“Sweet coupled airs we sing
No lonely seafarer
Holds clear of entering
Our Green mirror”
~ Homer, Book 12, 173 - 173
I have been here, in this place – a state of being and mind, for almost six months. Is there really nothing to write about this day, or the day before or the day before that? It is doubtful. Spring hints at being on the way. It continues to rain, although not with the persistent ferocity of a few weeks ago. The day stays light until 5 PM. All this is a joy, but not enough to write about today. The peace of this mild winter has become a Siren’s Song for me. I’m stuck. The terror of the blank page has me in its grip - it is easier to moan about not writing than to struggle against the sweet sound of the Siren Inertia. Fortunately I do not depend of writing for a living. But, I do depend on writing as a point of connection and for being a kind of sand painting that helps me sort through the business Life tosses in my path or that of others within my sensory range. So today, lashed to the mast (in this case my key board to serve as mast) with Odysseus I listen and write. Why? Because like Odysseus, I can listen and write...I think I can, that is.
There is so much to ponder that it has become difficult to sort through. First I am homesick for New England, even though I hate shoveling snow, cannot afford the overwhelming cost of home heating fuel, have developed a morbid fear of falling on ice and adore the green rich environment of the Northwest…I miss the intellectual and creative air of the East Coast. I miss friends, familiar roads and even a New England turn of phrase. Then, I am consumed with thoughts about elder health care in today’s heavy handed regulatory environment, even as we as a nation struggle with how to get and pay for health care to more people. Haiti weighs on my mind. What is next there? When does hurricane season begin? How will people be sheltered? How much orthopedic (related to thousand of crush injuries) help will come their way in the months ahead? What happens when 1000s of people need amputations and prosthetic appliances? Who will do the rehab? Will we send aid for that? The orphans, who will care for them? Orphaned elders and infants alike have the potential of becoming a grim source of political wrangling and statistical data gathering and still not receive the aid and comfort they need. It was a problem before the earth quake and it will be worse as the media scrutiny dwindles.
