E-NOTES: WHEN THE NEWS IS NOT ENOUGH. THE BLOG OF E. ETHELBERT MILLER
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
And tomorrow is July...
Things are starting to bloom around the house (see below). Today I completed all of my HR paperwork for a new position. I'm looking forward to working with my friends at the University of Houston-Victoria. I'l spend the next few weeks developing my memoir course. If you have creative suggestions for what to use, send tips and advice this way. I can be reached at: millerEE@uhv.edu.
A new book came in the mail yesterday - URBAN VOICES: 51 Poems from 51 American Poets edited by Joyce Brinkman & Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda. Many of the voices in this collection are state poet laureates. My poem "We Embrace" opens the collection. This poem can be found near the DuPont Circle Metro in Washington D.C. It was written for the caretakers of people who died from AIDS. While writing this poem I thought of Chasen Gaver and Essex Hemphill and so many friends who died during the days of their youth.
http://www.eethelbertmiller.com/etube/poem-bench.html
http://www.eethelbertmiller.com/etube/poem-bench.html
Monday, June 29, 2015
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WHEN SILENCE IS NOTHING BUT AN ECHO ONE NEEDS TO HEAR
Maybe before we pursue more storytelling and conversations about race, we should embrace the importance of silence. The world is filled with noise. Bombings, shootings, insults and bad music (which might be another word for beheading) have a common tendency to be loud. Too often my ears hurt after being outside. In my 65th year I'm growing deaf from the noise without ever witnessing and understanding the beauty of silence. Deep silence. That way of listening to one's heart beating and connecting it to the pulse of the earth. Listening to silence is a step toward self-healing. Embracing it begins transition and transformation. We desire this but we talk too much about it. There is nothing to say about silence except acceptance.
Silence opens the door to listening. We all have a tendency to talk first and listen later. We interrupt when we hear things we don't like. We shout too often to be seen.
We cannot enter into conversations while having no skills in how to listen. Oh, and then comes the task of asking the right questions. This requires knowledge...
It seems we only skimmed the instruction manual in how to live together. Race relations is nothing but a table we can't seem to fix - maybe one leg is missing. Is it yours? Instead of what box did the parts come in - what box did you check?
There is too much rage in our society right now. A howl, a scream...
So many of our spoken words are filled with anger and complaint.
As I once wrote a few weeks ago - it's time to chop wood and wash hands.
Time to seek silence and discover prayer.
Listen before you speak. If you desire to talk then ask your heart for directions.
Silence opens the door to listening. We all have a tendency to talk first and listen later. We interrupt when we hear things we don't like. We shout too often to be seen.
We cannot enter into conversations while having no skills in how to listen. Oh, and then comes the task of asking the right questions. This requires knowledge...
It seems we only skimmed the instruction manual in how to live together. Race relations is nothing but a table we can't seem to fix - maybe one leg is missing. Is it yours? Instead of what box did the parts come in - what box did you check?
There is too much rage in our society right now. A howl, a scream...
So many of our spoken words are filled with anger and complaint.
As I once wrote a few weeks ago - it's time to chop wood and wash hands.
Time to seek silence and discover prayer.
Listen before you speak. If you desire to talk then ask your heart for directions.
Sunday, June 28, 2015
DAVID NICHOLSON BACK IN THE CITY
This Sunday found me on the # 70 Bus going down to Petworth. One of the pleasures of no longer working at Howard University is the absence of daily Fanon moments. I totally forgot what it was like to ride this bus route. I don't miss it. I write but I don't need to overdose from material. August Wilson once was asked why more black people didn't attend his plays. His remark was, "black people have too much drama in their own lives."
I went out on the Lord's day only to see my friend David Nicholson. His new collection of short stories - FLYING HOME is out. Nicholson who for many years was a book editor at the Washington Post also founded the Black Film Review. It was nice to see him and his lovely wife entering Upshur Street Bookstore this afternoon. David had a gathering of local literary stars surrounding him and listening to his reading. I sat behind Post reporter Jackie Trescott. It was nice to see David's publisher Rick Peabody in the audience.
