But does that make poetry a political act?
Since when did being honest become political?
I think the answer to this question depends on the connotation of "political" that is used. In a lot of everyday language of the last few years, people have said "political" when they really mean to say "partisan". It doesn't help that a lot of media commentators across the spectrum use this connotation of "political". Journalists and editors alike should recognize that words matter and that using "political" with this connotation is in some ways outright dangerous.
On the other hand, there is the connotation of "political" that is more focused on organization to provide safety in numbers. This connotation is more prevalent among minority groups, groups that are more inclined to consider poetry a political act. For these groups, speaking their truth in any capacity (even poetry) is a way to make it clear that there are very vulnerable people in their ranks and that we need to at least pay this some mind. If we take a moment to scrutinize the systems that make these people vulnerable, even better. And when I say vulnerable, I mean it. Whether it's Indigenous women almost being guaranteed to be abused in their lives or autistic people being failed physically because all the research is focused on the mental/behavioral aspects of ASD, the vulnerability in these groups focuses on life endangerment. And poetry sometimes may be the only way to get people to even see these things. In this capacity, yes, honesty can be political. It's pushing up against both insufficient systems and biases that will not budge. Being political may be the first, last, and only line of both defense and offense.
I don't feel it needs an entire overhaul but the rich should not have all the advantages they do with the loopholes their leadership buddies have given them.
Sounds interesting. Love the story about the underground tunnels, great impetus for a scary story. Ww was black eyed peas for good luck on New Year's Day.
Thank y'all for the comments. I know it will get better, it always does. The stress just gets overwhelming sometimes and if I'm at odds with my best friend/husband, it can mess up my head for a bit. But I'm blessed. As hardheaded as my husband is, he still cares for me enough to consider my side of things. Today, he reminded me that yeah, our life is a mess but if it wasn't, we wouldn't have near as much fun. He's right.
The newly adult offspring can be a real pain. I know. I raised two sons. I can tell you that it will (probably) get better as they get a bit more mature. Ours did, or at least with the younger one.
I would agree with you about giving the younger one some help. At least she's trying to learn how to live on her own instead of living off of you like a six foot tall two year old like our oldest did for a long while. Of course, that doesn't help much with coming to an agreement with her father.
I've ranted before ( "Jan. 9, 2022 - How Rude" ) about how cell phones seem to be taking over our world and making people less social face to face, dumbing down our society. It was more fully confirmed to me today while I sat for five hours in the emergency room. Everyone had cell phones in their hands. One little girl, probably under 10, threw an all-out tantrum when her phone battery ran out and the chargers at the hospital weren't working. Oh my goodness! It was so bad there ... a baby would fuss and their parent would just turn on a show on their cell phone and stick it in the kid's face. One even then complained about how hard it is to be a parent! Ha ha! Shoving cell phones and junk food in your kid's face when they get fussy isn't parenting! And people wonder why our society is getting dumber, why their kids have attention issues! A cell phone or any other electronic device is not a substitute for being there for your kid and dealing with the issues at hand. Put your phones down and spend some quality time with your kids! I swear! If I hadn't already been feeling poorly when I went to the ER, seeing that would have been enough to get my blood pressure up there!
As for why I was at the emergency room to begin with, blood has been seeping from my ear for the last couple of days and being on blood thinners, it is crucial for me to seek medical assistance in such times. It was a good thing I did too. My INR (pretty much how long it takes my blood to clot) was over double the safe level. When they saw the test results, the medical staff seeing to me flipped out. It's been up there before so I didn't see the issue - other than the bleeding from my ear of course. But, after giving me a healthy dose of vitamin K and contacting my hematologist, they finally sent me on my way. I'm sure the bill for that "little" visit is going to be exorbitant. The vitamin K itself is probably an outrageous amount.
But hey! I'm fine. And I'll live to rant another day.
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