My mother would have disapproved of Trump, Putin and the mean spirited hijinks of the current GOP. She had no respect for bullies, narcissists, and ruthless billionaires. She knew them for what they were, selfish monsters.
My mother-in-law was the same. She really hated liars and people who bragged about themselves all the time. She could spot a liar a mile away, and then she'd laugh and mimic them, thinking them ridiculous.
And they would NEVER have trusted a man who cheated on his wife.
Last night I dreamt I was going someplace with a friend. I stood outside by the car waiting for her to come out of the house. She walked out and I heard her say, “Go away!” to something I couldn't see. Then, from around the back of the house, a decorated bull with large horns came rushing towards me. It hit me in the chest, and everything went black. I woke up.
But get this, it was decorated like a Hindu sacred cow. The only thing it had in mind was to slam into my chest. Why? If it was real I would say it is simply a bull's nature. However, it was a dream, and I'm of the opinion dreams are our unconscious mind trying to tell us something super freaking obscure.
Today is December 6th, St. Nicholas Day. As a child, I put my shoes by the front door the night before, and lo and behold they were filled with candy, nuts, and fruit the next morning. St. Nicholas had visited our house while we slept!
My mother's grandparents were from Lorraine, France. This is a tradition that has been maintained in my family. St. Nicholas is the patron saint of Lorraine, and popular in Germany and Austria.
Krampus is part of that medieval tradition, too. He is a companion of St. Nicholas. They represent a duality, good and evil. Good behavior is rewarded, and bad behavior is punished. Very effective message.
Because I have both a ridiculous sense of humor and a wild imagination, I think I was visited by Krampus last night. Darn!
It
is early December and Christmas frenzy is in full swing at my house. I'm ordering presents, actually venturing out of the house to go to real
live local stores, making all sorts of lists, and starting those damn Xmas
cards. I'm already tired of it all. However, if past years are an
indication, it will soon take over every thinking moment. I will be
obsessed with the holidays any minute now and I won't resurface until
January. Ho ho ho I think there are sugar plums dancing in my head. Perhaps it is the time for a change. Maybe Christmas should be much, much more about giving, caring, and helping others. Maybe everyday should be like that?
By the way, the U.S. has received an early Christmas present in the form of #PoorPeoplesCampaign, a revival of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1960's era Civil Rights movement. According to a post on the Repairers of the Breach facebook page,
"Poor,
Disenfranchised," (and) "Clergy to Launch New Movement For Moral Revival of
America: Leaders to Announce Historic Wave of Direct Action, Non-Violent
Civil Disobedience
Washington – On Monday, 50 years to the day
after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others called for the original
Poor People’s Campaign, organizers will announce a new moral movement to
challenge the enmeshed evils of systemic racism, poverty, the war
economy, ecological devastation and America’s distorted national morality.
The Monday launch of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for
Moral Revival by co-chairs Rev. Dr. William Barber II, Rev. Dr. Liz
Theoharis and other leaders will include the unveiling of details around
six weeks of direct action next spring at statehouses and the U.S.
Capitol, including plans for one of the largest waves of civil
disobedience in U.S. history."
Yes!
Here's a video that was posted live yesterday to start their campaign: