DUST IN THE WIND

It’s dusting time in our house again, and Hazel’s nowhere to be found. Sometimes I believe she went “union” on us. We rely on Hazel exclusively to keep dust off furniture and often have her clean vehicles when they need a little TLC (tender loving care). They generally get dusty, not dirty, like in Alaska.

Hazel is not a real person, unlike the housekeeper of the same name featured in an early 1960s television sitcom starring Shirley Booth. Our Hazel is an authentic ostrich-feather duster like the one I used as a stocker at a grocery store. The fluffy feathers on a stick were always kept in a back pocket back then.

Dust in Lake Havasu City can be bad at times, with dusting becoming a weekly ritual if not daily. Having bad allergies to Arizona dust and pollen, Joleen is generally the one putting Hazel through the wringer, while my main household task is Vacuum Master. On occasion, you’ll find me dusting while holding my breath.

Dust in this city isn’t as bad as it was when we lived in Lubbock, Texas. My brother and I were assigned the dreadful chore during summer months to daily dust and vacuum our trailer home. Dust in Lubbock is red, and when a wind storm passed through, everything was covered, despite doors and windows being shut.

How it got in is still a mystery to me, and even now that we live in a house, it makes no difference. I’ve opened cardboard boxes sealed shut for years and found trace amounts of dust inside, and picture frames, too.

In 1977, the rock group Kansas released a tune called “Dust in the Wind.” Each time I hear it on the radio, I get a reminder to check our coffee table for the stuff, as this heavy piece of furniture seems to be the central dust magnet in our home.

How this song came to be is an interesting story.  “Dust in the Wind” was written by Kerry Livgren, one of the founding members of Kansas. The inspiration for the song came when Livgren was experimenting with a fingerpicking exercise on his guitar, which his wife encouraged him to turn into a full composition.

The lyrics reflect a philosophical perspective on life’s fleeting nature, influenced by Livgren’s readings in existentialism and the phrase “all we are is dust in the wind.” Bible verses 3:20 and 12:7 in Ecclesiastes helped to kindle his thoughts. The song ultimately became one of Kansas’s most iconic hits, resonating with listeners for its contemplative message about mortality and impermanence.

Two years after writing this tune, Kerry Livgren became a born-again Christian, and his music drifted more towards spiritual themes. I can see now why, because the hit song he wrote about dust conjures up depression to me, unless I knew I was going to a better place after death, of which I do. Perhaps Kerry felt the same until finally seeing the light?

As long as there’s wind, we’ll be dusting until the day we die, and I have an inside joke about dust that relates to the famous Kansas song, as well as those two Bible verses.

Viewing the dust covering our coffee table as a bunch of lazy people, I think to myself, “You folks need to move on down the road because there’s no loitering in this house. Don’t let the door hit you in the…!” I believe you know the ending here without me spelling things out.

At this point, Hazel is looked upon to do her thing, that is, when we can find her!