A finish line

But first, a bit about the incredible tension everyone seems to be carrying right now.

May 18, 2025

“The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.”
―James Baldwin

This quote has been making its way around the internet since bombs dropped on Gaza. I can understand in my mind that we have failed the children of Gaza. I can feel it bodily in the microcosm of my own life that we are also failing the mothers.

At the library, a mom asks, “I really need a coffee, can you watch my kids for ten minutes?” She hustles out the door and hustles back again so as not to take too much of my time. I think, “You deserve so much more than ten minutes.”

At the playground, a girl falls with her scooter, unseen by her mother. I pick her up, brush her knees, set the scooter upright and off she rolls. Mothers are mothers to all.

A mom of two (a 3 year old and a 6 month old) said to me last week, “I know I'm not supposed to say this, but sometimes, I miss having just one.” Tiny confessions of an overloaded mother whispered in the library.

I’m sensing that many people are feeling pulled taut in too many directions right now. If you zoom out really far to witness the changes happening on an Earth level, it’s a point of stress. If you zoom in a little to the tensions between countries, it’s a point of stress. If you come a little closer in the United States and watch the tension between political parties, it’s a point of stress. And if you go all the way down into the daily grind of a mother caring for her children, or to an adult child caring for her parents after being laid off, it’s a point of stress. All of these stress points on every level of existence. It’s a lot to face every day.

I have no conclusion for any of this, but I’ll leave you with this quote from Andrea Gibson

I know most people try hard to do good and find out too late they should have tried softer.
―Andrea Gibson, You Better be Lightening

How many lives has our children’s librarian saved? No matter what work she is engrossed in, if a child walks up to her with a book, she slowly sets her work down, moves to the floor and reads with the child. I know if I go to the library, she'll be there, taking just an ounce off my own load. It’s a place I know that I can find a bit of a break. I have a feeling our dear librarian has saved many mothers lives without ever knowing the depths that her kindness reaches.

A recently completed project

I must have started this well over a year ago, then it sat in a closet for 7 months before I picked it back up again. My brain / body gave up when it was 90% complete. This is a major pattern in my practice, and one I’m hoping to leave behind. I get close to the end and then for some reason just move along to the next thing before actually finishing things.

My three previous posts about being “close to the finish line” on this one. Oh boy, if you just look at the dates on those posts… it’s been over a year now.