BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//The Open Road: a learning community - ECPv6.15.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:The Open Road: a learning community X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://openroadpdx.com X-WR-CALDESC:Events for The Open Road: a learning community REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Los_Angeles BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20240310T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20241103T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20250309T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20251102T090000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250112T030000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250112T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241219T053630Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241219T053827Z UID:5311-1736650800-1736701200@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!: Nature & Science 1/12/25 DESCRIPTION:  \n¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!  Friendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. On January 12th\, at 3 pm (PST) our topic is Nature & Science. \n  \n Here’s the Zoom link: \n  \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.  \n  \nThis is a free Open Road event. \n  \nI hope to see you there! \n  \npeace\, love & happiness \n  \nJohnny \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-nature-science-1-12-25/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250104T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250104T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241215T183500Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250104T033941Z UID:5285-1736017200-1736024400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Silence DESCRIPTION:  \n  \nSilence \n  \n  \nJohnny Stallings performs his theater piece about meditation. \n  \nSaturday\, January 4th\, 7 pm \nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont. in Portland \n  \nThis Open Road event is free. URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/silence/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_6624-scaled.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250102 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250206 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20250102T232619Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T141038Z UID:5326-1735776000-1738799999@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding 1/2/25 DESCRIPTION:  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n  \nJanuary 2\, 2025 \n  \nSwiftly the years\, beyond recall\, \nSolemn the stillness of this fair morning. \nI will clothe myself in spring-clothing\, \nAnd visit the slopes of the Eastern Hill. \nBy the mountain-stream a mist hovers\, \nHovers a moment\, then scatters. \nThere comes a wind blowing from the south \nThat brushes the fields of new corn. \n  \n—T’ao Ch’ien (365-427 A.D.)\, translated by Arthur Waley\, from Zen In English Literature and Oriental Classics by R. H. Blyth \n* \n  \nI Believe Nothing… \n  \nI believe nothing—what need \nSurrounded as I am with marvels of what is\, \nThis familiar room\, books\, shabby carpet on the floor\, \nAutumn yellow jasmine\, crysanthemums\, my mother\, my mother’s flower\, \nEarth-scent of memories\, daily miracles\, \nYet media-people ask\, ‘Is there a God?’ \nWhat does the word mean \nTo the fish in his ocean\, birds \nIn his skies\, and stars? \n  \nI only know that when I turn in sleep \nInto the invisible\, it seems \nI am upheld by love\, and what seems is \nInexplicable here and now of joy and sorrow\, \nThis inexhaustible\, untidy world— \nI would not have it otherwise. \n  \n—Kathleen Raine (1908-2003) \n* \nJoyas Voladoras \n  \nConsider the hummingbird for a long moment. A hummingbird’s heart beats ten times a second. A hummingbird’s heart is the size of a pencil eraser. A hummingbird’s heart is a lot of the hummingbird. Joyas voladoras\, flying jewels\, the first white explorers in the Americas called them\, and the white men had never seen such creatures\, for hummingbirds came into the world only in the Americas\, nowhere else in the universe\, more than three hundred species of them whirring and zooming and nectaring in hummer time zones nine times removed from ours\, their hearts hammering faster than we could clearly hear if we pressed our elephantine ears to their infinitesimal chests. \n  \nEach one visits a thousand flowers a day. They can dive at sixty miles an hour. They can fly backwards. They can fly more than five hundred miles without pausing to rest. But when they rest they come close to death: on frigid nights\, or when they are starving\, they retreat into torpor\, their metabolic rate slowing to a fifteenth of their normal sleep rate\, their hearts sludging nearly to a halt\, barely beating\, and if they are not soon warmed\, if they do not soon find that which is sweet\, their hearts grow cold\, and they cease to be. Consider for a moment those hummingbirds who did not open their eyes again today\, this very day\, in the Americas: bearded helmet-crests and booted racket-tails\, violet-tailed sylphs and violet-capped woodnymphs\, crimson topazes and purple-crowned fairies\, red-tailed comets and amethyst woodstars\, rainbow-bearded thornbills and glittering-bellied emeralds\, velvet-purple coronets and golden-bellied star-frontlets\, fiery-tailed awlbills and Andean hillstars\, spatuletails and pufflegs\, each the most amazing thing you have never seen\, each thunderous wild heart the size of an infant’s fingernail\, each mad heart silent\, a brilliant music stilled. \n  \nHummingbirds\, like all flying birds but more so\, have incredible enormous immense ferocious metabolisms. To drive those metabolisms they have race-car hearts that eat oxygen at an eye-popping rate. Their hearts are built of thinner\, leaner fibers than ours. Their arteries are stiffer and more taut. They have more mitochondria in their heart muscles—anything to gulp more oxygen. Their hearts are stripped to the skin for the war against gravity and inertia\, the mad search for food\, the insane idea of flight. The price of their ambition is a life closer to death; they suffer more heart attacks and aneurysms and ruptures than any other living creature. It’s expensive to fly. You burn out. You fry the machine. You melt the engine. Every creature on earth has approximately two billion heartbeats to spend in a lifetime. You can spend them slowly\, like a tortoise and live to be two hundred years old\, or you can spend them fast\, like a hummingbird\, and live to be two years old. \n  \nThe biggest heart in the world is inside the blue whale. It weighs more than seven tons. It’s as big as a room. It is a room\, with four chambers. A child could walk around it\, head high\, bending only to step through the valves. The valves are as big as the swinging doors in a saloon. This house of a heart drives a creature a hundred feet long. When this creature is born it is twenty feet long and weighs four tons. It is waaaaay bigger than your car. It drinks a hundred gallons of milk from its mama every day and gains two hundred pounds a day\, and when it is seven or eight years old it endures an unimaginable puberty and then it essentially disappears from human ken\, for next to nothing is known of the the mating habits\, travel patterns\, diet\, social life\, language\, social structure\, diseases\, spirituality\, wars\, stories\, despairs and arts of the blue whale. There are perhaps ten thousand blue whales in the world\, living in every ocean on earth\, and of the largest animal who ever lived we know nearly nothing. But we know this: the animals with the largest hearts in the world generally travel in pairs\, and their penetrating moaning cries\, their piercing yearning tongue\, can be heard underwater for miles and miles. \n  \nMammals and birds have hearts with four chambers. Reptiles and turtles have hearts with three chambers. Fish have hearts with two chambers. Insects and mollusks have hearts with one chamber. Worms have hearts with one chamber\, although they may have as many as eleven single-chambered hearts. Unicellular bacteria have no hearts at all; but even they have fluid eternally in motion\, washing from one side of the cell to the other\, swirling and whirling. No living being is without interior liquid motion. We all churn inside. \n  \nSo much held in a heart in a lifetime. So much held in a heart in a day\, an hour\, a moment. We are utterly open with no one in the end—not mother and father\, not wife or husband\, not lover\, not child\, not friend. We open windows to each but we live alone in the house of the heart. Perhaps we must. Perhaps we could not bear to be so naked\, for fear of a constantly harrowed heart. When young we think there will come one person who will savor and sustain us always; when we are older we know this is the dream of a child\, that all hearts finally are bruised and scarred\, scored and torn\, repaired by time and will\, patched by force of character\, yet fragile and rickety forevermore\, no matter how ferocious the defense and how many bricks you bring to the wall. You can brick up your heart as stout and tight and hard and cold and impregnable as you possibly can and down it comes in an instant\, felled by a woman’s second glance\, a child’s apple breath\, the shatter of glass in the road\, the words I have something to tell you\, a cat with a broken spine dragging itself into the forest to die\, the brush of your mother’s papery ancient hand in the thicket of your hair\, the memory of your father’s voice early in the morning echoing from the kitchen where he is making pancakes for his children. \n  \n—Brian Doyle (1956-2017)\, published in The American Scholar\, June 12\, 2012\, and in One Long River of Song. a collection of his essays  \n* \nHere’s a New Year’s essay by Michael Meade: \n  \nFinding Ways to Begin Anew \n  \nAlthough there can be no quick fix for all that troubles the world at this time\, the aim of traditional New Year rites was to end the reign of the old year in order to begin everything anew. The idea was to follow the course of nature in which the world descends into darkness before the light and the energy of life begin to return. \n  \nThe old idea was not simply the turning over of a calendar\, but the understanding that a capacity for transformation and regeneration resides at the heart of nature\, at the center of the cosmos and in the heart of humanity as well. The point was not to be naive and deny problems that must be faced\, but to return to the origins of creation and symbolically participate in the capacity of life to renew itself. \n  \nFor\, small and insignificant as we may increasingly feel\, we carry within our souls a spark that is connected to the galaxies and to the origins of creation. On one hand we are time bound\, on the other we are secretly tied to eternal things that transcend the limits of time and space. By symbolically participating in the dissolution of time\, ancient people were temporarily delivered from their faults and failings and had their original life potential restored. \n  \nAlthough this primordial sense of rejuvenation and renewal does not remove suffering or injustice from the world\, it becomes more important if we are to avoid overwhelm and navigate the chaotic and exhausting times in which we live. \n  \nWe live amidst a shattering of paradigms that radically