AMERICA'S ELEGY?

A series of essays....

"THE SCREAM" BY EDVARD MUNCH

                   Courtesy of www.EdvardMunch.org

....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E. Hughes

AMERICA’S ELEGY?

For: The Administration of Donald John Trump

This is where the underlying sound builds into

a familiar cadence, grows slowly, gently pulsing,

and millions sway in union, in dignity and truth,

to celebrate a death, a new life, or both along their path.

This is where we hear the subtle sound vibrating in our ears

as the sunset bursts with shades of orange and red

and the air has turned to blood pulsing, pulsing,

indicative of a roiling wave of light that changes colors.

This is where the haunting beat picks up the pace

and the people begin to march to a different drummer.

This is where the skies return to a distinct shade of blue,

hearts shift their heavy loads and become softer, lighter.

This is where the people decide to honor life once again,

bring in hope and sunlight instead of fear and hate

and say ‘rest in peace’ to a situation meant to harm us—

living the way our forefathers called on us to understand life.

CAPTAIN AMERICA WANTS YOU TO VOTE!

                                     Courtesy of brodiehbrockie

The rain has dissipated. Listening to the occasional ‘ping’ of the droplets that fall on the roof from the variety of golden leaves hovering over our ‘Little Cottage’ is all that remains of the recent deluge. Waking-up to the heavy sounds of rainfall an hour ago, in the dark, chilly, early morning shadows, required me to snuggle into my makeshift robe (an oversized, gray, cotton shirt), collect my i-Pad, and move to my favorite writing spot. The clock above the fireplace has recently ‘bonged’ its five-thirty alarm.

Many of us have been giving some serious thought about the current world we live in and reflecting on what has been, is, and what could be in store for our future, depending upon which shade of wave might be hitting us next Tuesday.

Need I wonder at all why shivers run down my arms as I sit here in my repurposed space, stacked stone fireplace a gaping black hole across the room, screaming at me in the early morning hours? Entering the mind of Edvard Munch, the Norwegian Expressionist artist, born in 1863 and died in 1944, this early in the day can be very frightening. It might set a less desired tone for the coming weekend. I don’t want that to happen. Sunday marks my day of birth...so many years ago now that time seems to be overlapping itself, like the curtains at the center when closed; like the grandchild’s eyes that resemble my own and hold the secrets of the universe in their bottomless depths.

I recall researching Munch and the multiple versions of his popular work, The Scream, for a story I wrote several years ago. The death of his Mother when he was five, the death of his sister when Munch was thirteen, and the emotional loss and support by his Father who fell into a deep depression following his own great losses, Munch defined in his most iconic work how we see ourselves today, wracked with anxiety and uncertainty, often plagued by our own internal fear and doubt.

"My fear of life is necessary to me, as is my illness," he once wrote. "Without anxiety and illness, I am a ship without a rudder....My sufferings are part of my self and my art. They are indistinguishable from me, and their destruction would destroy my art."

Why is it impossible for me to relinquish the hold that this sad yet extremely brilliant man has on me? So often tragic circumstances that happen at the most vulnerable moments of our lives can set the precedent that shapes our future and makes us who we are as adults. Munch seemed to think so. If fear of life is necessary for some people to feel alive and productive, so be it. Do not drag me down into the blackish depths of despair along with you. I have much better things to accomplish during my few, short years here on earth and there is, quite simply, no time for nonsense! Celebrating yet another year of life makes one more aware of the truth.

WHAT IS A 'SPECIAL DAY'
WITHOUT IRISH FLOWERS?

I recall a time as a young writer when I believed that my best work was written under the dark cloud of sorrow and pain. Happiness was a stumbling block when it came to being a creative person. Really? Was a wayward college professor of mine going through a bad divorce or something? Soon after college I discovered that, in a sense, this philosophy would become truth as I happily married at twenty-two and we began our family soon afterward. My writing became fifth or sixth in line of importance. Fortunately, I wrote in my daily journals and kept-up with my travel notes, all of which have become so important to me today!

Within the past two years many people have discovered or, at least, become much more aware of the hatred, intolerance, and racist attitudes thrust upon us by others; even among the people we work with or live nearby and thought we knew so well. That’s quite disturbing when you think about it. All of the anger, hate, fear, and raw emotions have surfaced because there is no longer a governor on these human machines, holding them back or keeping them reined-in within this current political climate.

Then again, just maybe...we need to know where we stand, where others stand, especially when it comes down to how we treat and respect other human beings! 

I do hear the sounds of the people today! I hear a low, underlying sound that continues to build into a familiar cadence, growing slowly, gently pulsating, yet rising, rising to the surface with each breath that is taken and every speech that is spoken and every march that is stepped in order to unify us and retain our basic rights. It was brought to life as a small-scale dirge, a mournful song honoring the death of ‘stupidity and greediness’ and has grown into a movement carried along by the flow of peace and the rhythms of a giant wave crashing headlong into a crimson wall of hatred and separation.

My hope and belief is that Munch’s painting of a sexless, twisted, fetal-faced creature, with mouth and eyes opened wide in a shriek of horror will not haunt me any longer. My dreams will become softer, lighter, and less wracked with anxiety and uncertainty. Such Joy! Such Peace!

And, if I am good, if I am very, very fortunate, and if all Americans eighteen and older take advantage of their precious obligation to vote on Tuesday, November 6....then, I will receive two of the most precious gifts possible this year,  for my Special Day....the gift of Common Sense and the gift of Love. Who could ask for anything more? 

