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Earthquake

Sunday, 28 June 2020
Leslie
Jewish Luck Blog
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Earthquake

Wearily, I don my mask, my gloves for the weekly drive from my Minneapolis home to my suburban office to collect my mail. My footsteps echo in the empty hall. The calendar is still turned to March 2020 which means I have spent less than three months in this space that does not yet feel like my own. The March calendar photo of Little Paradise, New Zealand reminds me of my visit to an exquisite place which in all its beauty, rests on shifting tectonic plates. All that is now is in the distant past.

For the past few months, I notice things I've never seen before - much is beautiful, but it is also threatening. Withering branches prompt me to anticipate future decay. I walk each day wondering if this were my last time here, what would I want to remember. With eyes closed, can I conjure up the details of the scene in front of me. A month ago, I would have praised my growing mindfulness witnessing each detail of Spring unfold as an unforeseen gift. Now it feels fragile.

So many paradigms have shifted. There are earthquakes in nature, in my community, and within me. While virtually doing nothing, or virtually doing everything (since all my work is on-line), the ground on which I stand, the world in which I travel, and my own awareness has tremors. The aftershocks keep coming. Like so many of you, I am missing the closeness of my friends and family - the laughter of my kids. An inner alarm alerts me when too much time has passed since hugging my children. I want to fly in their direction. I have to ignore that alarm.

I miss the reassurance of compassionate, effective national leadership. We are in a "Hunger Games" saga competing for resources with one another while our President revels in the unrest he can stoke. The callousness of glossing over 125,536 deaths within several months while inviting more deaths in his drive to hear his voice amplified is inhumane.

Since George Floyd's death, I am awakening to how much I have participated in a history infected by racism since its inception. I am learning from African American authors and film directors the virulence of racism from slavery until this moment and recognize my own complicity.

It took a plague for me to recognize the fragility of my experience. As time slowed, I saw more clearly the manmade plague that has been rooted in the U.S. all my life. So yes, the shifts are monumental, and the ground has not yet settled and may not for many years. But I can see more clearly what's in front of me, even with eyes closed as long as my heart is open.

Alexey Navalny: Intrepid SuperHero of Russia
Mirror, Mirror

About the author

Leslie

Leslie

  http://morejewishluck.com
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Leslie Levine Adler, PhD visited Russia in the summer of 1976 as part of her undergraduate Russian Studies program. She returned in 1977 to pursue her friendships from the previous summer. After teaching ESL at university, she became a psychologist.

Author's recent posts
Sunday, 07 February 2021 American Kompromat
Sunday, 31 January 2021 Alexey Navalny: Intrepid SuperHero of Russia
Sunday, 28 June 2020 Earthquake
Sunday, 07 April 2019 Mirror, Mirror
Saturday, 26 May 2018 The Regina Monologue or Feh! on Calling Me A Black Widow
 

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"I was very fortunate to be able to hear Meryll and Leslie speak at a Hadassah event in Israel. Each of the ~50 participants really enjoyed the event because Meryll and Leslie were so engaging. While they had a natural rapport with the audience, you could also tell they had prepared well so they could connect with our particular group's interests. I learned a lot from listening to them, and I found their sisterly interaction unique and fun. If you want an enlightening and uplifting experience, attend one of their book talks."
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"Truly, you have written a story that makes accessible the reality of existence in Russia, through the eyes of individuals who lived through the various regimes and dictates.  It is fascinating and very well told.  As I read Vera and Alla's story, I learned more Russian history than I had known from a textbook.  That's a big deal, women!  You tell the tale with vivid detail and hook us on the two women and their stories, then weave in the history to illuminate their journeys. It is such a necessary book.  I am thrilled that the two of you collaborated, as I can see the uniqueness of your personalities come through in the stories, and that, too, makes the book a gem."
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