Month: August 2023

“Strife like this does people good”

The world harbors two kinds of strife. One promotes healthy competition among neighbors. The other determined by the will of the gods. Or so the rustic poet proposed.

Due to personal and professional reasons, my commuting practice has not included Amtrak®. At least not for the last few months. The last time I took the train to work snow remained on the ground. Yet, in spite of the long absence a fellow commuter kindly informed me of recent service changes. I was on the wrong side of the train platform. Due to summer construction, the northbound train runs on a different track. She shared other details as a long lost friend might. A thread of conversation resumed based on our mutual commuting practice.

When I boarded, one conductor greeted me with a common honorific and my surname. As I took a seat, another conductor passed by with a welcoming, casual good morning and my first name. As if I had only been gone for a long weekend. “Good morning,” I replied.

The idea of relationships and strife are themes I have considered since that summer day. This may be a contrast between the modern (relationships) and the ancient (strife). Personal or professional, the desire to belong or feel wanted or at least tolerated is vital. This is true for individuals as well as community. To nurture a relationship requires work. And intent. The commuter and the conductors thought I was important enough to connect with. If only in a casual or professional capacity, it provided a feeling of belonging. Should relationships be free of conflict? Should relationships exclusively nurture polite exchanges? What about course correction?

If I ignored the commuter, I would have been on the southbound train instead of the northbound train. The poet wrote: “when a person’s lazing about sees his neighbor/getting rich. . .” Or in my case, with headphones on I see my neighbor on the other side of the track and heading north. . . “Strife like this does people good.” In this manner, strife does not need to be abrasive. To achieve good correction and instruction apply decency and respect. Even honor.

August archives

Were all summers like this one? What were the stories of previous Augusts?

The summer passed. Choked by excessive heat and wildfire smoke. Like the blur of highway signs in the predawn light, it sped by. Were all summers like this one? What were the stories of previous Augusts?

From three years ago:

Something in front of you right now was designed by some unseen modern peasant who worked long hours with short deadlines. . .

The visible and invisible nature of graphic design

From five years ago:

Have you ever written something that developed a life — even an audience — unexpected?

Patience – your writing finds the right audience

That August Asheville evening, more than a decade ago, was one of the last nights our two families enjoyed supper and stories together.

Language is communal

Eight years ago:

“There is juju with these things,” he said inspecting one of the shields I painted. “People connect with this stuff, because it was created with human hands. Not some computer.”

From the office in the oak grove

Dare I go back any further? Ten years ago. Nothing appears to be written in August. What about fifteen years ago?

It is interesting to learn which individual poems became the foundation of my journey into poetry.

What’s your all time favorite poems

Eighteen years ago:

A poetry reading is like an art gallery portfolio review.

Poetry, a gift

Looking back over these August thoughts, essays, meditations. . . this modern peasant needs to devote more time to things made by human hands. So much of my professional life is filled with screen time, that it is time to return to handmade art, design, and poetry.