Indeed! And I do believe the current crop will choke on their own metaphorical poison. They can create nothing - only destroy. Eventually that will bury them in the toxic waste left by hate, anger and violence.
The rest of us need to keep green things growing - and plant more - while that happens.
D
PS I hope your memoirs are coming along well. M wants me to write my own, but I'm still wrestling with how that would look and who might be hurt....
I love the call to grow green things while they slowly choke on their poison. That's it, that really is it.
And I'm with M- you've got to write it, Dave. Just sit and let it flow like water with no thought to the eyes or ears that might be worrying you. There are ways to protect them if your integrity demands it, later, after it is all on the page. For now, let the muses guide you, and rest in knowing that anything written with your hand on your heart is worth putting out in the world.
Well, despite all those very daunting obstacles, I feel a glass of wine is fully in the realm of possibility. Call me a dreamer. I would make time for that, Dave.
Very lovely of you my friend. I think you and Meg would be highly compatible too.
Maybe you could win the lottery and bring the whole Fam here for a holiday!
Free accommodation here by the river bank. In fact, I can see the water dragon out sunbathing right now, and I have a treat for her.... so bye for now!
Kendall, your metaphor of the "hidden predator" is striking. It reminds me of the hard winters in Minneapolis and the lessons of January—that what is hidden eventually demands a reckoning. I think of the East Germans who toppled the Wall; they were so blinded by the sudden light of "freedom" that they allowed themselves to be assimilated rather than insisting on the equal, foundational rebuilding the original architects of the Republic intended.
"So it goes"—the struggle for a new "Basic Law" was lost to the convenience of the old. It proves that awareness is our only true defense. Consciousness is the light that prevents the dark—be it greed, power-hunger, or shame—from reclaiming the ground we’ve gained. If we keep our collective light steady and bright, the "worms" lose their shadows.
So well said, as always, my friend. I love how you brought up the East Germans and the wall. It reminds me of familiar neural pathways, and how hard it can be to create new ones. We're so drawn to the old ways, even when they are harmful, because we confuse familiarity with safety Alas, we know we CAN create new pathways with careful attention and practice. Here's to keeping that light shining. xo
Yes, Kendall, I love how you bring up the familiar neural pathways and that they persist within even if the circumstances change if they are not actively trained to a new way of being. Yet most people would tell you. Well, that’s how things are and have always been and what can I do “against” it. Thank you for engaging and answering. I always cherish those exchanges with you, looking deep into things yourself. you definitely keep that light shining. So glad to call you my friend. xo
I've had this opened in my browser for a week, but without the time to give it attention. I'm glad I finally did. What a true and incisive piece, Kendall. Patriarchy is some hollow, hungry thing a Wendigo spirit eating all that walks before it. Thank you for naming it and naming the insistent hope that might finally humble it.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful comment, Andy. I love that you named it as a Wendigo spirit, that really resonated with me (along with the open tabs waiting to be read!). Honored that you sat with it and passed it along.
Dearest Kendall, that poem is divinely beautiful, so rich with worship of all that should be...
"I think I will lie down
and let them teach me, once and for all,
how to devour the sun."
I read this line with the thought, 'that's me!' hiding away on my hill, with (usually) not a care in the world barring day to day troubles, minor at worst, self imposed almost always, yet, recently I have been battling with your metaphoric tapeworms...they have caught me good and proper, left me emptied and trembling, a squirming mass of guilt and concern. I no longer feel like the person I was a few months ago, they have depleted—make that devoured—my every creative whimsey, justifying everything and anything which is not necessity has felt like an unwarranted luxury. My life is thinner when all I want is a glorious round belly!
Biggest 'collective' love dear one — we are strong together! xx
Ah, Susie, I see you depleted on that hill of yours. Me too. I screamed into a pillow so loudly that I made my throat hurt the other day. The weight is so visceral and real right now. But I will continue to expose the worm stalking us alongside you. I think we can do this with truth and stories and observations. I know we can. Slowly, walk by walk in the woods, I know we will return to Love, which is so much stronger than fear and division. Love you, my friend.
