Identity

We and our grandchildren are confronted by challenges of infotech.  It is no small concern.  A basic understanding of who we/they are is a good foundation for their responses

Doug Brouwer in his new book starts a conversation about identity.  It is a series of essays (letters) that explores his life with information garnered from multiple sources.    It is a good read and will be the subject of many family conversations.  

Our identity is a big idea.   If we have a digital identity it can be stolen.  If we have a narrative identity our stories can be misunderstood.  If we have a vocational identity we can retire.  We all have multiple descriptions of who we are and we look for  themes or summaries.  Where are the reliable sources or models?  

An underlying assumption of this blog is that we do have an identity as “healing agents”.  Our story is only reliable as we understand it within the context of a larger history and story.  The good news is that we have received the gift of that story/.  Doug Brouwer’s story is another part of that gift.

Marvin

References

Brouwer, D. J. (2018). The Truth About Who We Are: Letter to My Grandchildren. Resource Publications.

Downing, R. (2011). Biohealth: Beyond Medicalization: Imposing Health. Wipf & Stock Pub.

Harari, Y. N. (2018). 21 Lessons for the 21st Century (1st Edition ed.). Spiegel & Grau.

New Year Prescription

The usual rhetoric is “New Year Resolutions” but maybe a more realistic approach would be to “New Year Dreams” for 2019.  

What has been worrisome this past year is the disillusionment that seems to be epidemic in our lives.  In Wilmington, the shock and now malaise of Hurricane Florence is reality.  IDP’s (internally displaced people) are one of many realities.  There is FEMA, debris removal, replacement and repair but our world has been rocked.  This looks like the “new  abnormal” as described by Governor Jerry Brown of California. The joy we regularly share on the media is Schadenfreude - you don’t have to speak German to identify with this experience. 

I needed some therapy and here is what I found:

Renee Fleming and the New York Philharmonic New Year’s Eve Concert

Andrea & Matteo Bocelli - Fall on Me

Vijay Gupta - Street Symphony

Actually the new dreams found me in the beauty of music and story.  In a paradoxical way, our realities can produce our most beautiful dreams - a creative response that pushes all to a healing community.

Marvin

References:

Brown, Jerry “The new Abnormal”

https://theweek.com/speedreads/807164/gov-jerry-brown-says-massive-fires-are-new-abnormal-california

Smith, T. W. (2018). Schadenfreude: The Joy of Another’s Misfortune. Little, Brown Spark.

Renee Fleming and the New York Philharmonic New Years Eve Concert

https://www.pbs.org/video/new-york-philharmonic-new-years-eve-with-renee-fleming-ogvm7m/

Andrea & Matteo Bocelli, Fall on Me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChcR2gKt5WM

Vijay Gupta - Street Symphony

https://www.pbs.org/video/street-symphony-1546641522/

Hage, M. L. (2013). Healing Music

http://healingagents.blogspot.com/2013/05/healing-music.html