alter familiar patterns in both nature and culture. As the future of the Earth itself becomes increasingly uncertain the search for genuine knowledge begins with accepting the sense that we truly do not know what the New Year might bring. To find the kinds of insight and wisdom we most need\, we must accept the condition of “not knowing” that parallels the uncertainty and darkness that appear before creation occurs. \n  \nInside all stuck situations there is a deep vulnerability that can lead to a release of unexpected imagination and inspired ideas. In Zen Buddhist traditions the practice of shoshin translates as “beginner’s mind.” Shoshin begins where received ideas and accepted patterns are left behind as an innate capacity to awaken from within begins with “not knowing.” The open and humble attitude of a beginner makes us less likely to simply repeat old patterns of behavior. \n  \nWhile those who claim to be able to solve the complex problems we face may claim dogmatic certainty\, the openness of the beginner is more likely to find the true nature of a situation. A principle idea of shoshin is that in the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities\, but in the expert’s mind there are few. Thus\, beginner’s mind offers a particular kind of wisdom based upon a willingness to be at the edge where life remains open to many possibilities and unrealized potentials. \n  \nIn keeping with the sense of many possibilities\, the ancient term for beginner’s mind has more than one meaning. Shoshin can also mean something or someone that conveys “genuine truth.” Thus\, it can refer to a work of art or a person that is genuine and not a fake or an imitation. When we draw from the root of our deeper self\, we become more authentic and able to act in alignment with the inner spirit and the genuine aim of our souls. \n  \nAs a practice\, beginner’s mind can also involve the sense of forgiveness. For only when we forgive ourselves for mistakes and misdeeds can we let go of the ties that bind us and be released from the need to repeat the mistakes of the past. In that sense\, not knowing\, being open to change and forgiving ourselves and others turn out to be key ingredients in seeking to rejuvenate\, start anew and be able to imagine and contribute to a better world. \n  \nSomething ancient and knowing is trying to catch up to us and being fully present when a moment in time breaks open to unseen possibilities depends upon practices like beginner’s mind that help us to be authentic and original and able to start anew. In being more open and forgiving we become more able to unlock untapped capacities for creativity\, flexibility\, and resilience. \n  \nIn the open moments of life we become connected to the heart of nature again and can sense what the ancients meant in saying that all of life is sacred; and all that can be a grace in the world and at the edge of every moment. \n  \nWe at Mosaic wish for you and for all of us\, that we might allow ourselves to be touched by the eternal\, be blessed by the sacred and become more able to help with the healing healing of the Earth and each other. \n  \n—Michael Meade (https://www.mosaicvoices.org/) \n* \n  \nNews from Rocky Hutchinson:  \n11/24/24 \n  \nDear Johnny & Nancy \nI’m getting ready for work right now & it is a nice\, quiet morning. The sun has not yet cracked the sky\, but it’s looking like a beautiful Autumn day\, my favorite time of year. Nature is at its most alluring time for me\, all the colors fading and changing\, pushing out all of the fragrances. Birds nesting in the windows\, spiders spinning their webs\, beauty in everything I see. \nThe best time for me\, the very best things are friends & family & food…. \n  \n12/10/24 \n  \nOkay\, several more days down\, I’m sorry I got caught up in all the Alcohol & Drug packets. They are much easier to do\, due to the fact that I want to live clean and sober. I’m not fighting it in any way. So to me it’s all positive trinkets I’m picking up while walking along the golden path. \nIt is very early here & besides myself there are only two others awake\, such a peaceful time of morning. Between the hours of 4:30 & 5:30 A.M….Ahhh\, so nice! It is so could out (27°) and the fog is so thick that it is billowing on the windows like some scene out of a vampire movie\, it is really quite cool. Our world is such a mysterious place & so beautiful. I’m in a condemned mental hospital that is now a maximum prison\, engulfed in vampire fog! LOL \nToday I will work on the big turtle I’m drawing. From here on out I will be keeping all of my works for my place to hang on my walls…. \nI received “peace\, love\,  happiness & understanding” from the Open Road yesterday. They warm the heart always. I also got four Christmas cards. That’s the most I’ve received in quite a long time! The kindness I can feel in my soul is such a gift & in only a few months I will be able to reciprocate “all” of it with everyone in a normal social way! \nWhen I do my emotional & personal & mental evaluations I’ve started to realize that my capacity to obtain\, accept & reciprocate goodness can be done in volume & on a calm level\, with a depth of sincerity that I can only describe as…peaceful harmony…like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It’s supposed to be good! I have this ability now because I have no more anger or resentments using up space in me any longer. \nOne of the many things I’m looking forward to is to engage in positive social settings. I’m a little worried that people might be scared of me. I hope that’s not the case & I’m sure it won’t be\, but once people get to know me they will find out that I’m really a nice guy\, smart & funny! I’m dying to be in a greater social setting! \n  \n12/12/24 \n4:35 a.m. \n  \n….Another thing I’m really excited about doing is going to an arts & crafts store to get supplies for drawing!!! All that COOL stuff! Man\, that’s going to be fun! \nTime to get this into the mail box! \n  \nLove & Light \nRocky \n* \n  \nA Reverie \n  \nA cozy fire in the library. \nUp in the ballroom \njust a bed and the faint winter \nlight through leaded glass. \n  \nOut in the gulch the vines \ntwine around bare branches \nof scrub trees\, furry seed pods\, \ncotton against the rain. \n  \nIn preparation\, rusted parts of things long \nforgotten grace willow arrangements \nin chic salons with terracotta floors. \nMen walk by. Smile half smiles. \n  \nEveryone dreams of the sun\, \nlong bare legs\, smell of land. \nBut now\, there is tea and ceremony. \nMusicians assemble in the drawing room. \n  \nSoon the Bach will ache and set us down \nin the white dewed ground \nas if we inhabited the heartbreak \nreflected in the garden pool at midnight. \n  \n  \n—Elizabeth Domike \n  \n  \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-1-2-25/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241221T180000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241221T200000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241219T051631Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241219T054857Z UID:5303-1734804000-1734811200@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Solstice Stories: Tales for the Darkest Night DESCRIPTION:  \nWill Hornyak & Ingrid Nixon \n  \nZoom Live \n  \nSaturday\, December 21st\, 6 pm\, Pacific Time \nWaiting room opens at 5:30 pm \n  \nJoin Will and Ingrid \non a journey through myths\, tales\, poems and songs \ncelebrating the blessed dark and fertile dream-time of the Winter Solstice. \nAnticipate equal doses of soul\, mirth\, magic and amusement \nto brighten the dark time of year. \n  \nRecommended for ages 12 and older. \n  \nDonations are appreciated. \nFor more info\, contact Will at: hornyak.will@gmail.com \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/tales-for-the-longest-night/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/unnamed-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241215T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241215T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241204T200736Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241219T053410Z UID:5265-1734274800-1734282000@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!: Poems! DESCRIPTION:Emily Dickinson \n  \n¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!  Friendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. On December 15th\, at 3 pm (PST) our topic is Poems. Bring poems to read that you have written yourself\, or favorite poems by other people–alive and dead. \n  \n Here’s the Zoom link: \n  \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.   \n  \nThis is a free Open Road event. \n  \nI hope to see you there! \n  \npeace\, love & poetry \n  \nJohnny \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-poems/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241214 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250216 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241207T205045Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250215T195706Z UID:5281-1734134400-1739663999@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Monthly Online Seminar: Culture That Nurtures DESCRIPTION:  \nCulture That Nurtures \n  \nIn this monthly online seminar\, we will explore various ways we can help to co-create a culture that nurtures everyone. Although people are welcome to present (non-academic) papers or poems\, no advance preparation is necessary. \n  \nHere’s the Zoom link: \n  \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/87193719372 \n  \nSaturday\, December 14\, 1-3: Happiness!  What can we learn from each other about happiness\, joy\, pleasure\, ecstasy\, humor\, delight\, well-being? \n  \nSaturday\, January 18\, 1-3: How Can I Help? In the wake of the recent election\, everyone I know is wondering what we can do. \n  \nSaturday\, February 15\, 1-3: Creativity What can we do as artists\, poets\, musicians\, storytellers\, photographers\, actors\, dancers to bless and enliven our culture? \n  \nI hope you can take part in this ongoing Deep Dialogue! \n  \nThis online Open Road event is free. \n  \npeace\, love & happiness   \n  \nJohnny URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/monthly-online-seminar-culture-that-nurtures/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/original.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241211T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241211T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241204T194716Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241204T194804Z UID:5260-1733943600-1733950800@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Tenth of December: a Zoom reading (on the 11th) DESCRIPTION:  \nTenth of December (ORE) Johnny Stallings reads George Saunders’ amazing short story. \nON ZOOM: Wednesday\, December 11\, 7 pm \nZoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87176604491 URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/tenth-of-december-a-zoom-reading-on-the-11th/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241210T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241210T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241204T194212Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241204T194304Z UID:5255-1733857200-1733864400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Tenth of December: a live reading DESCRIPTION:  \nTenth of December (ORE) Johnny Stallings reads George Saunders’ amazing short story. \nLIVE: Tuesday\, December 10\, 7 pm \nLibrary at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nFree \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/tenth-of-december-a-live-reading/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241207T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241207T203000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241204T193320Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241204T193646Z UID:5251-1733598000-1733603400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:A Proclamation for Peace Poetry Reading DESCRIPTION:  \nA Proclamation for Peace: Translated for the World (ORR) Kim Stafford & Friends read Kim’s poem “A Proclamation for Peace” in English and in other languages. \nSaturday\, December 7\, 7 pm \nBold Coffee & Books\, 1755 SW Jefferson \nhttps://boldcoffeeandbooks.com/events/ \n  \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/a-proclamation-for-peace-poetry-reading/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/51ceUVrxIAL._AC_UY436_QL65_.