Here's to women's beautiful, round bellies - the source of creation and filled with hope! When you spoke about "bingeing", I thought of the Department of Defense's recent $7 million "lobster spree". Bloated, indeed. Thanks for sharing the rainbow worms:)
I'd love to watch blue planet with you. But we might have to follow it with a certain favorite movie of mine (hello, lady!) I loved the arc of this essay, and I'll blow water jets with you any day.
Spot on Kendall! So I wasn't imagining all those celebrities getting so thin that it is frightening!? What the heck is happening in this world? You may be on to something...patriarchy sucking the life out of us.
Love your metaphors in this piece! And loved your poem!
It really is alarming! But when we notice, and we pay attention, and we keep talking about it, I really do think it loses its power. Thank you, Jeannine!
What wonderful imagery in your poem, the hungry glacier. So many surprising connections here. I did NOT know about weird and beautiful Bobbit worms, nor did I know about Scolopsis fish and their mob whistle-blowing, er, I mean, water-blowing behavior to defend others. Fascinating (Spock raised eyebrow)!
I love the spock-raised eyebrow and the whistle-blowing fish in this comment. :) And I'm honored to introduce you to new sea creatures! It's my favorite thing.
Seems to me that is what the neighbors of Minneapolis have been doing with their horn blowing and whistles, their carpools and grocery deliveries, their home visits for healthcare, and the other ways these gloriously ordinary and caring people are exposing ICE and that cruelty, both literally and metaphorically, by organizing against it. And that very community action, whether with the Scolopsis affinis fish or the Minneapolis human community is exactly what we need to build a lasting, compassionate culture and economy. Thank you for this great example of what we can learn about being human from observing other species, Kendall! Blessings to you.
Yes, yes, yes, Susan. The MN community was front of mind in writing this piece. It's so powerful to gather as witnesses, and to take that even further to gather as friends to those who need help. The resistance really is relational.... again and again I am reminded of that when I am despairing at how very small I am. None of us are small, we are all one living breathing ecosystem. Thank you for being here, Susan!
At our best, I think we can behave like the fungal hyphae that connect plant roots within and between species in so many natural ecosystems, allowing communication and sharing of water and minerals and the chemicals of defense, among other things. It's work to grow and maintain connections with those who we don't define as "us," but that's how real communities are woven, after all. It's such a breath of fresh air to read your work and hear your thoughts, Kendall!
That breath of fresh air goes both ways, Susan. And I agree that the hardest work is dissolving the lines between “us” and “them.” But we will forever be stuck in a spiral if we’re unable to unwind that oh-so-human tendency. Here’s to earnestly trying.
Patriarchy starves us all. Yes. Sadly, yes. Let us become the antidote. 🙏
Yes, Leah, WE are the antidote! ✨❤
Love this! “The patriarchy is like a tapeworm“ it clearly is eating away at all of us.
Indeed it is, but we have team waterjet hard at work here. xo
Ah, to gather with other Scolopsis affinis fish! Thanks for all this essay - and for that image.
Right? Sometimes we just need to gather like fish and get things done. ;)
You speak truth here Kendall - illustrated with a lesson from nature.
The Vizzini's of this world need to be exposed and seen for what they are...
D
Ha! Vizzini really got what was coming to him....
Indeed! And I do believe the current crop will choke on their own metaphorical poison. They can create nothing - only destroy. Eventually that will bury them in the toxic waste left by hate, anger and violence.
The rest of us need to keep green things growing - and plant more - while that happens.
D
PS I hope your memoirs are coming along well. M wants me to write my own, but I'm still wrestling with how that would look and who might be hurt....
I love the call to grow green things while they slowly choke on their poison. That's it, that really is it.
