Dr. Angela Davis and Dame Jane Glover

The thrill of the day was listening to Angela Davis in conversation with Lama Rod Owens, moderated by a brilliant therapist and writer named Prentis Hemphill. It’s a two-hour video on Youtube, but if you skip the first 56 minutes, you can cut to the conversation. I recommend this talk with all my heart, especially if you’re worried and scared about the new administration of the US government.

Davis says clearly, “This is going to have to be a totally multi-generational struggle, and it’s not going to be those of us who are older who are going to have the answers.” This is what I was trying to explain in my post on November 8. Not that I want young protesters to be violent, but that I support them in doing whatever they choose to do. Old forms of protest have not worked; we have failed to keep fascism at bay. New forms of resistance must evolve, and whatever the new forms of protest may be, my job is to support and encourage, to follow, and not to judge or lay down rules. I don't praise them for being peaceful. I support them, and I will stand with them if I'm able, whatever they choose to do.

Davis ends the conversation, “Palestinians have not given up, and like our Black ancestors, they teach us something about the nature of struggle, and how important it is to pass it down….”  We may not live to see this wave of fascism stopped, but out of our love for those who will come, we must not give in to despair, we must not give up. We support Palestinians because they are beings whose lives matter; and they do teach us what it looks like not to give up. When Davis and Lama Rod speak of this wave of fascism, they aren't only speaking of what's happening in the USA. It's happening in many places.

In other news, Dame Jane Glover’s Mozart’s Women is wonderfully readable. Till now the little I knew about Mozart came from watching Amadeus, which I knew was unreliable. Glover’s book reads like a good novel, and it’s a joy. So my Blip is the book. Those adorable little creatures beside the book were made by Sue. Their heads come off to reveal little vessels, currently empty.

The echocardiogram report came quickly: mild leaking of mitral and tricuspid valves, nothing serious. This explains the breathlessness and fatigue: just getting old. Nothing to worry about. Take more naps.