Listening to David read from his book made me more aware of how good a writer he is. There are so many pages filled with beautiful, well crafted sentences. My ears fell in love and was upset when I had to walk back to the bus stop to catch a ride back up Georgia Avenue. The sky was gray - as gray and as beautiful as a line written by Ernest Gaines or maybe David Nicholson.
I went out on the Lord's day only to see my friend David Nicholson. His new collection of short stories - FLYING HOME is out. Nicholson who for many years was a book editor at the Washington Post also founded the Black Film Review. It was nice to see him and his lovely wife entering Upshur Street Bookstore this afternoon. David had a gathering of local literary stars surrounding him and listening to his reading. I sat behind Post reporter Jackie Trescott. It was nice to see David's publisher Rick Peabody in the audience.
Listening to David read from his book made me more aware of how good a writer he is. There are so many pages filled with beautiful, well crafted sentences. My ears fell in love and was upset when I had to walk back to the bus stop to catch a ride back up Georgia Avenue. The sky was gray - as gray and as beautiful as a line written by Ernest Gaines or maybe David Nicholson.
BASEBALL
The baseball All-Star game will soon be played. After it's over folks will turn to late July and the long hot days of August. There are going to be a few trades. The Nationals need to improve things in their bullpen. A nod to the standings right now offers big clues as to where the pennant races will be in September.
No way I see Kansas City or St. Louis not making the playoffs. Sad to see the Cubs playing almost as good as the Nationals and so far behind the Cardinals. The Wild-Card Cubs in the playoffs will be as much fun as Golden State taking it all in the NBA.
Look for a battle in the AL East between Tampa Bay, New York, Baltimore and Toronto. Even Boston could get hot and be the sleeper in that division. A hot contest.
How long can the Houston miracle continue in the AL West?
The Nationals need to keep winning. How far they can go this year might well be decided by how they do against the Dodgers in July (and then again in August). In fact the road trip in August (10th-16th) when they play the Dodgers and San Francisco - 7 straight games - with no rest - might be the Nats season. Oh, and are you ready for those three games in St. Louis (August 31,Sept 1-2)?
If Harper hits 40 + homers, and the starting staff is more than hype - and the Nats make a trade or two for bullpen help - well just maybe - I'll see you in September at the ballpark. Big fun coming to The Yards.
No way I see Kansas City or St. Louis not making the playoffs. Sad to see the Cubs playing almost as good as the Nationals and so far behind the Cardinals. The Wild-Card Cubs in the playoffs will be as much fun as Golden State taking it all in the NBA.
Look for a battle in the AL East between Tampa Bay, New York, Baltimore and Toronto. Even Boston could get hot and be the sleeper in that division. A hot contest.
How long can the Houston miracle continue in the AL West?
The Nationals need to keep winning. How far they can go this year might well be decided by how they do against the Dodgers in July (and then again in August). In fact the road trip in August (10th-16th) when they play the Dodgers and San Francisco - 7 straight games - with no rest - might be the Nats season. Oh, and are you ready for those three games in St. Louis (August 31,Sept 1-2)?
If Harper hits 40 + homers, and the starting staff is more than hype - and the Nats make a trade or two for bullpen help - well just maybe - I'll see you in September at the ballpark. Big fun coming to The Yards.
Everyday robotics is beginning to change who we are.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/28/arts/television/gemma-chan-explains-the-art-of-being-a-robot-on-humans.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/28/arts/television/gemma-chan-explains-the-art-of-being-a-robot-on-humans.html
Saturday, June 27, 2015
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Friday, June 26, 2015
Thursday, June 25, 2015
On March 23, 2010, I sat down at a table in the East Room of the White House and signed my name on a law that said, once and for all, that health care would no longer be a privilege for a few. It would be a right for everyone.
Five years later, after more than 50 votes in Congress to repeal or weaken this law and multiple challenges before the Supreme Court, here is what we know today:
This law worked. It's still working. It has changed and saved American lives. It has set this country on a smarter, stronger course.
And it's here to stay.
This morning, the Supreme Court upheld one of the most critical parts of health reform -- the part that has made it easier for Americans to afford health insurance, no matter where you live.
