Thank you for the thoughts of a good person on this Wednesday morning. I am up before enough light to write on the porch in my journal but was pleased to read your piece on my phone. Yes, technology is sometimes a boon companion. Enjoying, also--and talking about it with friends--your CHEERFULNESS book. It hits me in a necessary spot right now.
The day we went to see the Grand Canyon I overheard a young girl say to an elderly man " ...so what do you think of the Grand Canyon grandpa?" Not sure if he had tears in his eyes but he looked out and said "good name for it!"
Well, Sir, I'm grateful to have stumbled upon your article a few minutes ago. Unfortunately (for me) I had relegated you previously to one of those boxes in the back room. The last (very enjoyable, as I recall) moment we shared was at my viewing of some variety show that may have featured you sharing Will-Rogers-style musings in that Midwest style "back in the day." I'm hooked, again.
Great piece Garrison! The Grand Canyon stunned me as well.
As for the refugee child in the subway: Christ tells us that the kingdom of heaven "belongs to such as these." We all might want to reflect on what that means for us comfortable folk.
Visited the Grand Canyon back in the sixties in my teens. In those days you could take a short hike from the road and just walk to the edge. No words for how that felt. You are so right about the criminal. May the good Lord and the voters once and for all rid the country of this terrible person.
When it comes to the destruction of a nation-state (any and all), it is the little things, the unnoticed things, the things that everyday people slowly and inevitably adopt as part of their own lives that are the cause of the destruction.
So true, David! I read some books such as "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" before my Dad and I spent a vacation in Germany. That's very much how Hitler got his toe-hold in that part of the world. Small changes, and suddenly, nothing was the same!
There have been a few references recently to "The Rise (and Fall?) of (DT)." Disrespect for those of lower incomes, for example, and attempts to change financial support for those in need are current issues.
Unfortunately, there seem to be many Americans who would say "Oh, Well! It doesn't affect me!" But it does! One could talk about contagious diseases, for example, or the crime rate, but those are just measurable statistics. The "RESPECT" we have for "Our Fellow Man" can change, according to the poverty level in an area.
When I had a farm in California, my Mexican friends and coworkers discovered that I could go to a district in downtown Los Angeles and get all sorts of culinary items and "cintas" - tape recordings of their favorite singers such as "Los Alegres de Terran" ( The Happy Ones from Terran). Once the workers around Rancho California heard about my purchasing ability, I began shopping for most of the immigrant worker community there. To go shopping in the Mexican quarter was the equivalent of being in a different country! There were poor people seated against building walls, begging for enough to get at least one meal a day. Along the sides of a drainage canal, there were makeshift "residences" made of rescued cardboard boxes and such. These things exist in America! And, like "cockroaches," some governmental agents may simply try to "contain them." But what does that have to do with "The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You?"
Part of "The American Way" seems to be to hide things that might disgrace us away in corners where mainstream society is unlikely to become aware of them. Fortunately, we also have the tradition of "Investigative Reporting" and so on, to increase awareness of truly difficult situations. But, we still need to work to minimize our sense of complacency.
One of the aspects of APHC r that I cherish is the way in which our host introduces "Middle Class America" to folks who weren't those we'd meet every day! We still have that community today! Way to Go, GK and Friends!
I suspect you could make a diner menu all about the Evil One. It is also the everyday hatreds that turn neighbors on neighbors. On MSNBC the other day I actually heard a commentator call for the death penalty for the orange man. Perhaps you're more with the crowd that thinks lynching is a better word.
Your article this week caught my attention because I had the pleasure and good fortune to live in Flagstaff for a delightful 8 years.
I spent many hours in and around that big hole. To say I loved that place fails to relate the impact it had on me. The awe that it inspired. I miss it, I miss Flagstaff, Az, the west and the US.
I now live in France.
Refering to your conversation with the taxi driver and asking where he was from and what he did before etc. you said "In Europe, this question might raise hackles, like asking, “What’s your annual income?”" I'm not so sure about that, but you are definitely less likely to be asked it than in the States.
Similar experience, but I recall being more impressed and concerned with the tribe of chipmunks that dwelt upon the very lip of the abyss. Now, as a retired geology guy, I would gaze upon the unfathomable pages of time encompassed by the rock layers.
