Here we are

 Well, I’ve read more than enough articles now on why Trump won and Harris lost. The most convincing explanation to me is that Americans felt richer when Trump was last in power. That was because of all the government’s social and economic programmes laid on because of Covid. People felt better off, more secure, and inflation was low. After lockdown, Biden was unable to continue those programmes, though he tried, and now people feel insecure, poor and they’re coping with high inflation. 

And yet, and yet, how could they vote for someone with so many unpleasant characteristics, someone who threatens democracy as well as the future of the world?

I’ve realised that just like the issue of the current genocide in Gaza…there are two distressing aspects of Trump’s victory - the very fact of it, and the fact that millions and millions of Americans are willing to vote for such a person. 

With the tragedy in Gaza, there’s the fact of it, and then there’s the fact that the world’s leaders are watching it and letting it happen.

But I am not going to read any more about America for a while, and I can currently not bear to go beyond the headlines on Gaza.

“To make injustice the only measure of our attention is to praise the Devil.” (Jack Gilbert from his poem Brief for the Defence.)

So…

Real life at Hepworth Towers has been good. I have not minded the lack of sunshine because it has been perfect cycling and gardening weather: dry, mild and there’s so far been no frost, which means that there are still some nasturtiums in flower. Yay!

This is one that’s self seeded on the front patio: I love self seeded flowers in awkward places. Perhaps it’s a metaphor: beauty which challenges the orthodoxy. How’s about that for a bit of philosophising on a Monday morning? ( I’m also loving that I used three colons in the last two paragraphs - I love colons and semi colons, and you don’t see a whole lot outside academia.)

The other happy thing is that my daylight lamp has extended my painting time enormously. This means I don’t have to choose between outdoor activities and painting. I can do both. I can start painting at 3 pm for example, when the light is beginning to fade. I no longer dread the dark days of winter. Here is my first painting of the autumn:

I realise it’s Remembrance Day today. We - at Bakewell Quaker Meeting - had our peace vigil last week. Every year the country remembers the soldiers who died in past wars, and every year the country sells billions of pounds worth of arms so more wars can happen. And here at home we waste billions on nuclear weapons, when so many children don’t have enough to eat. 

Our banner last week read: