I have gotten used to being at home. I go out for a walk most days, to get out and breathe some fresh air, and move, in this particularly cold January in New Jersey. I see other people doing something similar, alone, or with their people or dog companions. But that is it. I don't go into stores, or restaurants. I see people on Zoom, or on the television news channels.
There is a narrow directness to life these days. A life of constraint.
News outlets present realities beyond our houses, as a hardening of the large and small "p" political divides. Either/or choices. For/against stands. Direct confrontations, or avoidances. Truth or lies, you choose. Winners/losers? Free or not? Which camp are we in?
Today I was drawn to this picture of our niece, Sam, and the flexibility it expresses. It is a symbol of the call for us to do things that we did not know we had the capacity to do, to move in ways that are outside of our norm. It calls for us to practice stretching, and learn how to do what is not expected to be possible.
We are headed for a direct "us" and "them" clash.
What will it take to find another move?
Do we have the imagination?
Do we have the commitment and discipline that Sam's move represents?
Comments