This nearly life-long rockhound also looked at the Grand Canyon with an eye to the geology, no less the wonder. Grew up 4 blocks from a limestone quarry with fossils lining the top and a bike ride away from a sand and gravel pit full of agates and jasper. In Bible Study this morning, the first lesson for next Sunday was Isaiah 51: 1-6. V 1 says "Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the quarry from which you were dug." I have and I remember.
Hi Bob! Buntrock is a name of some renown here in SE Minnesota, and the references to fossiliferous limestone and agates make me wonder if we were contemporaries at a certain liberal arts college hereabouts. I grew up in NJ and my earliest geology memory was searching for interesting rocks in the spoil piles from the mines in Franklin, home of Franklinite and some other rare minerals. Nice chatting with you!
Tyrone, I tried to reply directly so as to not clutter up GK's posts but couldn't. The Buntrock of some renown in SE MN (and elsewhere) is Dean Buntrock, founder and retired CEO of Waste Management, a St. Olaf alumnus and namesake of the student union there. Dean is a "probable cousin" whom I've never met. I'm a Minneapolis native who graduated from UMN (BChem '62). If you want to communicate directly, you should be able to find me at Orono, ME.
Touching column re regret, self pity, t truth love and kindness, brought tears to my eyes.
I also believe that truth, the strength of the American people and our Democracy will defeat that pest that has infected our politics. It would help if some of those on the Right took a Civics lesson
I had the same awesome wonder reaction you did, Garrison, when I was at the GC South Rim in 1991. Tears of joyful faith! And that beautiful sight & feeling has never left my memory.
Thank you for the thoughts of a good person on this Wednesday morning. I am up before enough light to write on the porch in my journal but was pleased to read your piece on my phone. Yes, technology is sometimes a boon companion. Enjoying, also--and talking about it with friends--your CHEERFULNESS book. It hits me in a necessary spot right now.
The day we went to see the Grand Canyon I overheard a young girl say to an elderly man " ...so what do you think of the Grand Canyon grandpa?" Not sure if he had tears in his eyes but he looked out and said "good name for it!"
I'll never get to visit the Grand Canyon, but I love seeing it through your words. Thank you for the vision!
Well, Sir, I'm grateful to have stumbled upon your article a few minutes ago. Unfortunately (for me) I had relegated you previously to one of those boxes in the back room. The last (very enjoyable, as I recall) moment we shared was at my viewing of some variety show that may have featured you sharing Will-Rogers-style musings in that Midwest style "back in the day." I'm hooked, again.
Great piece Garrison! The Grand Canyon stunned me as well.
As for the refugee child in the subway: Christ tells us that the kingdom of heaven "belongs to such as these." We all might want to reflect on what that means for us comfortable folk.
Good morning Garrison
Yes, the Grand Canyon truly is a thing of wonder.
It is one of those rare places that, when you finally get to see it, is greater even than what you imagined it would be.
Now that you’re back in NYC, a bit of geological trivia for you:
Did you know that the lowest point in the bottom of the canyon is over 1000 feet higher than the top of the Empire State Building?
N
Visited the Grand Canyon back in the sixties in my teens. In those days you could take a short hike from the road and just walk to the edge. No words for how that felt. You are so right about the criminal. May the good Lord and the voters once and for all rid the country of this terrible person.
When it comes to the destruction of a nation-state (any and all), it is the little things, the unnoticed things, the things that everyday people slowly and inevitably adopt as part of their own lives that are the cause of the destruction.
So true, David! I read some books such as "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" before my Dad and I spent a vacation in Germany. That's very much how Hitler got his toe-hold in that part of the world. Small changes, and suddenly, nothing was the same!
There have been a few references recently to "The Rise (and Fall?) of (DT)." Disrespect for those of lower incomes, for example, and attempts to change financial support for those in need are current issues.
Unfortunately, there seem to be many Americans who would say "Oh, Well! It doesn't affect me!" But it does! One could talk about contagious diseases, for example, or the crime rate, but those are just measurable statistics. The "RESPECT" we have for "Our Fellow Man" can change, according to the poverty level in an area.
