I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
Month: November 2020
Choices made today will define how this world will move forward.
I will be affected by the result, as will every citizen of this continent (and planet), but I will not have a part in how this all plays out.
This is not my election.
Canada has many difficulties, and our sometime problematic political system is one of them, but we have not had to (and are unlikely to) face the issues you are contending with.
There is noting to compare today’s presidential election to, but our country and the world, will be watching.
We share a long, principally unguarded, border with the United States, which is not hindered by fences or ideals. We share a similar culture, but have our own race issues, environmental concerns, and our own type of political and economic corruption.
Our money is different, but it’s value rests on what happens in the U.S..
I have spent months into years looking down on America, and I say that only from the perspective of a northerly neighbour.
Right now, the psyche of the U.S.A. is threadbare. So much damage has been done over these past years. You are hurting, I can tell. It is obvious.
I can see.
Sadly, there will not be a clear winner today.
The shadow of this election will loom long.
The U.S.A. is so polarized that civil unrest is not just likely, but guaranteed. It’s sad. The fact that Wal-Mart has removed guns and ammunition from its retail shelves in the days prior to this election is just one example of the potential this humble Canadian sees. The American retailer has built its global dominance in both capitalism and greed; I know Wal-Mart will sell almost anything to anybody if there is profit involved.
Nobody will profit from the destruction this election campaign has cost your country.
Regardless of which candidate and party is victorious in 2020, you all have healing to do. The pain will continue for quite some time.
You have, collectively, made that choice.
After today you will have to live with the results.
And we Canadians will watch with both sympathy and compassion at what has happened, or what will happen, as it happens.
While we will feel your pain, we have our own fractures, and bruises, and scars.
It hurts in a different place.
11/03/2020 j.g.l.
Posted on November 2, 2020 by j.g.lewisLeave a comment
I spent time over the weekend writing letters, replying to cards, sending an overdue thank you note, and catching up on correspondence.
I enjoy writing letters.
I like communicating through the more traditional snail mail. I love postage stamps. I like the tactile feeling of pencil on paper, it seems more personal to me.
The thing is, I have been tardy lately.
It just seemed hard to find the time. And I wasn’t busy.
I was, however, caught up in this pandemic thing like everybody else. All the news of the spread of the deadly COVID-19 virus was wearing me down, and it was coming at me all the time.
It was rather isolating.
I wasn’t making the time to write a letter at a time when I had more time to myself.
It felt onerous to even attempt a letter, and that didn’t feel right
It’s been like this over for almost eight months.
There are so many things we aren’t doing.
You become accustomed to all the things you can’t do that it affects the things you like to do.
I like writing letters; it’s like sending a long-distance smile.
I haven’t been smiling enough lately, but sitting down with my pencil and paper yesterday helped.
Joy comes from the small things we do.
Pleasure is found in the things we can do.
Communicate when you can. We all need to hear or read other voices. We are all going through the same thing.
11/02/2020 j.g.l.
Posted on November 1, 2020 by j.g.lewisLeave a comment
