Meditating

                                      Written during the pandemic but still applicable.

What if we see the pandemic

As a hard blessing

and a cue to reflect

That truly

Life is beautiful

And we need to see ourselves

As family

Without distinction

And love each other

And learn to give tenderness,

What if we learn to love

Our Mother Earth

And take care of ourselves

And take care of her.

What if in our isolation

We learn to listen to each other

With understanding

And look with wonder at every pebble

Every shadow.

What if we marvel

At the sunset,

At the song of a bird

And a droplet of water

And what if we listen

With a new ear to the children

And the elders.

And what if we search inside ourselves

And realize

We actually don't need a lot,

That the ultimate beauty

Is what we now miss so much--

To hug,

To look into each other's eyes

That we really lack for nothing.

 

What Musical Notes Can Teach Us

 C sharp = D flat

Yesterday I attended a memorial service for a well-loved resident here at Brazos Towers.  A comment from the eulogy caught my attention and has stayed in my mind ever since.  The comment had to do with piano keys, that C sharp and D flat are the same key on the piano, the same pitch but are inscribed differently on sheet music so we tend to think of them as different.  The minister pointed out that, as human beings we're really all alike, all homo sapiens, though we think of each other as different.  He reminded us that all faiths tell us to love our neighbors as ourselves and said we should keep that in mind when we encounter people who think differently from us.  That's a perfect lesson for today:  Democrat/Republican;  Jew/Christian/ Muslim;  liberal/conservative--we're all members of the human race who should treat one another with courtesy and respect.  

For Wordle Lovers

Josh Wardle, the inventor of the hit word game, Wordle, has been named one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people.  Here is an article about Wordle from the New York Times written (Wordle addicts will appreciate this) only in five-letter words.

Today.

Alarm.

Arise.

Teeth: brush, floss.

Grabs phone.

Loads.  Rules clear.

Legit words. Slang]

taboo.

Ready? Ready.

Plays.

Picks usual first guess.

Sonar?  Cable? Novel?

Share?

Ashen block after

ashen block.

Lucky!

Clues, Hints.

Tries again.

Fifth space, amber

(maybe lemon?)

Right vowel, wrong 

place.

Tries again.

Three right!

First, green,  Third, 

green.  Fifth, amber

(maybe lemon)

Brain stirs.

Words. Order. Usage.

Logic.

Tries again.  Worse!

Feels faint.  Think!

Needs quiet,

Fights doubt.

Avoid doing badly.

Tries again.

Wrong!

Shock, truly

Stuck.

Brain blank.

Sharp panic.

Takes pulse.

Keeps faith.

Brain spark; vowel

twice?

Final guess.

Every fiber tense.

Waits.

First block flips.

Green,

Green, green, green.

Bliss!

Alive again!

Prize, pride,

Inner peace,

Waits.

Night alarm, teeth,

phone, newly blank 

board.

First guess again.

Final point:

minor thing, major\

magic.

Daily light among

bleak times.

Happy place.

Hence,

folks thank

Josh Wardle.

If  you play Wordle, you know exactly how this feels.

By the way,  I've gotten 127 out of 131 correct!  (Happy place!)

If you're a wordle enthusiast, you'll enjoy Canada's game, Canuckle--just like Wordle, but each correct word has something to do with Canada.

folks thank

 

Making Sense of Today's World

 Amid the chaos and confusion and divisions of today's world, I read an article in the June 4, 2022 issue of Slate Magazine by Dahlia Lithwick entitled "Why Politics is Both the Poison and the Cure."  She, too, was trying to put the events of today's world in perspective.  She quoted comments of Howard Zinn that seemed to me to sum up our present dilemma and how to cope with it:

"To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic.  It is based on the fact that human history is not only a history of cruelty but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives.  If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something.  If we remember those times and places--and there are so many--where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction. And if we do act, in however small a way, we don't have to wait for some grand utopian future.  The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory."