Autumn

I absolutely love November. I always say that September is my favorite month and think that October is the best but the reality is that November is just the greatest. Crisp and sharp mornings, clear mornings and warm sun on the skin, brisk days and cold nights. Once Halloween has past, families gear up for the holidays of celebration and in two weeks, families are to gather to give thanks for another year's bounty.
And yet the reality is, life is much different than we often want or plan for. Last weekend, we celebrated my mother's birthday with a lunch and a cd of Neil Diamond's "Jonathan Livingston Seagull". We talked of family, Christmas and the health of my aunt, her sister, who had been in poor health for a long time. My aunt went on to pass away three hours after my mother's birthday and the sixty-eighth anniversary of my grandparents' wedding. My aunt will be cremated tomorrow, on my uncle's birthday. It's been a hell of a week for my mom, who has been trying to cope with the loss of her sister and the fact that she is the sole surviving member of her family. Nothing is worse than to see your mom in pain. I pray for her as she wakes up each day and feels the sun on her face and thank God for one more day.

My Congressman Jerry McNerney is claiming victory in what has been a wild ride of a race in the 11th district against his tea bagger opponent. While the lead is less than two thousand of a total of nearly one hundred eighty thousand, the statistical victory for McNerney is there. This, however, is only the beginning, as David Harmer is already claiming election tampering and fraudulent tallying techniques. Always the GOP go-to, the claims of tampering or fraudulent activity will trigger recounts and most likely lawsuits. I would actually be surprised if McNerney is able to take office on the third of January when the rest of the Congress begins its ugly, stale-mated session. I'm just thankful that my Congressman has done great things for the country as a whole, veterans who have sacrificed themselves for something bigger and my city that has directly benefitted from his efforts. Thank you, Jerry McNerney, for the last four years of service.

Finished East of Eden and again was rocked to my core as I reassess my parenting abilities, my sanity and how my children will ever be able to grow up and become decent, loving human beings. Judeo-Christian culture and much of western culture has the story of generational conflict and struggle at the center of human activity; we live our lives working through the sins of our forebearers. Bruce Springsteen's "Adam Raised A Cain", balanced with "Long Time Coming" balance out the generational struggle: the first capturing the pain of the younger generation continually carrying the baggage of their parents; the second, in which the older generation prayed to an unborn baby, hoping "may your sins be your own." That has essentially become my prayer for my own children; may they live long, productive, healthy and fulfillled lives while only contending with their own failures and not those of their parents. I can only pray...

I'm halfway through "Death of a Salesman" which I'll complete tomorrow night. Never have moved through it, though familiar with the general premise. Willy Loman is my neighbor, the parent of my student and sometimes, me. Miller's play is brilliant and, unfortunately, timeless.

Off for four days. Tomorrow is Veterans Day. Thank you to those who served, including those who did so beyond their will. Thank you, Dad.

Lately, I've been listening to nothing but Dylan and the Band. The Bootleg series, The Times..., HWY 61, the Basement Tapes. For the last two days, I've tapped into Planet Waves and have loved that wonderful, flawed album. Teaching Dylan made me wonder just how much of the Cheshire Cat should be taught; this year, I held back on breadth but spent time on the impact of Dylan's "plugging in", singing post-modernistic, surrealistic lyrics and helped everyone connect literary and musical connections. Now, if you don't mind, I'm feeling a little "Forever Young" coming on. The second version, that is.