Left, Right Left, On and On:)

There are moments throughout my week that inspire me. Even though this "fight" to change the marriage laws for SSDI recipients feels like running to the end of a rubber band, only to be shot back to where I started, over and over again, there ARE hopeful moments. Yesterday my day started at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts with coffee, pastry, and camaraderie among fellow members as we were led through a private tour of an exhibition celebrating black history. There were certainly some pieces of art, and some elements of the expression, that made me uncomfortable. The charming, pastel-colored, painting of hooded members of the Ku Klux Klan around the hanging body of a dangling black child--was meant to jar me. And so it did. More than any of the other items I saw. But it was astonishing how much I could say about every single thing. And that was thrilling to me. Of course that led to making some fascinating new friends--finding something of a kindred spirit in our museum guide. She and I are both passionate about equality and always have been; what a joy to discover there are so many out there with the same dreams. This inspired me not only to call my congressional representative when I got home, but to rejoin Partners for a Racism-Free Community, an organization I felt I had to leave last year because transportation to their events has always been difficult for me. I'll GET myself there, where ever I have to go, knowing what I do now about the kinds of people awaiting me:) I was also encouraged that, although this endeavor to get the laws changed for SSDI recipients seems depressingly futile, the fight for racial equality has ALSO been going on forever, and if they can keep on keepin' on, so can I! Happily. As long as it takes. Then today, as a final push to cheer me up, the Universe (in the form of a friend on Facebook) posted this video of Il Divo's rendering of "Amazing Grace," just as I'm about to visit my church for what I'm sure will be a stirring concert on their auspicious pipe organ. I hear the Cathedral bells clanging the hour! In light of the cold hard rain, that is nice to hear. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYMLMj-SibU And so it goes, folks! And so it goes.