Glimmers lifting the veil

 Like many of you, 

I've struggled with making sense of our current time;

it's felt like we've been lifted, 

against our will,

and placed smack dab into the middle of a dystopian novel -

with forces marshaled against us

 that are beyond both our understanding and our ability to resist.

Not because we agree, 

but because it's been so relentlessly focused in its ferocity and swiftness

that we're always trying to catch our breath,

organize our thoughts and present some kind of cogent response.

 

Also like many of you,

my innate response has been to grieve  -

for what has been lost,

what's been taken from us 

(dare I say 'stolen'?) 

and for the complete shattering of our sense of life as a country,

united in working toward the collective 'good'. 

The gaslighting of constantly being told lies 

and being told NOT to believe 

what we experience for ourselves in our daily lives 

but to believe what they tell us is reality

has, honestly, been crazy making.

 

Surprisingly, several things have helped me start to emerge from the fog.

 

Immersing myself in reading, always a treat, 

has been an instinctive reaching for a familiar lifeline. 

 

Substack writings by people far wiser

 and more steeped in history, human behavior and psychology 

than I am have given me new perspectives.

(Check out Helen Cox Richardson, Nadia Bolz Weber, Shannan Martin, 

Sarah Bessey, Suleika Jaouad and Jess Piper). 

 

Fiction writers Matt Haig, Barbara Kingsolver, Karen Thompson Walker, Leif Enger,

Octavia Butler, Emily Henry, Percival Everett and Kent Nerburn

have entertained, instructed and provided hope

through their characters struggles in diverse situations

and reminded me that many hideous circumstances are survivalable 

and life goes on;

differently than expected, to be sure,

but it goes on. 

 

As an example -

a recent excerpt by Nadia Bolz Weber :

Bad things do happen and at times this world will break your heart.

I'm so sorry but that's not optional in this life. 

But this world God made is also overflowing 

with more beauty, mystery, goodness and fresh pastries than you will ever be able to take in.  

 

So hold on, little ones.

It's going to be a wild ride

But please do not be afraid. 

Not because the world is safe. But because the kingdom is already yours.

 

And God is quietly holding the world together in love and you are part of that.

And it is so beautiful. 

And, while I was reading How to Stop Time by Matt Haig,

there were also two You tube commentators 

(Amanda Nelson and Parkrose Permaculture)

who provided the reality check I didn't know I needed. 

They all reminded me 

that time, life and history are one way streets.

You have to keep walking forward;

there is NO going back to 'normal' EVER.

 

As much as I hated to hear this, in an odd way, it helped.

We can't go back to the 'normal' we knew before the election;

it's as delusional as MAGA thinking we can go back to

 the 1950's patriarchal white supremacist America -

a time in which they believe we were 'great'.

 The reality, as we know, is that it wasn't.

 

The reality is also that life last year, 

or in the 80's or the 60's 

wasn't great for everyone either.

 

 'Normal" wasn't working for a lot of people -

if it had been, 

such a large swath of citizens wouldn't have been so susceptible 

to MAGA lies in the first place.

 

On any other day,

 that reality would have sent me back to the fetal position

in a corner of my room;

oddly, it had the opposite effect.

 

We will still have to fight for what we believe in  -

but we also need to get clear and focused 

about what the hell that is! 

 

Lots of hard work ahead;

but it feels like letting go of the fantasy of 'getting back to normal'

has freed up energy for discernment. 

We'll see how long it lasts!

I'm hoping we come up with a better strategy than simply waiting for them all to die off -

I don't have that kind of time left.

 

Wishing you some relief and strategies that give you hope -

even if its temporary. 

Quintessentail summer

A blowup swimming pool in the backyard

on a 95 degree day,

inviting the neighbor,

staying in water until you turn 'pruny'

 

and giving their parents a break

for a little while. 

 

 Discovering a new (to me) orchard in Southern IL,

approx. 2 hours away 

with fields of zinnias, sunflowers and cosmos - 

my dream backyard! 

Sunflowers were a bit past prime

and I'll remind myself to go earlier next year

 

but I could have happily set up a folding chair

and stayed in the zinnia fields for hours,

soaking up color and the movement of pollinators and butterflies. 

It was magical.

 

As it is, I'll have to content myself with my selection at home -

until I win the lottery -

and then, I'm paying someone to till the backyard and expand my choices! 

I even treated myself to this tiny collage of zinnias

in anticipation of cooler days ahead.

 

Hanging on to summer while its here. 

Palate cleanser

 I feel like I - and you - deserve a reprieve from the political,

so I'll show pictures from a trip 'Up North'

to Chicago and WI

to visit family. 

 

It was a wonderful visit and allowed me the chance to catch up with great nieces

and nephews as they get ready to move on to the next chapters of their lives.

Al Fresco dining in Chicago is terrific -

I was actually cold and could have used a sweater -

unlike here where you sweat to the point of drippage!

 

Of course, we went treasure hunting

 

and this plain white vase was the only thing that came home with me

since I need nothing! 

 

You can never go wrong with Lake Michigan and a farmers market -

and I always love the chance to see things growing in other peoples gardens.

 

Getting away for a few days was exactly what I needed.

Even if there was an unexpected visit to a car dealership (for 3 hours)

and being told that the heat shield of my car had cracked in half.

Since they no longer make my car (a Honda Fit),

it would take 3 days and almost $700 to repair .

What!!  

Who needs a heat shield?

Not this girl...

carry on.

making cherry cordial!

striped stones from the beach.

There were also four footed companions.

and Demon Kitty.

Coming home and transitioning to life here was rough;

although what made it better was that my family and I recently "dotted" my kitchen 

with watercolored decals.

 

It was such fun and everyone pitched in.

Maybe I'll get sick of it in a few months -

in which case they'll be easy enough to remove -

just un-peel.

For right now, it makes me happy

and that's enough.

The summer is going by way too fast

and I'm delighted that I was smart enough to schedule my 'real' vacation

for after Labor Day.

 

Headed to the Eastern seaboard

in quest of finding the best lobster roll!

Stay tuned. 

 

Hope you're surrounding yourself with people and places

that make you remember how much good there still is in the world.

No matter what the idiots in government are doing.

Peace out!