Vote on Tuesday if you haven’t already via early voting or absentee ballot. Vote as if your life depended upon it.....and, it does! VOTE...!

I want to wake-up on Wednesday morning smiling, observe older couples holding hands in the park, watch people laugh with one another in the local market, and...see all of us giving someone else a helping hand when needed. Together we can make all of this happen again!

Copyright © 2018 by Jacqueline E. Hughes

All rights reserved

FROM CARDBOARD FORTS TO LOCKED DOORS AND FEAR....THE NEW GENERATION!

A series of essays....

THE AGE OF INNOCENCE,  A CHARACTER STUDY BY THE ENGLISHMAN,
JOSHUA REYNOLDS, WAS COMPLETED AROUND 1786

 Courtesy of: en.m.wikipedia.org

....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E. Hughes

The Age of Innocence, as my generation perceived it growing up in the 1950’s, is rapidly changing! The simplicity of being a child, free to roam and discover the small world around them, is being exchanged for real fears that stifle the purity of their daily lives.  I believe that The Age of Innocence is the struggle to reconcile the old with the new.... But, at what cost to all of the innocent children?

Can we any longer.....

Leave the doors to our house and automobile unlocked just because we live in a small town or community?

Knock on a stranger’s door to ask for directions or help and not expect to have someone accost us with a firearm?

Pack school lunches for our children without wondering if something bad could happen to them during the day at school; when they come home from school?

Watch our teenage daughter go out for a run with earbuds on, innocently listening to her favorite tunes, and not be concerned about her safety....even in broad daylight?

Not worry about our elementary school child walking home a block or two alone after being let off from the bus?

Be a child of African American decent and not require to learn specific rules and regulations in order to coexist among White children and adults?

Leave for our place of employment and not have to wonder if a disgruntled employee (current or past) will be stalking the premises with the intent to cause harm to those who work there?

I am old enough to know that many to all of the above examples could have and, most likely, did occur years ago, as well. The consistency by which they occur today is what concerns most of us.....especially regarding the mass school shootings that have taken so many young, innocent lives! They have robbed us of so much intelligence and potential towards making our world a better, more productive place to live and have inflicted incredible, lasting pain among the families and friends that survive after such an egregious event.

And, yes, having the broad spectrum of the media today reach out to us in so many different ways has a lot to do with allowing us to instantly feel the impact of such horrific acts of hatred and disregard for human life itself. What glory such a deranged mind seeks and is gifted with when they know that their ‘dirty’ deed reaches such notoriety so quickly and in real time. Lives touting such obscene ‘legends’ have become prolific in this time of instant media coverage.

Am I kidding myself here? Was there ever such a thing as living in jubilant innocence in the first place? Or, did we convince ourselves that living in a small town guaranteed that you knew all of your neighbors well enough and offered a comfort that stemmed from your parents and grandparents who lived there before you? Generations ago it was more likely that you remained in the same town that you grew-up in rather than fly-off into the great unknown following your dreams. We would be safer if we just stayed put. Or, so we believed.

With changing times, we have become travelers of the entire world and often decide to visit and live in places that our grandparents had never even heard of or read about. The earth has become a smaller place in this regard, however, our knowledge of different people, their culture and traditions, has grown immensely and we are learning how to comfortably commingle with all the people of the world. 

Sadly, continuing to follow along our current path, the legacy we pass down to our children and grandchildren will be of students crouching down beneath their desks as they are drilled to react to a shooter within their school. Or, to fear the color of someone’s skin for they may want to cause you physical harm. Understanding that if you speak-up and say what you feel deep inside, you could be taken away and locked-up. And, to love freely the person of your choice could be against the law of the land. 

Unfortunately, the legacy we pass down to the children would be their lack of freedom; the same freedoms we knew and cherished as a child growing-up in America! The innocence we luxuriated in and may have taken for granted, has disintegrated into the dust particles of fear, hatred, and isolation which has contributed to anxiety about future uncertainties or how we stack-up among the different levels of society as we know it.

Can we turn the tables? I will always believe that we can. Eliminating the source of such fear and hatred by those who exasperate us by promoting negativity and friction between various groups would be a huge start! If you are eighteen or older, making your vote count this November would be a giant step towards turning our topsy-turvy world in a slightly more upright position. 

Ultimately, we need the United States government to be on our side again, we the people, and fighting for the ‘little person’ who happens to make-up the vast majority of this great nation; the people who work hard for a living and strive every day to make this country stronger and better from the bottom....up. Not the other way around! Our neighbors whom we trusted with our unlocked homes and vehicles are, once again, those we would do anything for as we assume they would do for us.

All children deserve the right to feel free of guilt through lack of knowledge of evil. He or she should be protected from cunning or deceit for as long as humanly possible. Childhood is living in a fairytale world without structure or worldliness and where the imagination can run rampant. Our children are entitled to enjoy this inherent freedom, this privilege of living, even for a little while, within a world that is charmed and innocent....

Every child deserves the right to have time to explore and time to waste. These are the little things that help to make this country the best it can be right now; the best it can be in the future! 

Please exercise your right to vote on November 6! Allow the innocent children of America to enjoy the freedom and joy of living a childhood that enriches their imaginations instead of harboring their fears. I thank all of you in advance. Vote!

Copyright © 2018 by Jacqueline E. Hughes

All rights reserved