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241205 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250102 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241205T175256Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241205T175256Z UID:5274-1733356800-1735775999@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding 12/5/24 DESCRIPTION:photograph of flower & bee by Abe Green \n  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n\nDecember 5\, 2024 \n  \nJill Littlewood sent this: \n  \nGate A-4 \n  \nWandering around the Albuquerque Airport Terminal\, after learning\nmy flight had been delayed four hours\, I heard an announcement:\n“If anyone in the vicinity of Gate A-4 understands any Arabic\, please\ncome to the gate immediately.” \nWell—one pauses these days. Gate A-4 was my own gate. I went there. \nAn older woman in full traditional Palestinian embroidered dress\, just\nlike my grandma wore\, was crumpled to the floor\, wailing. “Help\,”\nsaid the flight agent. “Talk to her. What is her problem? We\ntold her the flight was going to be late and she did this.” \nI stooped to put my arm around the woman and spoke haltingly.\n“Shu-dow-a\, Shu-bid-uck Habibti? Stani schway\, Min fadlick\, Shu-bit-\nse-wee?” The minute she heard any words she knew\, however poorly\nused\, she stopped crying. She thought the flight had been cancelled\nentirely. She needed to be in El Paso for major medical treatment the\nnext day. I said\, “No\, we’re fine\, you’ll get there\, just later\, who is\npicking you up? Let’s call him.” \nWe called her son\, I spoke with him in English. I told him I would\nstay with his mother till we got on the plane and ride next to \nher. She talked to him. Then we called her other sons just \nfor the fun of it. Then we called my dad and he and she spoke for a while\nin Arabic and found out of course they had ten shared friends. Then I \nthought just for the heck of it why not call some Palestinian poets I know\nand let them chat with her? This all took up two hours. \nShe was laughing a lot by then. Telling of her life\, patting my knee\,\nanswering questions. She had pulled a sack of homemade mamool\ncookies—little powdered sugar crumbly mounds stuffed with dates and\nnuts—from her bag—and was offering them to all the women at the gate.\nTo my amazement\, not a single woman declined one. It was like a\nsacrament. The traveler from Argentina\, the mom from California\, the\nlovely woman from Laredo—we were all covered with the same powdered\nsugar. And smiling. There is no better cookie. \nAnd then the airline broke out free apple juice from huge coolers and two\nlittle girls from our flight ran around serving it and they\nwere covered with powdered sugar\, too. And I noticed my new best friend—\nby now we were holding hands—had a potted plant poking out of her bag\,\nsome medicinal thing\, with green furry leaves. Such an old country tradi-\ntion. Always carry a plant. Always stay rooted to somewhere. \nAnd I looked around that gate of late and weary ones and I thought\, This\nis the world I want to live in. The shared world. Not a single person in that\ngate—once the crying of confusion stopped—seemed apprehensive about\nany other person. They took the cookies. I wanted to hug all those other women\, too. \nThis can still happen anywhere. Not everything is lost. \n  \n—Naomi Shihab Nye \n* \n  \nMiracles \n  \nWhy\, who makes much of a miracle? \nAs to me I know of nothing else but miracles\, \nWhether I walk the streets of Manhattan\, \nOr dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky\, \nOr wade with naked feet along the beach just in the edge of the water\, \nOr stand under trees in the woods\, \nOr talk by day with any one I love\, or sleep in the bed at night with any one I love\, \nOr sit at table at dinner with the rest\, \nOr look at strangers opposite me riding in the car\, \nOr watch honey-bees busy around the hive of a summer forenoon\, \nOr animals feeding in the fields\, \nOr birds\, or the wonderfulness of insects in the air\, \nOr the wonderfulness of the sundown\, or of stars shining so quiet and bright\, \nOr the exquisite delicate thin curve of the new moon in spring; \nThese with the rest\, one and all\, are to me miracles\, \nThe whole referring\, yet each distinct and in its place. \nTo me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle\, \nEvery cubic inch of space is a miracle\, \nEvery square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same\, \nEvery foot of the interior swarms with the same. \nTo me the sea is a continual miracle\, \nThe fishes that swim—the rocks—the motion of the waves—the ships with men in them\, \nWhat stranger miracles are there? \n  \n—Walt Whitman \n* \n  \nOn November 23rd\, I gave a reading of my version of Dostoevsky’s short story\, “The Dream of a Ridiculous Man” at Taborspace in Portland. You can find the text in Issue #63 of “peace\, love\, happiness & understanding\,” (December 23\, 2021)\, on the Open Road website (https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-12-23-21/). In the story\, a guy dreams that he goes to a planet where there is no hatred\, or violence or fear. When he wakes up\, he wants to tell everyone that we can all live together in love. \nWhen I first read that story\, long ago\, I realized that I too am a ridiculous man. To prove it\, here’s a brief excerpt from my journal entry from yesterday: \n  \nisn’t there enough suffering in the world\, without having wars?…. \nwhy do we have wars? \nthey’re not helping anything \nwar is the opposite of culture that nurtures \nthe culture of war produces suffering and death \nhow much money does the united states spend on the military and on weapons every year? \ni don’t know \na lot \neven a little would be too much \nwe should be helping each other \nnot hurting each other \nisn’t this obvious? \nwe should be loving \nnot hating \nloving everyone \nall people and plants and animals and rivers and clouds and dirt \nthat’s what i want to promote: \nlove for every being and for every good thing \nno thank you to hatred and violence and fear \n  \n—Johnny Stallings \n* \nRemember? \n  \nRemember that day \nWhen the war ended \nAnd you climbed from your trenches \nAnd we oozed from our bunkers \nLeaving guns and grenades \nBullets and bayonets behind? \n  \nRemember how we sang in the streets \nDanced in the fountains \nCrazy with Joy? \nRemember how clouds lifted\, hearts rose \nVengeance\, bitterness\, hatred and rage \nFell away like graveclothes? \n  \nRemember how we stood \nTall and happy \nIn the morning light \nEyeing the world \nAnd one another \nWith new eyes? \n  \nRemember \nHow in that ecstasy \nWe forgot \nIf ours was a blue state or red \nLiberal cause or conservative stand? \n  \nRemember \nHow easily we remembered \nWho we were \nFrom where we had come \nWhy we were here \nWhere we were going \nAnd what we should do? \n  \nI will never forget that day \nWhen the war ended \nAnd trust sprouted and spread \nLike a sea of green grass \nAcross every divide\, covering every division \nUniting all into one state of grace \nIndivisible\, at peace \nUnder heaven. \n  \n—Will Hornyak\, from This Altar of Earth and Sky \n* \n  \nCanary in the Mind \n  \nIf you descend to sorrow\, take a little singer \nto carry through the dark some color of he sun. \nTunneling through trouble\, guard your little light\, \nshield your little singer for the good of everyone. \nIf your singer falters\, if your mind grows dim\, \nIf your breath grows shallow\, if your days are grim\, \nfeed your little singer seeds of hope again. \nIn the cave of grief\, with every breath begin. \n  \n—“Canary in the Mind” is reprinted from As the Sky Begins to Change (Red Hen Press\, 2024) by permission of Kim Stafford \n* \n  \nRepeat the Sounding Joy \n  \nThe camellias know \nas do creatures \nmoving in piled \nleaf litter\, chaff. \n  \nUnder yet unfallen snow \nbranches threatened by ice \nplodders do their work\, \ndistracted we laugh. \n  \nThe hills remember \nas do streams \nfish swim on up \nwriggling into our dreams. \n  \nRumble underfoot \nin the sky\, repeat the story \nthroughout this land \nsunrise brings glory \n  \nIf we notice \nas we stand. \n  \n—Elizabeth Domike \n* \n  \nI’ve been listening each night to two owls who must have decided to stay in the neighborhood for the winter. Owls don’t migrate but they do move around some and often return or remain in a familiar woods. When they Who Hoot\, I think of the squirrels and little rodents who are also trying to stay alive in the cold. But i do love their voices and am glad to have enough woodsy life to have them make a home here too. They make many of us beings pay attention. Here’s a poem by Mary Oliver:  \n  \nSnowy Night \n  \nLast night\, an owl \nin the blue dark \ntossed an indeterminate number \nof carefully shaped sounds into \nthe world\, in which\, \na quarter of a mile away\, I happened \nto be standing. \nI couldn’t tell \nwhich one it was – \nthe barred or the great-horned \nship of the air – \nit was that distant. But\, anyway\, \naren’t there moments \nthat are better than knowing something\, \nand sweeter? Snow was falling\, \nso much like stars \nfilling the dark trees \nthat one could easily imagine \nits reason for being was nothing more \nthan prettiness. I suppose \nif this were someone else’s story \nthey would have insisted on knowing \nwhatever is knowable – would have hurried \nover the fields \nto name it – the owl\, I mean. \nBut it’s mine\, this poem of the night\, \nand I just stood there\, listening and holding out \nmy hands to the soft glitter \nfalling through the air. I love this world\, \nbut not for its answers. \nAnd I wish good luck to the owl\, \nwhatever its name – \nand I wish great welcome to the snow\, \nwhatever its severe and comfortless \nand beautiful meaning.    \n  \n—Mary Oliver \n  \n—Katie Radditz \n* \n  \nNovember 5\, 2024. A day of reckoning. What was I ever going to do from this point on??? This is what I have been examining all month long\, and this is what I have concluded: There are three realms in my life (and in others’). \nFirst is my personal realm. That includes family\, friends\, nature\, activities and situations I can manage\, maintain\, help\, change. I made a list of those: \n\nI can donate blood (done! donation #175 since I was 18)\nI can complete my training as a hospice volunteer in the Gorge (done! Waiting for assignment.)