Actually... nothing in the day itself topped that glimpse of sunbeams breaking through the clouds and glancing off the water. That moment of beauty (what the kids and I used to call taking a "deep breath of beauty" when we made that trip daily) was in itself what made the day special.
And in fact, there were two pieces of disturbing news today.
First: colleague Sami Schalk who describes themselves as "a Black, queer, disabled professor" was thrown to the ground, choked, and had their dress nearly ripped off by the police as they were supporting their students at U-W Madison. Horrifying but inspiring. I much prefer Sami's earlier moment of renown, also inspiring, which was twerking on stage with Lizzo! (Article about her pleasure and disability studies activism here.)
And then there was news that Paul Auster had died. I came close to meeting him a couple of times when we lived in NJ, but didn't. I did meet tons of English grad students in the early part of this century who wanted to live in Brooklyn because he did though. He was a veteran of the 1968 protests at Columbia University, so there is some resonance with the events of this week. I love when he said, "The novel is the only place where two strangers can meet on terms of absolute intimacy." That the two strangers he had in mind were the writer and the reader, is just so perfect.
Pic: Early morning skies over the Maple River. I'm not a fan of the term "crepuscular rays," but they are so beautiful! I'd find ways to stand in their beams when I was a kid and feel like I'd been touched by the sky's blessings.
5 comments:
I can't believe what's happening on our college campuses. What are we teaching our young people?
Beautiful picture.
That's terrible about your colleague. It's scary how violent the response to the protests has become. Meanwhile, Congress is calling the DC police to testify about whey they HAVEN'T done that at GW.
To be clear, they are being called to justify their restraint, not being held up as examples.
Engie--I really don't get it! Smaller colleges like mine have been able to support and manage protests better than the Ivies and other big-name ones.
Steph--It's so frustrating... Honestly, it feels like a slide into fascism.
Be careful.
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