When I had a farm in California, my Mexican friends and coworkers discovered that I could go to a district in downtown Los Angeles and get all sorts of culinary items and "cintas" - tape recordings of their favorite singers such as "Los Alegres de Terran" ( The Happy Ones from Terran). Once the workers around Rancho California heard about my purchasing ability, I began shopping for most of the immigrant worker community there. To go shopping in the Mexican quarter was the equivalent of being in a different country! There were poor people seated against building walls, begging for enough to get at least one meal a day. Along the sides of a drainage canal, there were makeshift "residences" made of rescued cardboard boxes and such. These things exist in America! And, like "cockroaches," some governmental agents may simply try to "contain them." But what does that have to do with "The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You?"
Part of "The American Way" seems to be to hide things that might disgrace us away in corners where mainstream society is unlikely to become aware of them. Fortunately, we also have the tradition of "Investigative Reporting" and so on, to increase awareness of truly difficult situations. But, we still need to work to minimize our sense of complacency.
One of the aspects of APHC r that I cherish is the way in which our host introduces "Middle Class America" to folks who weren't those we'd meet every day! We still have that community today! Way to Go, GK and Friends!
Mr. Baker,
I suspect you could make a diner menu all about the Evil One. It is also the everyday hatreds that turn neighbors on neighbors. On MSNBC the other day I actually heard a commentator call for the death penalty for the orange man. Perhaps you're more with the crowd that thinks lynching is a better word.
Your article this week caught my attention because I had the pleasure and good fortune to live in Flagstaff for a delightful 8 years.
I spent many hours in and around that big hole. To say I loved that place fails to relate the impact it had on me. The awe that it inspired. I miss it, I miss Flagstaff, Az, the west and the US.
I now live in France.
Refering to your conversation with the taxi driver and asking where he was from and what he did before etc. you said "In Europe, this question might raise hackles, like asking, “What’s your annual income?”" I'm not so sure about that, but you are definitely less likely to be asked it than in the States.
Good luck with your democracy.
Similar experience, but I recall being more impressed and concerned with the tribe of chipmunks that dwelt upon the very lip of the abyss. Now, as a retired geology guy, I would gaze upon the unfathomable pages of time encompassed by the rock layers.
This nearly life-long rockhound also looked at the Grand Canyon with an eye to the geology, no less the wonder. Grew up 4 blocks from a limestone quarry with fossils lining the top and a bike ride away from a sand and gravel pit full of agates and jasper. In Bible Study this morning, the first lesson for next Sunday was Isaiah 51: 1-6. V 1 says "Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the quarry from which you were dug." I have and I remember.
Hi Bob! Buntrock is a name of some renown here in SE Minnesota, and the references to fossiliferous limestone and agates make me wonder if we were contemporaries at a certain liberal arts college hereabouts. I grew up in NJ and my earliest geology memory was searching for interesting rocks in the spoil piles from the mines in Franklin, home of Franklinite and some other rare minerals. Nice chatting with you!
Tyrone, I tried to reply directly so as to not clutter up GK's posts but couldn't. The Buntrock of some renown in SE MN (and elsewhere) is Dean Buntrock, founder and retired CEO of Waste Management, a St. Olaf alumnus and namesake of the student union there. Dean is a "probable cousin" whom I've never met. I'm a Minneapolis native who graduated from UMN (BChem '62). If you want to communicate directly, you should be able to find me at Orono, ME.
There's nothing more to say, GK; you've said it all. You're a good man. Thank you for helping me keep my balance.
This is so beautiful, so inspiring!
Amen. It’s alway best to take the “self” out of selfish. Then you have a healthy gift to share with others. Thank you GK.
Thank you. i live in Mexico and have a God-gjven view which I ignore too often.
Touching column re regret, self pity, t truth love and kindness, brought tears to my eyes.
I also believe that truth, the strength of the American people and our Democracy will defeat that pest that has infected our politics. It would help if some of those on the Right took a Civics lesson
I had the same awesome wonder reaction you did, Garrison, when I was at the GC South Rim in 1991. Tears of joyful faith! And that beautiful sight & feeling has never left my memory.
(I’m in Nashville all my life)