\nI can volunteer to walk dogs at the Hood River Adopt A Dog shelter. (Not done. We went a leap beyond and adopted a dog!) (She’s a work in progress. Progress\, not perfection)\nI can make a lunch/update date with my several ‘kids’ I’ve known for 30 years from our Youth-At-Risk program. (planning stage.)\nI can DOUBLE my donations to favorite organizations (Planned Parenthood\, Nature Conservancy\, Doctors without Borders\, OHOM\, etc.)\n\nMaking this list and carrying through with it at least gives me peace of mind\, happiness\, and a sense of control. \nSecond is the national/country realm. That includes national politics\, Trump\, media\, environment/climate change\, et.al. ad nauseam. This is heartbreaking and infuriating\, and\, honestly\, there is not a lot I can do to change or control this second realm. I will leave it at that. \nThird and last is the universal/cosmic/infinite realm. Paradoxically\, this is comforting; I am a speck\, the height of insignificance\, nada in the infinite time and space dimension\, so nothing really matters in this universal realm. I am here\, I will be gone\, in no time it will be as if I never existed. Live my joy of life\, do my best in my personal realm and…let the rest go. \nThe three realms. Amen. \n  \n—Jude Russell URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-12-5-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/0.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241123T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241123T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241119T222720Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241123T011353Z UID:5224-1732388400-1732395600@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Dream of a Ridiculous Man 11/23/24 DESCRIPTION:Dream of a Ridiculous Man  \n  \nJohnny Stallings reads his performance version of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s magical final short story\, followed by dialogue. \nThis story–(see below)–is guaranteed to astonish! \n \nMuch better to experience it LIVE–bring a friend–but for those who are too far away\, or don’t drive at night\, you can watch on Zoom (at 7 pm\, Pacific Time). \n \nHere’s the Zoom link:\n\n\nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/81824888865 \n  \n\nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont\, in Portland \nSaturday\, November 23rd\, 7 pm \nFree URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/dream-of-a-ridiculous-man-11-23-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/0-6.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241117T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241117T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241014T223342Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241116T191253Z UID:5156-1731855600-1731862800@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous! 11/17/24 DESCRIPTION:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!  \n  \nFriendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. \n  \nOn November 17th\, at 3 pm\, our topic is: \n  \n¡Oddball Books! \n  \nWhat\, you might ask\, is an oddball book?\n \nHere are a few examples:\n \nA book you have that you’re pretty sure none of the other bibliophiles have–and maybe haven’t even heard of.\nA book that is unlike other books.\nA book that has unusual ideas or things you haven’t heard elsewhere.\nA book that is extremely imaginative.\nBooks written by or about oddballs or crazy people.\n\n\n  \n\n\nThis is a free Open Road event! \nHere’s the Zoom link: \n  \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.  \n  \nEarlier this Fall\, we had… \n  \nBooks That Changed the Way You See the World (September 15th) \nFavorite Poems & Poets (October 13th) \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-11-17-24/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241115T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241115T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241027T222901Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241111T230730Z UID:5192-1731697200-1731704400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bardaphilia!: Shakespeare on Film 11/15/24 DESCRIPTION:Mieko Harada as Lady Kaede in Kurosawa’s “Ran” \n  \n¡Bardaphilia! \n  \nShakespeare on Film \n  \nFor our Shakespeare class on Friday\, November 25th\, we’ll talk about filmed versions of Shakespeare’s plays and watch film clips together. \n  \nTaught by Johnny Stallings \nFriday evening\, November 15th\, 7-9 pm \nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont\, in Portland \nThis Open Road event is FREE! URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bardaphilia-shakespeare-on-film/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241109T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241109T150000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241017T235951Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241104T190631Z UID:5177-1731146400-1731164400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Six Mystics! 11/9/24 DESCRIPTION:“The River of Life” by William Blake \n  \n¡Six Mystics! \nHan Shan\, Hafiz\, Thomas Traherne\, William Blake\, \nWalt Whitman & Black Elk \n  \n  \nExplore the poetry and visions of six mystics from different times and cultures in a workshop with Johnny Stallings. \nThis event is live and online!  \nThe live event is at Taborspace (see below). For those who are far away\, here’s the Zoom link: \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86482174323 \n  \nRather than a brief presentation\, I want to go into the material more deeply\, so I’m doing a four-hour workshop\, with a one-hour lunch break. There will be lots of opportunities for everyone to share their own ideas and experience. (We are all\, in some sense\, mystics.) \nIf you can’t stay for the whole time\, either live or in-person\, you are welcome to drop in for as long as you can. \nIf you have questions\, or want to register in advance\, contact Johnny at stallingsjohnny@gmail.com or  503-347-6869. (Letting me know in advance that you plan to attend\, for all or part of the time\, is helpful to me.) \n  \nThis live workshop is in the Library at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont\, in Portland. \nSaturday\, November 9th\, 10-3 (Lunch from 12-1; bring a sack lunch.) \nThis Open Road event is free. URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/5177/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/N05887_10-1.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241107 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241205 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241107T222700Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241107T224433Z UID:5206-1730937600-1733356799@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding 11/7/24 DESCRIPTION:“The School of Athens” by Raphael \n  \nTHIS IS THE 100th ISSUE OF peace\, love\, happiness & understanding!!! \n  \nNovember 7\, 2024 \n  \nCoffee Shop Philosophy \n  \nThe first question is: what’s the difference between “coffee shop philosophy” and “philosophy”? \n  \nPhilosophy is an academic discipline\, taught in universities. Philosophy professors teach students about the Famous Philosophers and their ideas. The list of Famous Philosophers is not an especially long one. It includes people like Plato and Descartes and Spinoza and Hegel. Those guys. \n  \nCoffee shop philosophy is an informal inquiry into the meaning of life\, which can take place anywhere\, but thrives especially in…coffee shops. And tea shops. There are no professors. No experts. All participants have equal status. The questions are immediate\, not abstract. They are personal. In academic philosophy\, thinking has primacy. Coffee shop philosophizing includes thinking\, but also feeling. Academic Philosophy asks: “What did Kant think?” Coffee shop philosophy asks: “What do you think?” \n  \nOriginally\, the word “philosopher” meant “lover of wisdom.” Is wisdom confined to what the Famous Philosophers wrote? I don’t think so. Here are some of the people who are not taught in academic philosophy classes: Martin Luther King\, Walt Whitman\, Susan Griffin\, William Shakespeare\, Black Elk\, Lao Tzu\, J. Krishnamurti\, William Blake\, Fyodor Dostoevsky—all wise people! It’s a much\, much longer list of people whose writings can enrich and illumine our lives\, but who are not Famous Philosophers. \n  \nCoffee shop philosophy is friendly. There is laughter! There are no grades. You can’t fail. Friends get together to talk about what is most urgent to them. It can include psychology\, ecology\, poetry\, love\, happiness\, death! Everything! We wonder about the meaning of our life. What are we doing here? We want to become wiser\, kinder\, more happy\, more free. We talk about our life journeys\, what we’ve learned so far\, what continues to baffle us. \n  \nI took a couple Philosophy classes in college\, long long ago. For more than 50 years now I’ve been avidly practicing coffee shop philosophy—alone and with others. If you keep a journal\, you can have a long long philosophical conversation with yourself. \n  \nI’ve learned more about living\, more about happiness\, more about love\, more about freedom—more actual wisdom—from Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” than from any other writing. Because he’s labeled a “poet\,” and not a “philosopher\,” he’s not studied in Philosophy classes. I think of Walt as my friend—along with William Shakespeare and Thich Nhat Hanh and John Moriarty and Brian Doyle and many many other friends whose books fill my bookshelves and spill over onto the floor. I think of them as companions on my life journey\, as fellow coffee shop philosophers. \n  \nThe endless deep dialogues I’ve had with friends in coffee shops and tea shops and prisons have greatly enriched my life. For thirteen years I practiced coffee shop philosophy every week with men in Oregon prisons. There was no coffee. But there was something beautiful that I don’t know how to describe. I guess the closest word is “love.” \n  \nI love books! I’ve learned a lot from books\, but we also gain wisdom from our life experience\, and from sharing our experience and insights with each other. We need coffee shop philosophy! We need each other! \n  \nThese days I still get together with friends for coffee and deep dialogue every week. We do it because we love to have big personal conversations about life and love and what’s going on within us and around us.  Over time\, we get to know each other better and love each other more deeply. That seems like a good thing for humans to do.   \n  \n—Johnny Stallings \n* \n  \nCan you feel surging joy and profound sadness at the same time? How can a heart handle both at once? \n  \nOnce in the habit of morning walks with the dog\, the habit continues without the dog\, Lolo having died about one and a half months ago. She was sixteen years old\, and we’d rescued her fifteen years earlier from Home At Last animal shelter in The Dalles. They had found her wandering the streets of Shaniko\, a ghost town in Oregon. Scrawny and fearful\, she cowered when anyone tried to touch her; but I knew that with time and love and stability and security she would be a perfect pooch. And she was. Hiking\, backpacking\, snowshoeing\, beach walking—she went pretty much everywhere with us. Everyone loved her and she loved everyone. The great comfort dog. Any shred of anger\, depression\, fear or disappointment would melt away when I touched her silky ears. So you can surely understand the sadness I feel. \n  \nSo what’s with the surging joy??? Is that possible? Well\, I walk out the door and am kicking through huge\, magical\, golden maple leaves the size of dinner plates.  