WEBVTT

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In the early '70s, for several
years, I lived part of the year

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down in the mountains in
Chiapas, in Southern Mexico,

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near the Guatemala border.

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It was one of the
dreams of my life

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to be surrounded by Indians.

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And I noticed while I was
there that there were myths.

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I was also surrounded
by anthropologists.

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And we talked.

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I worked with them.

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And we were working with
Indian myths all the time.

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It was very, very heady stuff.

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It was wonderful.

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But I noticed that there
were myths about almost all

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creatures you could think of.

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But the insects
didn't do so well.

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And I thought this was
strange, considering the role

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that insects played in
most people's lives.

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And, in particular, there
was nothing about fleas.

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Now, how are going
to overlook fleas?

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I mean, if you
went to the movies,

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the fleas got there first.

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And they kept persuading
you that you'd better

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be sitting in another seat,
wherever you were sitting.

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And the men on the
mountains carried everything

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with tumplines, of course.

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And one of the ways of
referring to themselves

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was as carrying men.

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So, I wrote a poem about a flea
as a carrying man, you see.

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"A Flea's Carrying Words"
is the title of the poem.

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"A flea is carrying
a bag of diseases.

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And he says, as he goes,
these I did not make myself.

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We don't all have
the same gifts.

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Beginning isn't everything.

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I don't even know who made them.

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I don't know who'll use them.

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I don't use them myself.

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I just do what's in front
of me, as I'm supposed to.

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I carry them.

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Nobody likes me.

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Nobody wants to
change places with me.

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But I don't mind.

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I get away, bag and all.

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Something needs me.

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Everything needs me.

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I need myself.

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And the fire is my father."

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