Dear family —
I too enjoy seeing you guys in my in-box. In fact it was an amusing resistance to see 1, 2, 3, 4 emails pop up in the middle of a busy morning, knowing I had to set my priorities but wanting to set time aside. Finally, at 12:30, I printed them all out just before getting into my car for a Naperville closing, intent on reading them as I drove. But first, on the way, I called Josh, who I saw had not contributed yet. “You must be busy too,” I said. He was —and he kindly discouraged me from reading while driving. Good call, bro. I did eventually find a stationary moment to read, but by the end of the day I was beat and fell asleep in front of a replaying of “Yojimbo”.
But I enjoy the inspiring dialogue —or should it be quintalogue? Dan, we have had quite a few two or three month rounds of these talks in the past, and you are especially good at throwing out four or five topics at once, making it easy to respond to at least 1 or 2 of the most stirring. Mom, you have been great at bringing us back to devotions, and I mean that sincerely; where I am often amused by Dan’s far-reaching allegories, I think we need a bible verse or a personal testimony as often or even more. Josh, you are a constant testimony and example of healing, just in the way you sign out Peace and Immanuel and convey how much you mean it —even when you attached Andy Summers songs! And Anne, you are our more practical side, a bit of a product of Mom in that regard but you bring your own brand. Funny, Dan, you should raise Ruskin, because this is, in a sense, what we are: Soldier, Pastor, Physician, Merchant, Lawyer.
(I was about to proceed with a revisionist memory about Ruskin, substituting Poet for Lawyer. Alas, even here I am more lawyer than poet, but I was looking for an excuse to share this in yesterday’s paper from Michael Phillips’s 4-star review of “Poetry,” a Korean Cannes entrant last year: the main character attends a poetry class with explanation more than apology: “I do like flowers and say odd things.”)
Also funny, Ruskin, because it reminds me of the spark of Dan’s and my conversation years ago. I had a particularly memorable law school professor, Prof. Abrams, who taught contract law by turning at length to the parable of the steward, “Unto this last...” John Ruskin wrote an essay with the same name, but Prof. Abrams, very Jewish by the way, liked to turn directly to Jesus’s words to illustrate how the steward honored each contract even though they weren’t particularly “fair” in comparison to one another. Which brings me right to your positure, Mom. Where in the bible does it talk about rights? Well, in that parable for one, and it probably does elsewhere too in some way or another, but I think it is just as notable that it was Jesus who most markedly separated church and state. Rights and laws and courts are all important, but we pharisees need to look beyond.
I am attaching a poem I wrote after Obama’s inaugural — and you do not have to be Democrat to appreciate the endurance of our heritage, if not my poem. It was John Locke who spoke in the 16th century, 75 years before Rousseau, of inalienable rights, and I do believe they are inalienable, not because they are printed on a bill but because they are given to us by the steward. These are not the rights of governments but the rights that allow individuals to rise up above their Gaddafis and Mubareks and King Georges. Which is why I support the movement in Madison. And it is not about unions, but about individuals afraid of the tide of government —or the “tea-bag” support of corporate interests —turning us to a time when there will be less worker’s benefits —less chance of even having effective worker’s compensation laws, for instance, or reasonable vacation or sick time, or health care benefits. These are all products of union efforts that have spread beyond membership, but take away the last hold of unions, their right to collectively bargain, and these may slowly slip away. And who are the unionists anyway? All squarely in the lower 90% of our economy (see Mother Jones latest issue: the average salary of 90% of American households is $31,000.) Better question: who are the tea party protestors but people at the beck and call, shills if you will, of the other 10%, or really the top 0.01% (see again, Mother Jones). This is not democracy, it’s lobbying gone bad. Someone from Michigan said on a radio call-in show yesterday that General Motors, American made, American built, used to be our number one employer. Now it’s Walmart. Are we to blame union greed for the rise of Walmart? Or profit-mongering and tax structuring that favors imported products and exported jobs and increasingly larger corporate control?
Okay, I’ll take a breath. I’m still debating whether to drive up to Madison today, but this is where I’m at. The rally is at noon, and I do have to be back for Andrew’s hunger strike at 5pm. We are all talk on these things, maybe, but there is something to standing on principal even a little at a time.
Now, the name of the production company. Yes, “Idiot” is amusing, but my vote is no. I read Dosty’s Idiot 20 years ago, and enjoyed it (especially liked the lapdog scene), but then a few years ago I started reading it again and it became one of those books I carried around for four months until I finally realized the impression I was giving. They should have printed the title a little smaller. And the longer it took me to get through that book, the dumber I looked. But I vote no not just for my own pride, though I do not always want to write something heartfelt and sign off as an Idiot —but for your sakes too. I can see myself starting a family missive Dear Woebegoners or Dear Lam-Vold-Jaegerovs, but Dear Idiots? No and no! I do like the Moose book remembrance, though. If this is what we produce, books for our attics but books we can feel proud to let future generations find, that is good. I would still like to aspire to more, though. I now have four complete books on my shelf that will someday be found in attics, and I do wish I could do more with these: they are (1) my 30 Birds collection, which has somewhat evolved beyond what is on Mom’s shelf; (2) Calendrums, a subsequent poetry collection; (3) Walled Gardens, a re-reflection of Sanai, a 10th century Sufi poet; and (4) “March to December,” which collects my 1990 writings. Yes, maybe I’m an Idiot for thinking I’ve had something to say with these. But I do like birds and say odd things.
Love always,
Jon
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