The Muse July 2022 issue

It has been a long time. The Muse has been quiet, reflecting, observing, questioning. Rethinking.

The world does seem as if it's all going to hell. An ongoing pandemic. A war in Europe. A bitterly divided country. Loss of rights we once took for granted. Economic recession looming. Add a little slow-rolling climate crisis while we're at it. On top of all that, too many voices clamoring for attention, competing for fame, status, resources, power. The more you see and hear the less of it you want to know about.

How do we wrap our minds around it all? When do we stop the train and get off? I bet you know a few people who got off several stations back.

But maybe we don't. Maybe we stay and work our way to the front to help keep the train running, and on the tracks.

As a kid, politics was one of those things I had absolute zero interest in. My grandfather would try to explain the political cartoons in the newspaper, but I just couldn't get into it. It wasn't until much later that I had my first taste of political work, when I did pro bono work for a group of environmental attorneys working on green jobs legislation for the State of New York. I ran around the halls of state government, meeting with politicians and trying to convince them to pass our model bill.

At the time it was a one-off project, buoyed by my commitment to sustainability and corporate social responsibility in business. But fate takes unexpected turns sometimes. Earlier this year, by a complete fluke I met a young congressional candidate, and ended up joining his campaign as his communications director. His name is Ajwang Rading. A Black man born into homelessness in Los Angeles—you'd think all the odds were stacked against him. But he never gave up, diligently powering through the daily challenge of living unhoused, until he had a law degree from UCLA. From then on there was no stopping him.

For the first time in many months, I felt energized, hopeful, and involved. Campaigning is not easy work, but nothing truly worth doing ever is. No matter the outcome or final result, it's the action, the journey that matters. If you care about the world you live in, you've got to put skin in the game.

We didn't win the primary, but we won thousands of minds and hearts, and gave them hope. We had people telling us they haven't been this excited about a candidate since President Obama.

I do admit I've toyed with the idea of running for office myself, but at the end of the day, I am a storyteller. Always have been, always will be. You are most effective when you stick to your natural born talent, not when you follow ambition—no matter how well intentioned that ambition may be. I've also been around the sun enough times to know nothing is ever as shiny as it looks from the outside. No matter the profession, no matter the circumstance, no matter the outward appearance (remind me to tell you the story of the Silicon Valley CEO).

One thing I do encourage: throwing yourself full force into new experiences. You'll discover more of yourself than you ever thought possible. Oh, ya think ya know who you are? Try something you've never done before.

You'll be a better--or at least wiser--human for it.

~ Birgitte

 

The Mini Muse isn't so "mini" any more. A half-inch more and she surpasses mama's height. My inches are numbered! Sigh.

I've learned that a parent's real purpose (not job, purpose) is to adapt. We're constantly adapting to our children's evolution—well, more like catching up. Potty trained? Great, let's move on to teaching your diaperless child wonder about those pretty little deadly berries on bushes everywhere. Done that? Ok next, the first kindergarten field trip. Then suddenly, you're negotiating trendy hair cuts and fashion choices... all at eye level.

In Aria's case, it's a mix of the big-world stuff (art exhibits) with the usual kid stuff (soccer practice, biking, play dates, and the ever-present drive to consume more than the recommended daily allowance of sweets).

I do miss those insanely demanding but so soul-filling early years. I'm grateful to have had so many of those days, though, because not all parents have that option. Especially here in the U.S.

So what's the Mini Muse working on now? She's put her brushes down for a bit–although she's still drawing every day. Her writing genes have sprouted strong--her current project is a novel, which I'm trying to convince her to do as a graphic novel first... after all, she is a natural born artist. It'd be only natural, no?

She's also doing an online camp in AI. Yep, as in artificial intelligence. Personally, I could do without a technology whose creators think it's the best thing since the wheel, but since it's here, better try and understand it and be a part of the movement that's trying to steer it down the right path. Otherwise, as so much else humanity has produced, it might slip down the wrong one.

As they say, it's the future generations who'll have to save the world from ourselves. And boy have they got their work cut out for them. But I disagree. It's not a burden our children should have to carry—they've got nothing to do with it. It's on us adults.