear their squeaky little fish voices saying something like, “Hey wonderful rescue person. Thank you for saving us. Thank you for feeding us. We love you! Now, quit all that typing nonsense and feed us some flakes!”

But just like my goldfish do not recognize that they are selling their little cold-blooded souls to me, dependency-prone voters do not know they are selling their little needy souls to politicians.

Feeding my fish is not a problem for me. I can afford the fish flakes, and I don’t mind the seconds it takes to sprinkle my fish into their happy place.

Politicians, on the other hand, don’t buy their sprinkles. They take them from one group of people and give them to another group of people of their choosing.

That’s bad, but what’s worse, is that now, locally as surely as in Washington, they borrow amazing amounts of money to provide sprinkles.

What happens when we (1) run out of money (2) run out of money to borrow and (3) run out of money to pay back what we have borrowed?

Welcome to 21st century America.

You and I can’t do anything about the goldfish-like dependencies of so many of our fellow citizens or the politicians who secure their role in Washington by doling out fish food.

We can do something about whether we participate.

People make poor pets....