And I'm with M- you've got to write it, Dave. Just sit and let it flow like water with no thought to the eyes or ears that might be worrying you. There are ways to protect them if your integrity demands it, later, after it is all on the page. For now, let the muses guide you, and rest in knowing that anything written with your hand on your heart is worth putting out in the world.
Thanks my friend...
If it was safe for me to visit your country again, which sadly is not the case..
And if you didn't have 3 million other Subscribers wanting a slice of your time ...
Not to mention your commitments as:
- a partner
- a Mother
- a fabulous writer
- and having to earn a wage on top
If not for all that I would love to sit down with you in person over a bottle of red wine and compare notes on memoir writing.
Oh well.
Lol !
D :)
Well, despite all those very daunting obstacles, I feel a glass of wine is fully in the realm of possibility. Call me a dreamer. I would make time for that, Dave.
Very lovely of you my friend. I think you and Meg would be highly compatible too.
Maybe you could win the lottery and bring the whole Fam here for a holiday!
Free accommodation here by the river bank. In fact, I can see the water dragon out sunbathing right now, and I have a treat for her.... so bye for now!
D :)
Kendall, your metaphor of the "hidden predator" is striking. It reminds me of the hard winters in Minneapolis and the lessons of January—that what is hidden eventually demands a reckoning. I think of the East Germans who toppled the Wall; they were so blinded by the sudden light of "freedom" that they allowed themselves to be assimilated rather than insisting on the equal, foundational rebuilding the original architects of the Republic intended.
"So it goes"—the struggle for a new "Basic Law" was lost to the convenience of the old. It proves that awareness is our only true defense. Consciousness is the light that prevents the dark—be it greed, power-hunger, or shame—from reclaiming the ground we’ve gained. If we keep our collective light steady and bright, the "worms" lose their shadows.
So well said, as always, my friend. I love how you brought up the East Germans and the wall. It reminds me of familiar neural pathways, and how hard it can be to create new ones. We're so drawn to the old ways, even when they are harmful, because we confuse familiarity with safety Alas, we know we CAN create new pathways with careful attention and practice. Here's to keeping that light shining. xo
Yes, Kendall, I love how you bring up the familiar neural pathways and that they persist within even if the circumstances change if they are not actively trained to a new way of being. Yet most people would tell you. Well, that’s how things are and have always been and what can I do “against” it. Thank you for engaging and answering. I always cherish those exchanges with you, looking deep into things yourself. you definitely keep that light shining. So glad to call you my friend. xo
I also did not like the R.O.U.S. My daughter had nightmares about the old woman booing Buttercup in Buttercup's own dream. What a brilliant film.
Loved all your analogies and metaphors here.
Oh my gosh, that old woman was so scary to me as a child as well! All that "boo-ing!" Really, the film was a masterpiece. Thank you, Fiona!
The worm and skinny are absolute nightmare fuel! It’s scary to see it coming back in fashion. I am doing my best to deny its siren call.
We must resist! Nightmare fuel made me laugh. xoxo
I've had this opened in my browser for a week, but without the time to give it attention. I'm glad I finally did. What a true and incisive piece, Kendall. Patriarchy is some hollow, hungry thing a Wendigo spirit eating all that walks before it. Thank you for naming it and naming the insistent hope that might finally humble it.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful comment, Andy. I love that you named it as a Wendigo spirit, that really resonated with me (along with the open tabs waiting to be read!). Honored that you sat with it and passed it along.
Dearest Kendall, that poem is divinely beautiful, so rich with worship of all that should be...
"I think I will lie down
and let them teach me, once and for all,
how to devour the sun."
I read this line with the thought, 'that's me!' hiding away on my hill, with (usually) not a care in the world barring day to day troubles, minor at worst, self imposed almost always, yet, recently I have been battling with your metaphoric tapeworms...they have caught me good and proper, left me emptied and trembling, a squirming mass of guilt and concern. I no longer feel like the person I was a few months ago, they have depleted—make that devoured—my every creative whimsey, justifying everything and anything which is not necessity has felt like an unwarranted luxury. My life is thinner when all I want is a glorious round belly!