If the challenges to this law had succeeded, millions would have had thousands of dollars in tax credits taken away. Insurance would have once again become unaffordable for many Americans. Many would have even become uninsured again. Ultimately, everyone's premiums could have gone up.
Because of this law, and because of today's decision, millions of Americans will continue to receive the tax credits that have given about 8 in 10 people who buy insurance on the new Health Insurance Marketplaces the choice of a health care plan that costs less than $100 a month.
If you're a parent, you can keep your kids on your plan until they turn 26 -- something that has covered millions of young people so far. That's because of this law. If you're a senior, or have a disability, this law gives you discounts on your prescriptions -- something that has saved 9 million Americans an average of $1,600 so far. If you're a woman, you can't be charged more than anybody else -- even if you've had cancer, or your husband had heart disease, or just because you're a woman. Your insurer has to offer free preventive services like mammograms. They can't place annual or lifetime caps on your care.
And when it comes to preexisting conditions -- someday, our grandkids will ask us if there was really a time when America discriminated against people who got sick. Because that's something this law has ended for good.
Five years in and more than 16 million insured Americans later, this is no longer just about a law. This isn't just about the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare.
Today is a victory for every American whose life will continue to become more secure because of this law. And 20, 30, 50 years from now, most Americans may not know what "Obamacare" is. And that's okay. That's the point.
Because today, this reform remains what it always has been -- a set of fairer rules and tougher protections that have made health care in America more affordable, more attainable, and more about you.
That's who we are as Americans. We look out for one another. We take care of each other. We root for one another's success. We strive to do better, to be better, than the generation before us, and we try to build something better for the generation that comes behind us.
And today, with this behind us, let's come together and keep building something better. That starts right now.
Thank you,
President Barack Obama
ARE WE WAITING FOR OUR POEMS TO BE BLESSED?
Pope Francis will soon be here. It's time to raise the papal flag. Maybe one day we will be given the keys to heaven.
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THE DEATH OF JIM MILLER
Dear Friends and Colleagues:
We now have some information about ways in which we can honor and mourn Jim Miller. Not everything has been resolved, but more information will be forthcoming. For now, there are several ways that you can choose to reach out.
name. The details are still being worked out, but there will be an opportunity to
contribute to a cause that Jim cared about.
This message is going to all English and American Studies faculty. Please feel free to send this information to others who might want to know about it.We now have some information about ways in which we can honor and mourn Jim Miller. Not everything has been resolved, but more information will be forthcoming. For now, there are several ways that you can choose to reach out.
Jim's partner, Susan Pennybacker, has said that she would be very happy to receive cards from Jim's friends, students, and colleagues. Her address is: 519 Hooper Lane, Chapel Hill NC 27514. You can also write her at pennybac@email.unc.edu.
There will be a church service for Jim in DC sometime in the fall. We will have more information on that in a few weeks. This is separate from the academically oriented "Celebration of the Work of James A. Miller" that will be on Sept. 11 in the Jack Morton Auditorium, 2-6pm. All of Jim's friends and colleagues will be welcome at both of those events.
There will be a small service in Chapel Hill on July 11. If you would like to send flowers, you can send them to Susan's address, or to the United Church of Chapel Hill at
1321 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Chapel Hill, NC 27514
(919) 942-3540
Finally, we should soon have information about donations to an organization in Jim's1321 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Chapel Hill, NC 27514
(919) 942-3540
name. The details are still being worked out, but there will be an opportunity to
contribute to a cause that Jim cared about.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
THE SCHOLARS
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| Dr. Michael Witmore |
Great interview this afternoon with Michael Witmore the director of the Folger Shakespeare Library. I can't wait to post the link on Facebook and in my E-Notes. I should be able to share it in a few days. Many thanks once again to Ed Jones and his wonderful staff at UDC-TV. The Scholars television show is something I really enjoy doing. Next guests will be Julia Sweig and Joyce Ladner.
http://www.utexas.edu/lbj/news/2015/leading-latin-america-and-cuba-scholar-julia-e-sweig-joins-l
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Ladner
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