Yesterday, I noticed for the first time that gray clouds could float over gray, clouded skies.
Today the sky is blue and the grass wet with last night's rain. Opening my eyes, I felt the presumptuousness of the living.
Yesterday, I removed all those whose feeds on Facebook argue for gun-ownership or who picture their smiling children, shooting, in grassy fields. Within seconds, a relative said good-bye and is gone. Today, I will feel the presumptuousness of the living.
Yesterday, I got a message from the Friend Who Loves Jane Austen that he had Sophie's medication in hand, the copy of her birth certificate and a letter from me, authorizing its transport from the cold north. Today I can only ponder the country I live in, where I might have more easily ordered rounds of ammunition and received them quicker than the two-month supply of medication to ease the seizures of my epileptic daughter. These are the thoughts of the presumptuous living.
I will go now and buy the things that I'll need to carry on today, the flour and sugar to bake, the champagne to toast. I will take my boys to basketball tryouts and lacrosse games. I will greet the caregiver at the door this morning, the tree lights sparkling in the corner. Our gratitude will be of the presumptuous living.
And in this, perfection.
ReplyDeleteAnd it is the flour and the sugar and the twinkling of the lights that will remind us to go on living, however presumptuously, so that we can remember the balance of light and dark and the contrast between the puffy grey clouds and the darker grey sky beneath. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteLove.
Oh, oh!
ReplyDeleteStunning, as always.
People were posting pictures of their kids shooting???????
ReplyDeleteI must say, among my Facebook friends I haven't seen anyone post anything quite THAT provocative. Even the gun-rights people seem to be shocked into silence by the magnitude of this horror.
Steve, I should have been clearer. The people I removed from my Facebook page were those who I know are very conservative and are very into the Second Amendment. A couple of them have photos of their children with large guns and have comments below them talking about "good parenting," "kicking ass," etc. No one had any of this shit posted specifically after the shootings, though -- I'm just tired of seeing it at all.
Deletei too have removed a few fb "friends" who within 24 hours of the shooting who had to start in on the "liberal agenda." Anyone who uses "..the liberal agenda" on their fb status within one day of 20 children in body bags has some serious freakin' issues. america needs to have a CONVERSATION about gun laws. No one is gonna take your precious freaking GUNS people, but things obviously need to be examined and changed! Maybe if their baby was shot through the heart 11 days before christmas they would not be so resistant to this conversation!
ReplyDeletethis isn't an issue that needs to be politicized, but there are always people who get off on polarizing everything. It's an issue as human beings that need to be discussed without extremist thinking. It's enough to make me sick. Twenty babies dead and the extreme conservatives are STILL finding a way to bitch about "the liberals" and their goddamn guns. I just want to scream "Get a GRIP on your humanity!"
yes, presumptuousness of the living. xo
ReplyDelete