Thursday, February 5, 2009

Then and Now

A couple of days ago a friend of mine was telling me of her heartbreak over the way her teenage daughter treats her.
***
These days I count the lady who cleans my house as one of my dearest friends.
Today DH is taking a Russian businessman to lunch
and showing him around as he has an interest in becoming involved financially in this country.
***
What have these in common?, you may be thinking -or alternatively: "What the heck has she been smoking!?"
***
Here's the thing:
Everything changes.
We all know that
But every now and then it really hits home.
***
I remember
being crushed by my own kids' treatment many times.
They were kids and I was the mom.
Its part of the deal
And that's how it works in their world.
***
But that was then and this is now -
When my kids are among my greatest joys in life
And their words are often the ones that build me up.
***
I remember
when black people seemed to all look the same to me
Because I didn't know them as individuals.
When we didn't and couldn't know them
and all the richness that is in so many of them.
***
But that was then and this is now -
When we have found each other
in spite of the politician's efforts to keep enmity and suspicion between us
Now we really *see* each other
And talk and share and laugh together
This is what we were deprived of all those years
But we have it now.
***
I remember
a time when every movie villain was a Russian
Don't you?
The Cold War; dreaded KGB; the drab grey settings;
the tortures . .
The locked-in-ness of the Russian people by their Communist oppressors;
the unthinkable restriction of life
and thought and creativity and association.
Seemingly impregnable and eternal.
***
But that was then and this is now -
When the Russians are once again persona grata
and are part of the fabric of
the economic system
Their businessmen travel the world -
without secret miniature cameras or pocket nuclear arms.
And here they are, right in my small part of geography,
as if it had been this way forever.
***
It helps to think of things in this light
when life is pressing hard.
There is always hope
The seemingly impossible often happens
Just in it's time
***

11 comments:

Hayley said...

Oh wow Allie, awesome awesome post!

Kevin said...

Very cool.

Anonymous said...

Wow - you been doing ALOT of thinking!! Nice to read it all in a neat digestable bundle! Chat soon. :) Lisa.

Anonymous said...

I love that last paragraph...sensational! x
BTW - thanks for your comments...all 3 of them! hee hee! Yes - all 3 made it! Don't ask me what was up with typepad! Sometimes there is just a small delay before it (the comment) magically appears on the blog!

Rambler said...

Cool post... yep, this too shall pass... that's why I always believe everything will be fine... because it eventually passes, no matter how good or bad...

Jo said...

Wow you are so wise Ali.

Mel said...

!!!! Epic post !!!!

Frank J said...

If I were a throng of people - this would be a standing ovation!

allie. said...

In the classic words of Elvis:
"Thang you, thang you very much"

Gill said...

What a brilliant insightful post!!

Unknown said...

Cool post ma!