Navigating the Tumult

I walk up this hill every day, so I know exactly what I'll find when I arrive at the top of the crest. I'll find the red barns. They're big and beautiful and awe-inspiring. Built in 1820 and made to withstand the test of time--I should be used to them by now. And yet I'm always surprised and delighted when I get that first glimpse of bright red rising up from the vast expanse of green. The moment never disappoints, never gets old. I don't know why I'm so surprised--I know exactly what to expect and yet, I always ponder the possibility that I could come upon a bevy of deer. Or flock of geese. A clutch of chicks, a warren of rabbits. A naughty woodchuck (the bane of the gardener's existence). Perhaps a marching band? And more than likely--a handsome man on his mowing tractor.

That would be Farmer Bill.

F. Scott Fitzgerald once wrote--

The test of. first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.

I keep this quote on the wall where I can look at it every day. It helps me navigate the tumults of modern life. It was especially helpful during the year when I took care of my dying father, when my challenge was to do everything I could to keep Papa Callan alive, knowing he was going to die in the not too far distant future.

No matter--I cleaned his house. I cooked his meals. I organized his meds. Scheduled the doctor appointments. Chauffeured him about town. Watched PBS News Hour with him every night at six-thirty, and generally acted as if death was not on the table. Rather, we both acted as if around every corner, there was nothing but surprise and possibility. In other words, hope.

Creative Friends--Even now, even as we witness freshly hatched atrocities, even as our way of life is being dissembled and turned into something unrecognizable--do not give up. Take action. Write a political poem, make up a new protest song, dance barefoot on the grass as a symbol of your stance in the world—or just sharpen some pencils and scratch out a few notes. Even these tiny acts of creativity can serve as a howl in the wildness, announcing to the world that we are not paralyzed by uncertainty and that we will fight for change.

So go ahead, as foolishly hopeful as it may sound--act as if your poetry, your play, your song, your novel has the power to change the world.

Because, you know what--it just might.

Love,

Jamie