What Would Thoreau Say?

As one who cries easily, Wednesday’s inauguration festivities were a two box of tissues day for me. Of course, many of my tears were the result of watching the history making Vice President. How could I not be moved by watching a black/Asian woman become Vice President of the United States? But truth be known, mostly my emotions were feelings of relief that our Long National Nightmare, to copy a phrase from our past, was over. I cried as much for who was out of the government as who was coming in to the government. After watching the 45 th President slink out of town, after issuing yet another slew of pardons for crooks, cronies, embezzlers, conspiracy theorists and serial liars, I knew things would be better. But it didn’t reduce my anger. I sat watching Air Force One take off and literally said out loud, with a voice I’m not used to, ‘for god’s sake, just go!’ Unfortunately, the other emotion I felt most of the day was one of resignation to what was coming next. For now, I knew, wou...

Each morning in our house, whoever gets up first, hits the coffee button to begin brewing what I had prepared the night before. Then my wife and I sit in our favorite leather chairs in the library/study surrounded by books, old desks and busts of American heroes.  A friend once described the room as 'perfect Americana,' and the hundreds (possibly as many as a thousand?) people who have found themselves in this room over the almost 12 years I have owned The Hermitage, usually comment on how comfortable and 'cozy' the room feels. As I have written before, the whole house is decorated as a mid 19th century, country cottage. (Oh, how often does my wife tell me I was born in the wrong century. I only hope she means historically and not so she wouldn't have had to meet me.) I have hesitated to write about the attempted coup last Wednesday because there have been millions of words already written by far better writers than me. Truthfully, I didn't know what I could add...

  Restoration Four years ago, in What Would Thoreau Say? I wrote ‘what do we do now?’ after the world was turned upside down by our presidential election. I predicted four years of hell.   I was right. Now things are different.   I really believe the restoration of America is possible.   But only if we also restore truth as truth, something that has been impossible these last four years.   Of all the terrible things that have happened since 2016, nothing, in my opinion,  nothing, compares to what has happened to the rule of truth. I refuse to give up however.   I believe truth can be restored, we can be better, and we can make a commitment to take care of each other. Joanna Macy, one of the world’s great ecologists and Buddhist scholar writes of ‘the Great Turning.’   She believes that we don’t have to stay stuck as we are and that with intentional action, we can turn things.   Her analysis is much more detailed than I want to offe...