In October I’ll be going on my annual trip to Japan. My partner will be joining me, now that his work life is in the rearview mirror. I’m planning to introduce him to many adventures I’ve figured out over the past few years. Doubtless, we’ll also find new adventures. At the beginning of our trip,… Continue reading The Heart Sutra with Tooltips
Category: Identity
Living a Guarded Life
Posted Living a Guarded Life.
Living a Guarded Life
Most mornings Dwight, my partner of 32 years, makes the first pot of the day. I get to enjoy the brew in bed while reading the New York Times. Usually I’m squirming at the news of more dog whistles from the White House. Delaying the Harriet Tubman $20 bank note is just one example of… Continue reading Living a Guarded Life
There Is No Road
Traveler, your footprints are the only road, nothing else. Traveler, there is no road; you make your own path as you walk. As you walk, you make your own road, and when you look back you see the path you will never travel again. Traveler, there is no road only a ship’s wake on the… Continue reading There Is No Road
A Crosswalk in Nagano
Posted A Crosswalk in Nagano.
A Crosswalk in Nagano
One Monday afternoon in April 2016 I got to see something which, once seen, has been impossible to un-see. I’m standing at a crosswalk in Nagano, Japan, reading a ditty on the back of a man’s shirt: Indian Boys, Indian Boys, Oh how I love those Indian Boys The image of an American Indian dreamcatcher… Continue reading A Crosswalk in Nagano
Hearing Native Voices
Scaffold In May 2017, I stood behind a chain link fence that was covered with protest notices. “Shame on you”“Take it down”“There is no art in genocide”“Not art, not a game, not experience, not your story, not your family” Behind the fence, in the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, workers were putting the finishing touches to a… Continue reading Hearing Native Voices
Sacred Water
“Discovered” Cold Water Spring which supplied Fort Snelling and is considered to be sacred by some Native Americans. The National Park Service administers the spring and surrounding restored prairie.
Decoding a Crane
What are we thinking? I’m in Japan. A lone crane swoops low over a large, exquisitely landscaped pond. There are two other bystanders; they smile contentedly as the crane reinforces a common bond, evoking fragments of mysticism, national treasure, longevity, good fortune, origami, the number 1,000, childhood memories, and current dreams. I’m seeing a crane… Continue reading Decoding a Crane