THE FORCES OF NUANCE ARE ADVANCING. That’s the title I had in mind for this post before I settled on “Nuance Is Our Only Hope.” I believe nuance is our only hope. But I do not always believe in my heart that the forces of nuance are advancing. I find it easier to believe they are when I read or talk to the man in the above photo. His name is Bob Smietana.
I grew up driving between my home state of Mississippi, Alabama, and Gulf of Mexico beaches. Still do. As I drove to a beautiful, non-touristy peninsula on the Gulf a few days ago, I saw the Spanish moss hanging and I reminisced about my blessed and privileged youth and adulthood - feeling like I was driving "home." Today, a man in a pick up truck drove in front of me with 10 - 12 inch, black capital letters on the back of his truck, that said: "TRUMP WON." Luckily, he turned off the road after bringing me way back down to this earth. I enjoy all of your posts, David, and whoever made the statement below speaks the truth. (“We are always going to have this network of powerful men who can do whatever they want and think they can get away with it. And they are right.”) Here is my addition to this truth.: This has always been so, and we need to join together to change that age-old fact. Some women have even joined them! It matters how each of us makes changes, hopefully healing our own violent tendencies and using nonviolent activism methods. I also just watched a Prime Video TV series for the second time and it strikes me in the gut each time I see it: "The English." Fabulous portrayal of 1890's America and today. Tragic, sweet, violent, complex and complicated. And, Love does win.
My people perish for lack of nuance. It's utterly heartbreaking. Finding hope in your work.
I do wonder if the fraught words "religion," "faith" and "spirituality" can at least begin to be good words in our time through purposeful engagement in (good) multi-faith dialogue...spaces where we don't control the questions. I've found such spaces to be profoundly hopeful as they are training grounds for nuance.
I grew up driving between my home state of Mississippi, Alabama, and Gulf of Mexico beaches. Still do. As I drove to a beautiful, non-touristy peninsula on the Gulf a few days ago, I saw the Spanish moss hanging and I reminisced about my blessed and privileged youth and adulthood - feeling like I was driving "home." Today, a man in a pick up truck drove in front of me with 10 - 12 inch, black capital letters on the back of his truck, that said: "TRUMP WON." Luckily, he turned off the road after bringing me way back down to this earth. I enjoy all of your posts, David, and whoever made the statement below speaks the truth. (“We are always going to have this network of powerful men who can do whatever they want and think they can get away with it. And they are right.”) Here is my addition to this truth.: This has always been so, and we need to join together to change that age-old fact. Some women have even joined them! It matters how each of us makes changes, hopefully healing our own violent tendencies and using nonviolent activism methods. I also just watched a Prime Video TV series for the second time and it strikes me in the gut each time I see it: "The English." Fabulous portrayal of 1890's America and today. Tragic, sweet, violent, complex and complicated. And, Love does win.
My people perish for lack of nuance. It's utterly heartbreaking. Finding hope in your work.
I do wonder if the fraught words "religion," "faith" and "spirituality" can at least begin to be good words in our time through purposeful engagement in (good) multi-faith dialogue...spaces where we don't control the questions. I've found such spaces to be profoundly hopeful as they are training grounds for nuance.
I have too.