3/12/2022
My dear Friend & POTUS, JRB,
Did you enjoy your time at Luis Muñoz-Marín Elementary School yesterday? Wasn’t it sweet of that little girl to draw that picture of you? I’m afraid that my daughter would be troubled by the heteronormativity of your comment, “The only thing I want you to remember, no serious guys till you’re 30 years old.” Please avoid such remarks in the future.
I hope you are getting some much-needed rest at Camp David today. Did you bring Commander? If so, taking him out for a romp would be a great way to reduce your cortisol. Some call walking in the woods, “forest bathing,” & researchers have established that it has all kinds of cognitive benefits. They theorize that increased feelings of awe & minimization of interruption give the frontal cortex a chance to rest & recharge. My over-worked colleague noticed the relief she got when she walked with me in our arboretum yesterday. Give it a try.
I wish the people in Ukraine & Myanmar had a chance to recharge in the beautiful forests of their countries. It’s haunting to think that a place that can bring solace on some days, can be a place of trepidation on others. I understand that the Russian convoy on its way to Kiev has dispersed & some soldiers are hiding in the woods. The PDF camps in the jungles of Burma so they can ambush the junta. I hope peace soon returns to those lands.
Today’s papers have several articles about what happens when civilians face authoritarian regimes. You can read about “no pasaran: anti-fascist slogan takes on new significance in Ukraine crisis” in the G about citizen soldiers showing up to fight Franco. The CSM has an article about the courageous citizens of Leipzig, East Germany who gathered to protest Soviet rule in 1989. I was reminded of our own Revolution & revisited Thomas Paine’s writing. “These are the times that try men’s souls…” The lesson of history is that in the end “citizen’s brave insistence on freedom” leads to “victory over tyranny.” Amen!
BYBS,
