While his bones were gradually entombed by the drip, drip, drip of
limestone water in the silence of his cave, the ancestors of the ancient
Celts have arrived in Wales and Ireland, the ground has trembled under
the marching feet of Roman legions, the shingle beaches of Kent have
yielded to the keels of Saxon warships, and the blood-curdling cries of
Viking raiders have echoed from the defenseless monasteries of
Northumbria and the Scottish islands. While he endured 12,000 years of
solitude, the world outside pulsed with life--and death. His DNA stayed
where it was, but outside the cave it had another life in the
generations of descendants whose stories we can now begin to unfold.
Well, another Friday is here. It seems the weeks never passed by so quickly while I was still working. Now that I am free to be me the days pass by so quickly they all seem to meld together. It is already almost a month since I turned 67. My goodness, before I know it, another year will have passed.
Speaking of aging, I joined an online group for women over 60. They have lots of wonderful forums to discuss everything imaginable for women of my age. I noticed then that below your chosen name, they chose another one for you. The name they gave me is "Sapphire Sister". I love it.
Speaking of groups, perhaps you have noticed I am becoming more and more disenchanted with the senior center. When I first started attending it was all new to me, and I loved it. After all, it been a very long time since I had been able to socialize. But, now I am going on a year, and to be honest, I am bored. In groups, they want to discuss the same things, week after week...the plane that they cannot find and charter schools here in the city. There is never anything new discussed about the plane because, let's face it, there is no news. And charter schools? One thing I hate is racism and there is a woman in the group who literally turns my stomach when she speaks. "Well, I paid to put my kids through Catholic school, and I don't like the idea of my tax dollars going to put other children though school. If their parents want them to go to a good school, then they should pay for it." Now, mind you, most of the students that attend these schools are 'inner city' kids from the poorest of neighborhoods.
Oh, boy when I heard that, I went off. Not in a very angry way, but with enough force to get my point across. "Not everyone can afford to send their children to Catholic schools. I couldn't, but I was lucky to have lived in a good neighborhood with a decent public school. But most of these kids that get into the Charter schools are 'inner city' kids."
"My kids were inner city. They grew up in Bay Ridge. They were raised in the city." She laughed then as if I didn't know what I was talking about. That did it. "Inner city doesn't mean that they were raised in the city. It means that they live in poverty, the slums. These are the kids that grow up to become criminals. If my tax dollars can give even one child the opportunity to go to a decent school, complete high school, and perhaps even go on to college, then it is worth it."
And this same kind of stuff goes on week after week. Is it any wonder that I have grown bored with the whole thing?
So, now that the warm weather is arriving, I've begun planning other things to do. There are parks to visit, a vast ocean only 15 minutes away, so many places to visit, so many places to see. I'll not drop out of the center altogether. I do have friends there. I'll just pull away a little.
And with that I wish you all a fabulous weekend. May it bring you joy and peace.
Yes, venture further afield and see what the City has to offer! There must be other groups and organizations out there!
ReplyDeleteYou know what Mary? I believe that the trouble with this group has something to do with age. In this town there are a lot of retired people who form committees. They invited The Bard to join (the group is not limited to retirees it's just that there are many people who are retired on these committees.) There is a lot of arguing and posturing that goes on and very little gets down. I think it's because without a job or a title they feel they need another way to find power. What you write about this group is much the same that I hear from the stories that The Bard tells me about these groups. Maybe you should try to locate a group by its purpose, not based on the what the members have in common? Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteGood for you Mary for standng up to that woman! There have been so many tmes when Ive wanted to say something to another person and dont speak my truth. Sounds like you're out growing the center. Iike what Aine sad about finding another group that/s based on interest and not so much age,
ReplyDeleteOnce again I'll say I think you are making a wise decision to pull away without cutting ties completely. I used to have a habit of burning bridges but am trying not to do that anymore!
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