“If we are
to be a people of balance, then we must have the ability use periods just as we
love to use commas and exclamation points and semicolons. What is a period if
not a circle—a vital symbol of many of our experiences. Yes, it is a circle
that is completely filled with darkness, and sometimes that is not comfortable—but
it is still necessary."
I’ve had
this mystery quote inked down for awhile and the idea comes up in relationships
with people. A period marks the death of a sentence, but the story continues.
The sentence doesn’t disappear. A period doesn’t erode or erase. The sentence has reached its peak.
The season and
the political climate of the past year have prompted me to evaluate
relationships. In The Lion, the Witch,
and the Wardrobe C.S. Lewis used a stagnant winter to represent oppression
and hopelessness of beings in his fantasy land of Narnia. Innocent child Edmund
happens upon the evil White Witch along the road and she tempts him with candy
and the prospect of having power over his siblings. Long story short, Edmund is
saved by the siblings he initially sought to throw under the bus.
An enduring
relationship is comforting. It feels right, even if the relationship has
reached its end. I’m no longer grasping onto connections for the sole reason of
longevity. I know I’m supposed to be seek to understand why you think the way
you do and respect your opinion. I’m supposed to be open-minded. I’m sorry, but
there’s a difference between “I think chocolate covered Swedish fish are wrong”
and “I think interracial children are wrong.” I only live once and prefer to
spend my energy with people who inspire and support me and want the same
changes in the world.
When I was
young my neighbors would let us swim in their pool. It was beautiful, like something
out of Architectural Digest. We entered the gates and ran for the traps along
the edge to see what was collected overnight, and we would grab the skimmer and
graze off the leaves and seeds and bugs that floated on the surface. Sometimes
there would be a dark blob in the bottom of the deep end, maybe leaves after a
storm or a drowned chipmunk. Skimmer handling teaches you that the rippling water
and sunlight make the long pole appear bent and you have to compensate with
your aim. Also, the big blob might not be solid, but instead be a pile of
powdery debris that if disturbed too much, can make a mess that’s hard to
control.
Some people
can help you get the water-logged debris and dead animals from the depths, and
some can skim the top. Both functions are vital for a radiant pool, but they’re
different operations. Refracting light and the pattern of the pool liner makes the
blobs look in indistinguishable. Like when there’s a smudge on the screen and
you can’t tell if that mark is a period or a comma.
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