Paul Kingsnorth has said “Put the peace of your heart before everything.” I work at this, especially when I walk, but if I’ve made the mistake of reading Facebook first thing, my mind darts like swallows.
I’ve scrolled through news of someone’s dog hit by a car, commentary on the latest mass shooting, the latest crazy Illinois law, our politicians acting in their best interest, local weather, an author’s new novel, a friend’s son’s wedding. I click on a reel and see a bridge fail, plunging a horse and rider into a rushing river. Facebook washes my mind, so I can’t think straight. I am outraged and frightened. But still I look.
I've seen enough of the wickedness underpinning our country to know some disaster is billowing like a tornado warned storm. There’s an authoritarian noose wrapping around us. I fear it will take violence to snip it. Violence will be the response.
As I walk, I watch a reef of clouds off to the northwest tinged a faint mauve. I marvel at the color and turn east, the sun muted. Mr. Dog sniffs the wood chuck holes on the shoulder. Mrs. Dog walks along companionably. When I turn back toward home I watch how the sun draws a line, lighting up fields miles away. A few pigeons lift off, their wings clacking. I watch the light draw closer, the fields changing color, brightening, until the light surrounds me, the dogs and the fields nearby.
I’m Katie Andraski and that’s my perspective.