They’re spinning\, spiraling slowly beneath a vault of blue. Blue sky\, white clouds\, yellow gold leaves; how could I not feel a surge of joy?!  It overtakes my heart. \n  \nMore joy: It’s a good thing to spend time deciding whether you love October or November more. A contest for best month of the year. This is good: Is it the bustling oranges and reds and yellows of the buckets and buckets of leaves filling your vision in October? Or is it the beauty and starkness of the bare\, black\, muscular limbs once the leaves have shed in November? After all\, it’s then that you can see through  the bushy busy-ness of trees\, to the hills beyond\, to the mountains beyond. It’s then that you can settle into the spareness of November\, settle into the cool rain patters\, and the darkened mornings and evenings. I love it.  \n  \nCan I feel both\, then—-joy and sadness? I decree that yes I can\, and  do. \n  \n—Jude Russell \n* \n  \nKim Stafford’s latest book is A Proclamation for Peace: Translated into World Languages. In the book\, his poem “A Proclamation for Peace” is translated into 50 different languages\, including Arabic\, Armenian\, Ashaninka & Bislama; Gaeilge\, Greek & Hebrew; Pashto\, Persian & Punjabi; Quechua\, Romani\, Romanian & Russian; Tagalog\, Tamil & Thai; Ukrainian & Vietnamese; Yoruba\, Yucatec & Zapotec. The book can be ordered from bookshop.org. Here’s the English version of the poem: \n  \nA Proclamation for Peace \n  \nWhereas the world is a house on fire; \nWhereas the nations are filled with shouting;  \nWhereas hope seems small\, sometimes \n     a single bird on a wire \n     left by migration behind. \n  \nWhereas kindness is seldom in the news \n     and peace an abstraction \n     while war is real; \n  \nWhereas words are all I have; \nWhereas my life is short;  \nWhereas I am afraid; \nWhereas I am free—despite all \n     fire and anger and fear; \n  \nBe it therefore resolved a song \nshall be my calling—a song \nnot yet made shall be my vocation \nand peaceful words the work \nof my remaining days. \n  \n—Kim Stafford\, originally published in Wild Honey\, Tough Salt \n* \n  \nI also wrote a proclamation for peace. Coincidence? Peace is always something we can use more of\, so I’ll include it here: \n  \nMy Foolproof Plan for World Peace \n  \nI hereby declare today to be International Love Day. \nAnd a General Armistice. \nAll hostilities must cease on International Love Day. \nHenceforward\, every day is International Love Day. \n  \n—Johnny Stallings\, from The Nonstop Love-In: poems\, stories\, essays & other writings \n  \nshāntih  shāntih  shāntih URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-11-7-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/original.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241026T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241026T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241017T231033Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241026T221712Z UID:5172-1729969200-1729976400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:INFIDEL: The Notorious Robert G. Ingersoll 10/26/24 DESCRIPTION:  \nInfidel! \nThe Notorious Robert G. Ingersoll  \n  \nJohnny Stallings reads from speeches and essays of 19th Century America’s most eloquent agnostic and humanist\, followed by dialogue. \n  \nArtspace Room in Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nSaturday\, October 26\, 7 pm \nthis Open Road event is free URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/infidel-the-notorious-robert-g-ingersoll-10-26-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/IMG_1909-rotated.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241025T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241025T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241017T011021Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241027T223240Z UID:5167-1729882800-1729890000@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bardaphilia!: Measure for Measure 10/25/24 DESCRIPTION:Mark Rylance as Duke Vincentio\, Shakespeare’s Globe\, 2005 \n  \n¡Bardaphilia!  \n  \nMeasure for Measure \n  \nBut man\, proud man\, \nDressed in a little brief authority\, \nMost ignorant of what he’s most assured\, \nHis glassy essence\, like an angry ape \nPlays such fantastic tricks before high heaven \nAs makes the angels weep\, who with our spleens* \nWould all themselves laugh mortal.** \n  \n–Isabella\, Measure for Measure\, Act 2\, scene 2 \n  \n* organ thought to control laughter \n**(Proverbial: “to die laughing”) \n  \nFor our Shakespeare class on Friday\, October 25th\, we will be exploring the darkly comic world of Measure for Measure! We will focus on Act 2. \nReading the play beforehand is recommended\, but you don’t need to know the play to enjoy the class. (Folger edition has helpful notes on facing pages.) \nIt’s a great idea to watch a film version\, if you can find one–but NOT the 2020 version with Hugo Weaving\, which is not really Shakespeare’s play\, but “inspired by it” in some way. \n  \nI hope to see you there! \n  \nTaught by Johnny Stallings \nFriday evening\, October 25th\, 7-9 pm \nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont\, in Portland \nThis Open Road event is FREE! URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bardaphilia-measure-for-measure-10-25-24/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241013T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241013T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240918T174638Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240918T174638Z UID:5061-1728831600-1728838800@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous! 10/13/24 DESCRIPTION:  \n¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!  \n  \nFriendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. \nHere’s the Zoom link: \n  \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.  \n  \nOctober 13th\, 3 pm: Favorite Poems & Poets (Bring a poem to read!) \nNovember 17th\, 3 pm: Oddball Books \nFree URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-10-13-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/trump_whitman.jpg.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241003 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241107 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20241003T222858Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241003T223215Z UID:5140-1727913600-1730937599@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding 10/3/24 DESCRIPTION:  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n  \nOctober 3\, 2024 \n  \nI’ve been having a conversation with myself in my journal for the past 54 years\, or so. Here are excerpts from the entry for January 16th\, followed by a brief essay\, “perfect moments\,” that I wrote on January 17th\, followed by excerpts from what I wrote on January 23rd: \n  \nmonday\, september 16th \n  \nperfect day \nperfect silence \nperfect coffee \nthis home is a well-ordered place of refuge for two human beings \noutside these walls\, in some places\, perfect chaos and confusion \nperfect fear… \nperfect sorrow… \nperfect healing… \nperfect love \nthe neon sign says: LOVE WINS \nso it must be true… \nthe dance of shadows on the wall… \nhelping to co-create culture that nurtures—a local and a global culture of peace\, love\, happiness & understanding—begins with my own deep peace\, love\, happiness & understanding \na silence that is free of fear and hatred \nlove for everyone and everything \nboundless joy \ncontinuing to improve my understanding of what’s going on here by learning from wise thoughtful intelligent people \nin order to be more helpful \nto choose wisely \nto not utter words that are hurtful \nthere’s a rough and tumble aspect to human life \ndon’t be too attached to non-attachement \nor to ideas of no-self\, ātman\, et cetera \ndon’t forget to laugh and have fun \ndon’t take yourself or your opinions too seriously \nfeel the beauty of the blue sky and the puffy white clouds \nthe green of the leaves on the trees and bushes and grass \nthe bright flowers \nthe bright flowers! \ni know why buddha held up a flower \nthe surprising thing is that everyone in the assembly didn’t get enlightenment at that moment \nthe bewildering thing is that we live in a world that has flowers in it and yet people hurt each other \nhow can this be? \ni guess it’s because there are other things besides flowers in the world \nthere are\, for example\, guns… \ni feel bad for the people who have lots of guns and no flowers… \nin a world teeming with life\, everything dies \nand new things arrive \nnew people and plants and birds and bugs and elephants are always arriving \nelephants! \nwonderful beings! \nmonarch butterflies! \nwhat a world! \nit’s amazing that shakespeare wrote a midsummer night’s dream and king lear \nit’s amazing that there are elephants and monarch butterflies \nand hummingbirds and pansies \nyellow pansies and little bright purple flowers  \ni’m in love with this world! \n  \nperfect moments \n  \nis this moment perfect? \nyes! \n  \ni would like to sing the praise of perfect moments \nand so i shall \n  \neveryone has experienced perfect moments \nand yet many people are dissatisfied\, unhappy\, miserable \nthis is puzzling \nthis very moment might be felt to be perfect \nand if it’s not\, the next perfect moment might be right around the corner \n  \nthe older i get\, the more perfect moments i enjoy \ni get a lot of blessings \ni’m a happy man \n  \nto the extent that happiness is an art\, and not just an accident\, it might be the art of noticing and appreciating perfect moments \n  \nlike this one \n  \ni like to start the day slowly\, in silence \nwith a cup of coffee and two shortbread cookies \nnot by checking my inbox\, or reading the new york times \ni sit on the couch and look out the window \nthe backyard is filled with flowers \nthey are glorious\, perfect! \nperfect little birds come to the bird feeder \nthis morning: song sparrows\, goldfinches\, house finches\, juncos \nsometimes puffy white clouds float by in the blue sky \nevery one perfect \n  \nthis morning the sky is overcast \nhave you ever noticed that some people say\, “i love the rain!”? \non sunny summer days that are not too hot and not too cool\, people seem to be in a good mood\, more cheerful\, more friendly \nin portland\, where i live\, it rains a lot \nit makes everything green \nbut people complain about the rain\, and even get depressed \nthe person who says\, “i love the rain!” is doing a kind of jiu jitsu \nsomething that makes most people sad makes them happy \nthat’s a pretty neat trick \n  \nthich nhat hanh used to say\, with a warm smile\, “the present moment is a wonderful moment” \nyou might notice that most problems are elsewhere \n  \nif there is so much to take delight in\, why isn’t everybody happy—at least most of the time? \nthere are countervailing forces in play \nsome are external and some are internal \n  \nto start with inner obstacles to happiness\, we might look at “bad mental habits” \nin this computer age\, to say we have been “programmed” is a useful metaphor \nour experiences\, our society\, our family of origin have instilled habits in each of us \nsome of those habits promote well-being \nsome do the opposite \nsome people are open\, cheerful\, friendly \nsome are anxious\, some are angry\, some are sad \n  \nof course a sad moment can be\, and often is\, a perfect moment \nbut to be sad all the time is to miss something that’s good for you—joy! \n  \nour external circumstances play a role in our feelings of well-being\, or lack of them \na prison environment does not tend to promote happiness and well-being \nand yet one of the happiest people i know is living in prison \nhe has mastered the art of appreciating perfect moments \n  \npeople in ukraine and gaza and lebanon and sudan and israel are currently experiencing the terrible tragedy of war \nand yet the experiences of people in those places are not uniformly bleak \nthere are perfect moments \nthere have to be\, because an act of kindness is a perfect moment \nand surely there must be many many acts of kindness under those terrible conditions \n(ceasefire now!