Bits and Pieces

Losses: recent years have involved the loss of friends and loved ones. Too many. Most concerning, the beat goes on, and on. I recall something my mother said to me many years ago when she was in her mid-70’s; she lamented the deaths of friends, church members, neighbors and siblings. She knew this was the journey of aging, and more because she lived in an age restricted community. She realized the reality of death in all of life.

That realization is coming home to my roost as family and friends pass from this life. Each loss, of course, is personal and meaningful. Some we weather well, others not so much. Yet it is the reality of life, its beginnings and ends, we struggle with. Not so much our own end. Somehow that retains a mystery but not a pain. Odd that. But natural. Just not so for others. It is the loss we feel and must accommodate. Unnatural and painful.  

At a Loss: reading the news is a daily assault on reason and comity. What we grew up respecting and acting mannerly, is now loudly dashed. And by no other than the President of our great nation. This rude behavior shocks me most of the time. The loss of social politeness bruises my sentimentality, my sense of good taste and order. This is not my value structure. It is foreign. Dirty. Unsavory. Ugly. When will the good sense and dignity of the American people return? Ever? Soon?

What Matters: the two topics just mentioned display a reality of values. The good, bad and ugly of life on full display. It begs the issue of what matters to us and what do we hold dear. Life, liberty and pursuit of happiness are ingrained in our American selves. We hold these things dearly. Most of us I suspect do so. But together, as a nation, do we? The juxtaposition of personal lives and the political world are stark reminders. All these things will pass eventually. The personal is dearer, but the political provides the envelope in which we live and enjoy the personal. The importance of each is relative but clear. The political must conform with the personal first, last and always. The personal will enforce its will over the other. It is only a matter of time. And our energy.

July 25, 2025

 

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