Biggest 'collective' love dear one — we are strong together! xx
Ah, Susie, I see you depleted on that hill of yours. Me too. I screamed into a pillow so loudly that I made my throat hurt the other day. The weight is so visceral and real right now. But I will continue to expose the worm stalking us alongside you. I think we can do this with truth and stories and observations. I know we can. Slowly, walk by walk in the woods, I know we will return to Love, which is so much stronger than fear and division. Love you, my friend.
Walk by walk, hand in hand… I am there beautiful, with you, loving you back as hard. xx
Here's to women's beautiful, round bellies - the source of creation and filled with hope! When you spoke about "bingeing", I thought of the Department of Defense's recent $7 million "lobster spree". Bloated, indeed. Thanks for sharing the rainbow worms:)
Oh gosh, bloated is right! Nothing like women's creative soft bellies. Thank you, Lee!
Beautiful, sad writing!
I'd love to watch blue planet with you. But we might have to follow it with a certain favorite movie of mine (hello, lady!) I loved the arc of this essay, and I'll blow water jets with you any day.
That would be dreamy! Can we just please make that happen??
Also, delayed response. Did you say Bobbit worm? 🤣
I mean, scientists are dang funny sometimes, right?
I've been noticing this too, Kendall. And it's heartbreaking.
Thank you for speaking to it.
Thank you for noticing as well, Holly. It’s a tough one to speak to because body business is oh-so-many-layered. xo
Spot on Kendall! So I wasn't imagining all those celebrities getting so thin that it is frightening!? What the heck is happening in this world? You may be on to something...patriarchy sucking the life out of us.
Love your metaphors in this piece! And loved your poem!
Thank you for this essay.
It really is alarming! But when we notice, and we pay attention, and we keep talking about it, I really do think it loses its power. Thank you, Jeannine!
What wonderful imagery in your poem, the hungry glacier. So many surprising connections here. I did NOT know about weird and beautiful Bobbit worms, nor did I know about Scolopsis fish and their mob whistle-blowing, er, I mean, water-blowing behavior to defend others. Fascinating (Spock raised eyebrow)!
I love the spock-raised eyebrow and the whistle-blowing fish in this comment. :) And I'm honored to introduce you to new sea creatures! It's my favorite thing.
Seems to me that is what the neighbors of Minneapolis have been doing with their horn blowing and whistles, their carpools and grocery deliveries, their home visits for healthcare, and the other ways these gloriously ordinary and caring people are exposing ICE and that cruelty, both literally and metaphorically, by organizing against it. And that very community action, whether with the Scolopsis affinis fish or the Minneapolis human community is exactly what we need to build a lasting, compassionate culture and economy. Thank you for this great example of what we can learn about being human from observing other species, Kendall! Blessings to you.
Yes, yes, yes, Susan. The MN community was front of mind in writing this piece. It's so powerful to gather as witnesses, and to take that even further to gather as friends to those who need help. The resistance really is relational.... again and again I am reminded of that when I am despairing at how very small I am. None of us are small, we are all one living breathing ecosystem. Thank you for being here, Susan!
At our best, I think we can behave like the fungal hyphae that connect plant roots within and between species in so many natural ecosystems, allowing communication and sharing of water and minerals and the chemicals of defense, among other things. It's work to grow and maintain connections with those who we don't define as "us," but that's how real communities are woven, after all. It's such a breath of fresh air to read your work and hear your thoughts, Kendall!
That breath of fresh air goes both ways, Susan. And I agree that the hardest work is dissolving the lines between “us” and “them.” But we will forever be stuck in a spiral if we’re unable to unwind that oh-so-human tendency. Here’s to earnestly trying.
Exactly. I think I like "practicing" better than "trying" though. We have to earnestly practice or this Earth will orbit on without us....
I like that better as well. It’s kind of like saying “planning” instead of “dreaming.”