—everywhere\, always and forever) \n  \nhuman life on earth includes tragedy\, violence and injustice \nthey are exacerbated by fear\, hatred\, anger and greed \nthey are mitigated by love and kindness and joy and tranquility \n  \nto enjoy a perfect moment is to live—for a moment—in paradise \nnot the imaginary paradise that will arrive someday if we all just do everything differently than the way we’re doing things now \nbut a real paradise in this perfect moment \n  \nbankei calls this our unborn buddha mind \nand asks why anyone would want to exchange their unborn buddha mind for the mind of a hungry ghost \n  \nperfect moments don’t necessarily have anything to do with religion or spirituality— although spiritual practices and religious symbols create perfect moments for many people \nperfect moments are democratic \nthey’re available to anyone\, anywhere\, anytime \nspecial environments\, like japanese gardens\, are sometimes created so that people who go there are more likely to experience perfect moments \na garden is a paradise \nmy local tea shop\, the tao of tea\, is a place where people go to enjoy perfect moments\, alone or with friends \n  \nin quest of perfect moments\, people go for walks in nature\, listen to and play music\, make art\, read and write poems\, make love \nmy own predilection is for simple pleasures \nthey’re readily available\, cost nothing\, and require no effort \n  \nit is my hope that while reading these meandering words you had a perfect moment \nor remembered a perfect moment \nor felt the importance of appreciating perfect moments \nso that\, over time\, you enjoy so many perfect moments that you can’t believe how lucky you are to live in a world filled with miracle and beauty \n  \nmonday\, september 23rd \n  \nit’s hard to get used to the idea that we don’t know \nbecause we like to pretend we do \n  \nfrom Endymion \n  \nBOOK 1 \n  \nA thing of beauty is a joy for ever: \nIts loveliness increases; it will never \nPass into nothingness; but still will keep \nA bower quiet for us\, and a sleep \nFull of sweet dreams\, and health\, and quiet breathing. \nTherefore\, on every morrow\, are we wreathing \nA flowery band to bind us to the earth\, \nSpite of despondence\, of the inhuman dearth \nOf noble natures\, of the gloomy days\, \nOf all the unhealthy and o’er-darkened ways \nMade for our searching: yes\, in spite of all\, \nSome shape of beauty moves away the pall \nFrom our dark spirits. Such the sun\, the moon\, \nTrees old and young\, sprouting a shady boon \nFor simple sheep; and such are daffodils \nWith the green world they live in; and clear rills \nThat for themselves a cooling covert make \n‘Gainst the hot season; the mid forest brake\, \nRich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms… \n  \n—John Keats (1795-1821) \n  \ni was talking with howard on the phone last night \ni was trying to say something about pansies and moments \n  \nwe have ideas that there are bad times and good times \n“the dark ages\,” “the enlightenment\,” et cetera \nwe don’t know \nthe perfect moment in which i enjoy the pansies on our porch and the little purple flowers (lobelia!) beside them—that moment has no boundary \nto say that the moment is “fleeting” is an idea about the moment \nthe moment itself has no idea\, no duration \nit is neither long nor short \nit has nothing to do with “time” \ntime is another idea \nfor me\, one yellow pansy is more important than the War of 1812 \n“more important” isn’t right \nit has nothing to do with the relative importance of one thing or another thing \nfour and a half billion years is not longer than a moment \nthe bonneville dam is not more important or less important than a yellow pansy \nthe question of whether things are getting “better” or “worse” has nothing to do with the pansy \n  \nkeats said it perfectly: \na thing of beauty is a joy for ever \nhe was right \nthat’s true \nthe pansy gives me boundless pleasure \ninfinite delight \nenjoying a pansy for a moment makes my whole life “worthwhile” \ni’m happy that i got to come to planet earth and enjoy the pansies and lobelia \n  \nwhat about the horrors of war? \nthe horrors of war are unspeakably horrible \npeople should be growing pansies instead of killing each other \nwhy they’re not remains a mystery \nwe have theories about the causes of war \nhere’s my theory about what causes war: \nunhappiness \n  \nthe cure for war? \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n  \nby living in love and peace and joy we are setting a good example for our fellow mortals \n  \nwalt says:  \neach moment and whatever happens thrills me with joy \n& \nthis minute that comes to me over the past decillions\,  \nthere is no better than it and now \n  \nkrishnamurti speaks of “freedom from the known”… \n  \nblake says: \neternity is in love with the productions of time \n& \nto see a world in a grain of sand \nand a heaven in a wild flower \nhold infinity in the palm of your hand \nand eternity in an hour… \n  \nthere’s no such thing as death \neither you’re alive\, or you’re not \nonly people who are alive can read this \nsquirrels can’t read it \nthey don’t need to \nthey’re busy “living in the present moment” \n* \n  \nIn 1971\, Charles Erickson and I met a Dutch sailor in India named Jules Dams. Jules posted something about John Wesley on Facebook that Charles forwarded to me: \n  \nJohn Wesley’s Manifesto \n\nReduce the gap between rich people and poor people\nHelp everyone to have a job\nHelp the poorest\, including introducing a living wage\nOffer the best possible education\nHelp everyone to feel that they can make a difference\nPromote tolerance\nPromote equal treatment for women\nCreate a society based on values and not on profits and consumerism\nEnd all forms of slavery\nAvoid getting into wars\nShare the love of God with everyone\nCare for the environment\n\n  \nJohn Wesley (1703-1791) was founder of the Methodist Church. This “manifesto” “based on his writings” is on display at the Wesley Museum in Bristol\, England. As a kid\, my family went to the Methodist Church. Maybe some seeds were planted. \n  \n—Johnny Stallings \n* \n  \nInspired by Martha and Elizabeth during Bibliophiles\, I went back to read a mystery by an author I loved. In 1975 Wilhelm Van de Vettering wrote Outsider in Amsterdam\, whose main character reflected his own—a zen student\, jazz musician\, cat-loving policeman living in Amsterdam. Very low key plot.  \n  \nAt one point this character meets a housebound sedentary old man on a house call. He feels that his life is thankfully so different from this man’s world\, when he spies the man’s record collection.  They share the same taste in music and they have all the same records!   \n  \nEverything stops…they have this moment. \n  \nWhen asked\, the old man says\, yes\, he has had these moments before…    \n  \n“I never quite understood them. Something occurs\, you notice something\, and suddenly the moment is there. You can’t explain it\, maybe you don’t want to explain it. I remember when it happened for the first time. I saw a hornbill in the zoo. Some people call them rhinoceros-birds. It looked so weird that suddenly my whole life changed. I saw my life differently. I knew it would change back again and become boring again\, ordinary\, everyday life. But that moment it was all different. The logic had been knocked out of it….Nobody can explain a hornbill to me. That’s the beauty of it maybe.”  \n  \nThat was very satisfying in itself; I thoroughly enjoyed reading the fifty year old book again. The next day I went with my grandkids to the zoo; I hadn’t been to the zoo for ever. We were going through the giraffe’s area and there was a most unusual bird staring up at us. A sign said\, The Hornbill! I had read 11-year-old Sylvan the passage from Outsider in Amsterdam\, and he asked me\, with a smile\, “Are you having a hornbill moment\, Grandma?” I laughed and told him\, “No\, but I have had them before.” \n  \nTo these moments that always stay with us\, however absurd\, and make no sense to anyone else’s reality\,  but are so meaningful to us! \n  \nThis makes me think of a great William Stafford poem –  \n  \nWhy I Am Happy \n  \nNow has come\, an easy time. I let it \nroll. There is a lake somewhere \nso blue and far nobody owns it. \nA wind comes by and a willow listens \ngracefully. \n  \nI hear all this\, every summer. I laugh \nand cry for every turn of the world\, \nits terribly cold\, innocent spin. \nThat lake stays blue and free; it goes \non and on. \n  \nAnd I know where it is. \n  \n—William Stafford \n  \npeace and joy\,    \n—Katie Radditz URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-10-3-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/0-3.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240926T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240926T213000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240923T212333Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240923T230449Z UID:5106-1727379000-1727386200@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:An Iliad 9/26/24 DESCRIPTION:  \nOpen Road Recommends: \nAn Iliad \nBefore taking this show on tour to prisons in Wisconsin\, Vermont\, Maine and Oregon\, Paul Susi (actor) and Anna Fritz (cellist) perform this powerful play by Lisa Peterson & Denis O’Hare as part of the Risk/Reward Festival. \nThis is a great show! DON’T MISS THIS RARE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE IT!!! \n  \nEllen Bye Theatre at Portland Center Stage\, 128 NW 11th Ave. \nSeptember 26\, at 7:30 pm \nGet TICKETS \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/an-iliad-9-26-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/0-1.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240921T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240921T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240903T213806Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240904T004310Z UID:4967-1726945200-1726952400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:The Marvelous Adventure of Cabeza de Vaca 9/21/24 DESCRIPTION:The Marvelous Adventure of Cabeza de Vaca \n  \nJohnny Stallings reads Haniel Long’s version of this astonishing true tale\, followed by dialogue. \nThis is an Open Road Event. \n  \nArtspace in Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nSaturday\, September 21\, 7 pm \nFree URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/the-marvellous-adventure-of-cabeza-de-vaca/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/images.