Enduro

Writing about the government shutdown is not sexy. It's not glamorous, it's not fun. But y'all, I am swimming in it. To try to ignore it would be absurd. Wouldn't it?

I went downtown to get some much needed acupuncture today. As usual, the Sufi acupuncturist named the situation precisely within seconds of feeling my pulses. He used words like rattled, from within and without, he said. He used the word chaos. His diagnostic accuracy is rather miraculous.

The streets of DC are full of gloom and doom. The weather of course reflects the mood precisely. It's cloudy and chilly, damp. Every time I thought I was almost warm this morning, an unpleasant wind would kick up. In addition to being rattled, I was walking around shivering this morning, with a fairly sour look on my face. I assure you I was not the only one!

OK, I have complained enough. I know this will not last forever. Though no one can say for sure, it doesn't feel like the end of our government, so they will have to get it together and figure something out. They will.

In the meantime I am healthy, doing good work. I love my new camera. Every one of my devices is functioning perfectly. I live in a beautiful house on a grand street in a city that is beautiful, powerful, and particularly at this moment in time, in a lot of pain.

From the wing of Grandfather Eagle, where I'm sometimes allowed to ride, I get glimpses of the big picture. We are moving forward rather quickly as a society. There are problems of course, and the disparity in wealth is never a good sign in any culture. That's what happens just before empires tank - but we have also made huge strides forward.

I remember clearly the Civil Rights movement. My parents were heavily involved. To think that we moved from that to electing a black president in only fifty years is astonishing. My current theory is that the rise of the Tea Party reflects the the emotional reaction of those who - even if they don't think of themselves as racist - are somewhat appalled every time they see black folks living in the White House. It is not traditional. Nope. I think for a percentage of Americans, this huge turn from what has always been feels threatening. Marriage equality feels threatening to some, women's reproductive rights kick some people into survival mode. Gays in the military, immigration reforms and health care reform, too? Oh my. For conservatives, it's way too much change, way too fast.

For we progressives, it's never enough change and never fast enough.

What I see when I ride on the wing of Grandfather Eagle is that once the horse is out of the barn, closing the door will do no good. We'll look back on the Tea Party, its rise and quick demise. We'll tell the stories. Believe me. It's going to take awhile to work through, but we will persevere. Onwards and upwards.

Shalom.