Lightness of Being, Explained

http://spiritofmaat.com/archive/nov4/suryadas.htm

Election Day, 2012

Half of Tallahassee had voted early, by this morning, and my thought was that I would give the working people a chance to stand in the line and I would vote later, around 10:00 or after coffee. It worked well for me. The poll worker said that the longest wait had been 59 minutes. I was in the precinct for less than ten minutes.

I love my polling spot which is at a Methodist church, in the woods, near my own house. Voting there gives me a surge of patriotism because I feel as if I am standing in the very midst of the America that I love so much, that I am terribly anxious to protect, and for which I think (as everyone else) I have the answers.

I have not turned on the TV nor listened to the pundits - the talking heads. We will know election results soon enough. I didn't care for any of the local candidates - they lost my esteem through negative advertising. Thank goodness, because of my location in the county, I was spared many of those really tough decisions. 

Because of the political climate in the whole nation, I don't believe that it matters who wins this election. Either nothing or the wrong things are going to get done. Congress is awash. Parties are polarized. Voters are uninformed except for what they want to believe.  

I usually say that if I don't vote I have no room to complain but, today, I'm going to enlarge on that opinion. If I don't stand up and do something, here and now, I am just as bad as the next person who votes a party line and sits back and says, "I did my part." 

No matter who wins this election, I am returning to politics; not in the same ways as when I was younger - canvassing neighborhoods, attending fundraisers or working in campaign offices - but in a brand new role.   

I pledge to follow the legislative process closely in the future, to know who is voting what, to write letters and send emails to my own representatives (and to others) regarding lack of cooperation and failure to put the good of the people first.

Yes, in my own small way, I plan to become a watchdog over the whole group - whether I voted for them or not - not to push my personal agenda but to insure that these elected officials are doing their best for the nation through compromise and common sense. 

I promise to advocate either for or against the policies and voting record of my elected mouthpieces. The next time I see a negative political campaign ad, I will know whether or not it is true.

Wouldn't it be remarkable if every one of us would make this pledge? The people need to come together and say to Congress, "We are mad and we won't take it any more." We will see what tonight brings. God bless America. 

Caroline's Book Reviews

Frelseren by Jo Nesbø
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I read this book in paperback under the name of The Redeemer. Frankly, I'm getting hooked on the European crime novel and Harry Hole has become one of my favorite police heroes.

I'm biting my lip here. I am in two places at once. When I write mystery, I pride myself in being able to kill off anyone, if it suits me. I'm actually getting ready to murder the character modeled after myself in my next chapter. I admire that quality in Nesbø. Anyone can end up dead if it suits his story-line.

Yet, I was thunderstruck when I heard the rumor that Harry Hole himself might be in for a rude chopping up. Or something. I haven't read the interview or the articles online yet. I'm putting that off. I'm selfish. I have not had enough of the tall, blond, alcoholic, screwed-up Harry.

The Redeemer was a fantastic read. You might want to research the Salvation Army before you begin. There is a lot more to that entity (religion? cult? organization? charity?) than meets the eye. Better not to stop later and look things up.

Nesbø is an artist, leading the reader through the mystery with clue upon clue - so that the act of reading becomes a little like working a crossword. He holds one's interest with remarkable action scenes and winds up the story nicely - no lose ends - without rehashing.

My hat is off to Don Bartlett, a remarkable translator. He is getting smoother and smoother as the series goes along. It takes a special talent to work with suspense in two languages and to retain that edge-of-your-chair quality.

Bartlett translates many Scandinavian works into English. His American English vocabulary is growing IMHO. He doesn't call those shoes Doctor Martins, anymore, as the Brits do.

I no longer find the Scandinavian place, street, and proper names too off-putting. It was difficult at first but a big map of Oslo helped. I also have a list of northern European given names (along with their equivalents in other languages) and pronunciations. I want to hear that name the mind is reading.

If you are interested, don't begin with The Redeemer. Google Harry Hole and read the series from the beginning. It's worth a lot to be able to see how the characters and the overall plots evolve on the whole.






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Caroline's Book Reviews

The Perfect Daughter by Cathryn E. Lokey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Poignant and deeply thoughtful, Cathryn Lokey has opened the door to her soul and bid us to come in without first checking our own baggage at the front steps.

The Perfect Daughter is the beautifully written true story of a woman who grew up unblemished in the eyes the church (Latter Day Saints) which educated her, sent her out to mission, and presented her with written testimonies of pride.

Her close-knit family also nurtured her, watched her grow, attended her wedding, and welcomed her new son into the world. She was, in fact, the perfect daughter on every level.

What Cathryn shares with us, however, is the story of a young woman seeking her own path toward the life she intuits (and later knows) that she is meant to live.

As she begins to edge away from an oppressive marriage, Cathryn learns that everything she believed, although certainly not wrong, was not right for her. In fact, it never would be. Could not be.

Sexual orientation, divorce, single parenthood, spiritual doubting, becoming a family in a non-family made up of friends and ex-in-laws, introspection, and self-examination are all part of the journey toward finding the "real" Cathryn- the one God made - who was there all along. She lets us in on all of it.

I wish everyone who has doubts about what their life is supposed to "look like" and wonders, "Where am I going from here?" would read The Perfect Daughter.

I always say that the true measure of the timelessness of the written word (just as in music and art) is the number of hearts that have skipped a beat because of it. Four stars, and you know that I never give five.




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