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240915T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240915T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240903T232946Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241014T220033Z UID:4976-1726412400-1726419600@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous! 9/15/24 DESCRIPTION:  \n  \n¡Bibliophiles Unanimous!  \n  \nFriendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. \nHere’s the Zoom link: \n  \n https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.   \n  \nSeptember 15th\, 3 pm:  Books That Changed the Way You See the World \nOctober 13th\, 3 pm: Favorite Poems & Poets \nNovember 17th\, 3 pm: Oddball Books \nFree URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-9-15-24-2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240913 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241116 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240904T012436Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240918T215713Z UID:5002-1726185600-1731715199@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bardaphilia! FALL 2024 DESCRIPTION:Leonardo DiCaprio & Claire Danes in the Bay Lehman film “Romeo + Juliet” \n  \n“All the world’s a stage\, and all the men and women merely players…” \n  \n¡Bardaphilia! \n  \n If you don’t already love Shakespeare\, this class will remedy that. And if you do…you know there’s nothing more fun than reading the plays and poems together with friends. Actor and director Johnny Stallings (stallingsjohnny@gmail.com) is the genial host. \nFriday evenings\, 7-9 pm\, at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nSeptember 13th\, Muir Hall: Shakespeare the Storyteller (with special guest J Kahn) (This was changed to an online event because of Covid exposure.) \nOctober 25th\, Artspace Room: Measure for Measure \nNovember 15th Artspace Room: Shakespeare on Film \nThis is a FREE Open Road Event URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bardaphilia-fall-2024/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240905 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241003 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240905T234946Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250718T140259Z UID:5018-1725494400-1727913599@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:peace\, love\, happiness & understanding 9/5/24 DESCRIPTION:  \nTHE OPEN ROAD \npeace\, love\, happiness & understanding \n  \nSeptember 5\, 2024 \n  \n  \nBroken and broken \nAgain on the sea  \nThe moon so easily mends.  \n  \nUeda Chōshū \n _________________ \nWe Are All Going into the Future Together \n  \nJohnny has framed this newsletter – Peace\, Love\, Happiness and Understanding – to give readers a sense of joy. He has asked me to write about being a futurist\, an optimistic futurist\, knowing that it is part of my practice to find good things in the world. Every day I try to find signals of hope from what is emerging – in the news\, online\, in conversation and from observation.  \n  \nTwo things about the future: there are no facts (as if we needed proof given our recent political stories) and\, the future belongs to all of us. We are going into it together\, learning as we go.  \n  \nWhen I connect to people who think about the future we construct and play games as we set up scenarios that might come into being. Here is a recent one: millions of people will be migrating from too-hot-to-live-in places to places that aren’t as devastated yet. I’m in Oregon so people will be moving here for sure. How do I feel about that? What can/should I do? What problems and possibilities are there in this scenario? \n  \nMy first thought is\, “Wait. What? People coming here to my block? I don’t know them – they could be from anywhere.” I sit with this and then think how much I have and how much I’d like to share. I begin to think about how my neighborhood could embrace a new family. Could I put a small house in my yard? Could I find friends and neighbors who would pool money to buy a place they could gift this family until they could pay rent? Could I move in with one of my kids (or vice versa) and give a displaced family somewhere to get a new life started ? Could a group of friends build a house like Habitat for Humanity does? And then I start to get excited about exchanging ideas and culture with new people. As a teacher\, artist and grandma I’d love to teach their kids art\, or sit in their kitchen smelling their cooking\, or share some of mine. My granddaughter could meet their daughter and who knows where that could go? \n  \nThe futurists I hang out with are part of an online community started by Jane McGonigal. Years ago I read her book “Reality is Broken” because my boys were spending so much time on video games and playing Warhammer and I didn’t understand their fascination. Jane’s book opened my eyes to the foundation of games: to make a game you set a goal and then put obstacles in the way. Think golf: you could just walk over and put the ball in the cup. To make it a game you have all kinds of complicated rules involving special equipment\, spaces\, time\, scoring. And though golf doesn’t interest me I began to realize that as an artist I set up rules to play by every day. Will I use watercolors or acrylics? Big brush or small – arm motion or wrist motion? Abstract or realistic? Political or decorative? And so on. What this has to do with futurists is the real game\, the underlying game\, is “What if?” What if I use only blues? (Picasso’s Blue Period.) What if I accentuate B&W contrasts and shadows? (Think film Noir.) What if I put lots of mirrors facing each other and walk between them? (Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Rooms.) \n  \nArtists make up their own rules and play by them. Artists and futurists ask “What if?” to guide them to new places. \n  \nIn our online group\, urgentoptimists.org\, we look ten years in the future and imagine: \n  \n“What if there was a huge climate event that knocked out food production across a wide band of the earth?” \n“What kinds of new holidays and celebrations would you like to be part of?” \n“What impact will AI have on medical care\, education\, business\, art\, politics?” \n“How might we meet a new pandemic and what have we learned from Covid?” \n“Tomorrow is the last day of trash pick-up for everyone\, forever. What have you (and your town/city) done to get ready for this moment?” \n  \nJane’s recent book is “Imaginable: How to See the Future Coming and Be Ready for Anything.” As a game developer she knows how to make learning interesting and inventive. For Urgent Optimists she designs a scenario\, like the ones above\, and we are prompted each day for a week to write and post journal entries from the future (usually ten years\, so 2034); or create an artifact (design a poster for the new holiday “Ancestor Appreciation Day”); or contribute to a poll that asks how we’d feel being in 110 degree weather for a week.  \n  \nFrom all around the globe people answer Jane’s prompts as if they’re in 2034 and this is their reality. They share hopes\, fears and cautions. They sleuth out signs that whatever-it-is is starting to happen now. Many places around the world have had 110 degree weather for a week and more\, and that number is increasing. Where do we see signs of solutions?  \n  \nThis is foresight as a verb. Once your mind has gone to that place\, no matter what question it is answering\, you have a different way of imagining the future. You’ve imagined the people you are connected to in that future: your family\, friends\, neighbors\, city\, country\, globe. Everyone and everything plays together: mycelium and birds and streams and avalanches and a girl eating a corn dog at the county fair in Nebraska or a boy eating yak-on-a-stick in Mongolia all come together – the yin and the yang of the great wheel of fortune. The murderer who types on a computer and the one with a sawed off shotgun. The baby blessed and the baby abandoned. The open road and the closed cell. We are all going into the future together. But since there are no facts\, you and I are just as expert at drawing a picture of it. We are all immigrants in the future\, dancing as we go. \n  \n—Jill Littlewood \n* \n  \nLike all the other hippies\, back in the day\, I spent a lot of reading and re-reading The Whole Earth Catalog. It was a kind of Bible to us. It was a way of finding out about things before there was an Internet. A futurist and inventor named Buckminster Fuller was prominently featured in its pages. He invented the geodesic dome\, and many of us dutifully did our best to build them on our hippie communes. As a young man “Bucky” had spent a lot of time imagining the future\, what problems might arise\, and how to solve them. He hoped that by getting a 50-year head start on the problems\, by the time they arrived we’d be ready for them. Maybe we could even prevent some bad things from happening. A book of some of his speeches was titled Utopia or Oblivion. Those were our choices\, he said. Since oblivion is not very interesting\, he decided to devote his intelligence\, imagination and energy to utopia. \n  \nFuller invented something he called “The World Game.” The object of the World Game is to “make the world work.” Anyone can play. Maybe everyone is already playing it\, but some strategies aren’t working out too well. \n  \nIf you imagine you have enemies\, you might prepare to fight. You might actually fight. If you imagine you have no enemies\, the world is not such a scary place. Instead of imagining a world of warring nations\, we might imagine that there is one human family. We might take it a step further and imagine that we love everyone—including plants\, animals\, clouds and stones. How would that feel? \n  \nI asked my friend Howard what he thought the future would be like. “Like the present\,” he said.  \n  \nWhen I asked Jill which of Robert Crumb’s visions of the future is most likely\, she said\, “All of them.” \n  \nAt this moment on our big beautiful planet\, everything imaginable is happening right now\, and many things that we can’t imagine. The newspaper reminds us of the wars and other catastrophes. Meanwhile\, birds and butterflies are migrating\, children are playing\, bees are spending their days pollinating flowers\, mammals are falling in love\, puffy white clouds are floating by. It has ever been so. \n  \nNot only do we not know what will happen next\, we don’t know what is happening right now. Somehow\, our eyes\, brain and nervous system present the appearance of a three-dimensional colorful world to us. Somehow\, my heart keeps beating. Somehow\, I digest my food. I don’t know how any of these things work\, but they do. The whole ecosphere\, including us\, is a complex example of what Thich Nhat Hanh calls “interbeing.” In the future\, I predict that everything will continue to inter-be. \n  \nSome of the ever-changing happenings are wonderful. Some are terrible. Personally\, I want to be on the Fun Team. I’d rather be kind than mean. I’d rather be happy than sad. I’d rather be good than bad. I’d rather have friends than enemies. I’d rather be part of the healing than part of the wounding. I’d rather live in love. \n  \nIn the future\, as in the past and present\, there will be injustice. And tragedy. There’s no way around it. We’re all gonna die! That’s the way this game is played. Life and death go together. While I’m alive\, I want to live! I want to live a life rich in meaning—with lots of friendship and laughter. I often think of the words from a song by Laura Nyro: \n  \nAnd when I die\, and when I’m dead\, dead and gone\, \nthere’ll be one child born\, and the world will carry on\, \ncarry on. \n  \n—Johnny Stallings \n* \n  \nIt is Sunday\,—-September 1st! Thank god! Finally! The sun\, although hot\, is slanting at its oblique\, golden angle\, and the heat is less intense. Goodbye to the hot\, flattening blasts of July and August. The nights are cooler; the sun is rising later and later\, and setting earlier. I love the darkness. \n  \nI am driving and listening to All Classical. They’re playing Autumn\, of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons; Autumn Divertimento by Constantini; September Song by Kurt Weill…well\, someone else obviously is happy about this month\, this season. \n  \nMy chrysanthemums are blooming\, russet red\, sunshine gold; the tomatoes plump and ripe. \n  \nI am euphoric\, incandescent with joy. Peace love happiness and understanding coalesce into one moment of palpable transcendence. Sometimes there are these moments. I feel enveloped by abundance and love and joy. \n  \nCould this moment be aided and abetted also by the fact that I am re-reading (for the third time) the sublime Becoming Duchess Goldblatt? No doubt about it. For those of you who have not read about the Duchess\, I would just like to quote some of the (anonymous) author’s words. Words that are nothing less than the beauty that comprises peace\, love\, happiness and understanding. I won’t go into the ‘plot;’ it’s too complicated.  