Sunday greetings in bleak times:
“Wheel’s on fire
Rollin down the road
Let’s notify my next of kin
This wheel shall explode” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Bob Dylan and
Richard Manual
“In the course of my life I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess that I have always found it a wholesome diet.”………………………………………Winston Churchill
“His rise to power was mostly based on his excellent oration and manipulation skills.
He understood very well the politics of his time and based his propaganda on hatred towards other countries, blaming them for any instability of his own country” ……………………Description of Adolph Hitler
I was born and raised in the mean streets-shtetl of The Bronx
With many people of many places and many colors
My schools were the halls of diversity
Amongst the first” bussing” schools in our nation
I had the fortune of experiencing a giant shift in culture when I left at a tender age
To find a new life in the heartland, far from the skyscrapers and teeming streets of the metropolis
I have made many, many mistakes
And I can’t change them, I acknowledge them, I live with them
I have traveled the world over
Yet here, amongst the amber waves of grain, is where I love- and live
Living in to beautiful places
A blessing-and a curse
I have three children, who I love and admire beyond words
I have three granddaughters, who are teaching me a new meaning for love
I have three houses and three cars…which are a burden
I have a partner who is both the challenge and the love of my life
I have suffered great loss…and strive to be better for (or despite) it
With occasional success
I have brothers and sisters who I make music with
That sustains me and keeps me alive
I have the privilege to do work (still)
That gives me a platform to speak out for children and families
I have lifelong friends from childhood, from college, from travels
That I continue to draw strength from
Sometimes life is a real ball buster
But I would not trade it for anything
To live here, to live now
In the country of my dreams.
What MY America can be:
- The most beautiful place on earth
- A place that people love and care for one another—where the “We” is as (if not more) important than the “Me”
- A free and just place to live and love
- A place that allows for differences in thought, action and preferences
- A place that encourages the freedom to think outside the box
- A place in which the fortunate concern themselves with the less fortunate
- An inspirational land
- A democracy in which we all have voice and in which we have leaders of integrity and vision who represent us honorably
- The freedom to choose anything that does not hurt someone else
- Profoundly and wonderfully diverse
What MY America Cannot be:
- Narrow-minded and hateful
- Fearful of difference
- Indifferent to fairness and justice
- A place that makes life great for a privileged few and insufferable for too many
- Leaderless…helmed by despots who seek only personal gain and power
- Cruel and unusually punishing
- A place unable to reconcile and learn from its past and move towards a kind, fair and equitable future
- Greed, Power and Wealth over caring and compassion
- Isolated, authoritative and demeaning
- An environment of distrust, fear and loathing
C’mon people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, try and love one another RIGHT NOW……………………
Stu
Delaware, Ohio- May 31, 2020
