Hank drove to McCall with us this week. It is excellent when he wants to spend time with us. It is helpful if you know he is pretty smart with technology and an avid gamer. During the journey he asked the question: how much longer? We were not quite half way but I quickly said we were and it would be about an hour. A few minutes later he said we are 47 minutes from the cabin. Are you looking at google maps? No, the internet was down so I just set a timer. I had to admit I was probably off by 15 minutes and he accepted that as genuine and reset the timer to the new target. We were to arrive at the cabin at 4:07 and nearly made it. It was a fun way to pass the time and discuss something with Hank that I can comprehend.
This story stuck in my head because lately I have been going back in time. What to do to fill the extra moments each day? I started in the garage and have consolidated and eliminated my way to the point of not much left to do. Someone told it was a good idea to de clutter and purge my space of those things that are not bringing me joy. I immediately thought of my golf clubs but I can’t quit that game again – I am addicted and it is what I do with friends. I saw my messy, disorganized golf hat collection and decided to take a picture of all of them and send them down the road. The picture is enough to remind me of the great past adventures on the links. Karen humored me and helped me arrange my favorites for the picture. Best of all, the hats reminded me of people and places I had experienced. I invested a few google hours on the north coast of Ireland where the Atlantic Ocean thunders against amazing rock cliffs and golf courses are unique and challenging. I revisited Ballyliffin, Royal Portrush, Portstewart, and Donegal. This was an excellent way to invest time – educational, I relearned about Irish whiskey from the oldest distillery in Ireland, Bushmills. I kept most of the hats, they bring me joy.
Time magazine is memorable this week. The cover is a painting of a Black mother holding a baby. The picture from artist Titus Kaphor’s new work, Analogous Colors, is striking. In the artist’s expansion on the meaning of the this time in history he wrote “I cannot sell you this painting, 2020”. To quote a few lines, “in her expression, I see the Black mothers who are unseen, and rendered helpless in this fury against their babies,” … “ I paint a Black mother…eyes closed, furrowed brow, holding the contour of her loss.” I encourage you to read his words, as he eloquently tells the story of despair felt by Black mothers over our recorded history, the painting is a tribute to and reminder of those who “understand despair”. As a first, circling the cover are listed 35 names of those whose deaths can be laid at the doorstep of racism and who helped fuel the fire of the Black Lives Matter movement. The black back page of the magazine says only, “Say Their Names.” There is much more to the story than George Floyd’s senseless death.
Regardless of what The Rolling Stones lyrics suggest, time is not on our side. Let’s all find a way to make a positive difference today. Mike