Here we go: \n  \n“My lifelong training as my father’s child has been instructive here. How do you love everybody? Surely you can’t love everybody. Surely some people don’t deserve it. \n  \nI used to ask my father about this all the time. \n  \n‘I’m not sure what you mean by ‘deserve\,’ he’d say. “You love people because they’re people\, because they’re human beings. Not necessarily because you enjoy their company\, which is one kind of love\, but because you recognize they’re inherently worthy. Every person is inherently worthy. I’d argue it’s your obligation\, regardless of whether you think it’s your job to decide if they’ve earned it.’” \n  \nLyle Lovett figures into the story (really!)\, and he offers thoughts about the Duchess:  \n  \n“Duchess is such a unifying force of nature. That’s your book\, as I’m sure you’ve already considered: how we can all be connected\, how we all are connected by the most basic and most powerful of all\, love\, and the acceptance that comes with it.” \n  \nThe Duchess/anonymous author as a young girl being chastised by a nun: \n  \n“I didn’t make eye contact with her. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. I kept my eyes down\, but I heard every word she said\, and I knew she was dead wrong. I knew in my bones\, had always known\, that my brother would eventually commit suicide\, and I knew he was a child of God just as much as anybody else\, and I knew that when he died he would be welcomed into heaven. If she’d ever seen despair up close\, she would know what I knew\, that God understands the nature of a broken heart. The saddest people will always be allowed to go home first.” \n  \nSo with these heartbreakingly beautiful words\, I leave it to you to enjoy\, cherish\, love\, and celebrate this book and this season. \n  \n—Jude Russell URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/peace-love-happiness-understanding-9-5-24/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240903T080000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240903T170000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240903T232447Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240903T232447Z UID:4973-1725350400-1725382800@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bibliophiles Unanimous! 9/15/24 DESCRIPTION:  \n¡Bibliophiles Unanimous! \n  \nFriendly online conversation that starts out with books and…meanders. \nHere’s the Zoom link: \n  \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/87614013058.   \n  \nSeptember 15th\, 3 pm:  Books That Changed the Way You See the World \nOctober 13th\, 3 pm: Favorite Poems & Poets \nNovember 17th\, 3 pm: Oddball Books \nFree URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bibliophiles-unanimous-9-15-24/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240903 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241013 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240903T170527Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240903T171359Z UID:4925-1725321600-1728777599@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Paintings by Jake Scharbach at Froelick Gallery DESCRIPTION:painting by Jake Scharbach \n  \nJake Scharbach’s paintings will be exhibited at Froelick Gallery\, September 3-October 12. \n  \nThe First Thursday Reception is September 5\, 5-8 pm. \n  \nHe will give a talk at the gallery on Saturday\, September 7th\, at 11 a.m.  \n  \nFroelick Gallery is at 714 NW Davis\, in Portland.  \n  \n  \n  \nJake is Nancy’s nephew. We’re very excited about the show!   \n  \n  \npeace\, love & happiness   \nJohnny URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/paintings-by-jake-scharbach-at-froelick-gallery/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240903 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240911 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240610T214559Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240918T190328Z UID:4749-1725321600-1726012799@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Charles Erickson\, artist DESCRIPTION:  \nThis theatrical prop (above)\, including myself in the foreground\, is an introduction to my present series of paintings about the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. \nIt is about the mind and the five organs of sense–eye\, ear\, tongue\, nose and skin–represented by the five painted portals. \n  \n“That call’d Body is a portion of Soul discern’d by the five Senses\, the chief inlets of Soul in this age.” \n–William Blake\, from The Marriage of Heaven and Hell \n  \nOne portal is on the left\, and one is on the right. There are three portals in back. The portal on the left is the ear\, the portal on the right is the eye. The ear and the eye are cognitive senses\, rich in information\, and accessible to language. \nThe central portal in the back is skin. The other two are tongue and nose. \nSkin\, unlike the other sense organs\, is all over the body–so it was called sensus communis in the Middle Ages. There is a reason skin is in the middle. It’s a unifier\, in the same way that the mind is a unifier. There is a central axis between the mind and the skin. \n* \nHere’s a passage about the transformation on Mount Tabor\, from the gospel of Luke: \n  \n28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings\, he took Peter and John and James\, and went up into a mountain to pray. \n29 And as he prayed\, the fashion of his countenance was altered\, and his raiment was white and glistering. \n30 And\, behold\, there talked with him two men\, which were Moses and Elias: \n31 Who appeared in glory\, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem. \n32 But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake\, they saw his glory\, and the two men that stood with him. \n33 And it came to pass\, as they departed from him\, Peter said unto Jesus\, Master\, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee\, and one for Moses\, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said. \n34 While he thus spake\, there came a cloud\, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. \n35 And there came a voice out of the cloud\, saying\, This is my beloved Son: hear him. \n36 And when the voice was past\, Jesus was found alone. And they kept it close\, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen \nLuke 9:28-36 \n  \n  \n \n  \n  \n \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/charles-erickson-artist/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/0-1.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240824T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240824T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240824T192748Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240824T193254Z UID:4916-1724526000-1724533200@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:Kalidasa! 8/24/24 DESCRIPTION:  \n  \nKALIDASA \n  \nJohnny Stallings reads from the works of Kalidasa (circa 5th Century CE)\, India’s greatest poet and playwright. Dialogue follows. This is an Open Road event (openroadpdx.org).  \n  \nMuir Hall in Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont\, in Portland \nSaturday\, August 24th\, at 7 pm URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/kalidasa-8-24-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/india-pahari-hills-kangra-school-late-18th-early-19th-century-virhini-nayika-a1cf06-1024.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240809T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240809T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240805T201156Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240805T203712Z UID:4904-1723230000-1723237200@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡Bardaphilia!: How to Put on a Play 8/9/24 DESCRIPTION:James Cagney as Pyramus and Joe E. Brown as Thisbe (1935) \n  \nBardaphilia! \n  \n“All the world’s a stage\, and all the men and women merely players…”  \n  \n¡Beloved Bardaphiles! \n  \nThis Friday evening (8/9/24) we will learn from Peter Quince\, Nick Bottom and their friends How to Put on a Play! We’ll see how they cast\, rehearse and perform “The Most Lamentable Comedy and Most Cruel Death of Pyramus and Thisbe.” We may even attempt a performance ourselves! If we do the result will be very tragical mirth! \n  \nIf you don’t already love Shakespeare\, this class will remedy that. And if you do…you know there’s nothing more fun than reading the plays and poems together with friends. Actor and director Johnny Stallings is the genial host.  \n  \nThis is an Open Road Event. Join us! \n  \nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nFriday evening\, August 9th\, 7-9 pm \nsuggested donation $5 per class    URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bardaphilia-8-9-24/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240802T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20240802T210000 DTSTAMP:20260424T073708 CREATED:20240730T185609Z LAST-MODIFIED:20240805T201328Z UID:4882-1722625200-1722632400@openroadpdx.com SUMMARY:¡BARDAPHILIA!: Horsing Around With Hamlet 8/2/24 DESCRIPTION:  \nBardaphilia! \n  \n“All the world’s a stage\, and all the men and women merely players…”  \n  \n¡Beloved Bardaphiles! \nThis Friday evening the plan is to Have Fun With Hamlet. We’ll perform the one-minute version\, talk to a skull\, kill each other…et cetera. I’ll provide the scripts. \nIf you don’t already love Shakespeare\, this class will remedy that. And if you do…you know there’s nothing more fun than reading the plays and poems together with friends. Actor and director Johnny Stallings is the genial host.  \nThis is an Open Road Event. Join us! \n  \nArtspace Room at Taborspace\, 5441 SE Belmont \nFriday evening\, August 2nd\, 7-9 pm \nsuggested donation $5 per class    URL:https://openroadpdx.com/event/bardaphilia-horsing-around-with-hamlet-8-2-24/ ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://openroadpdx.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Sarah-Bernhardt-Hamlet.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR