Category: Social Issues - trish hermanson

Does Character Matter Anymore?

1/7/2021

Remember when character mattered?
     When doing what was right was more important than getting our own way? When truth was valued more than holding onto a fabrication of what we want?
     I miss those days when Washington and Lincoln were our heroes. They weren’t perfect, but their ethics embodied what made our civilization “civil.”
     We’ve lost that.
     Instead, today we fall into idolizing political, sports, and entertainment figures for their fame, and simply snicker when they’re loudmouthed, brash, or bullying. We normalize their behavior, even when it’s not above that of two-year-olds. No matter where we land on the political spectrum, we may even justify that rioting and looting are free speech when they promote our agenda.
We pay for this.
     So do our kids, who observe that swagger is more important than character - why bother to be nice when you can be powerful?    I fear we’ve opened Pandora’s box, cursing ourselves and our culture with a lack of respect that will lead to our downfall.
     Does character still matter? Do words matter? What about integrity? Honesty? A grasp of right and wrong? I think so, and hope we’ll each take a close look in the mirror and make a conscious ethical about-face wherever we need to.
  Otherwise we’re doomed.

What Kind of Pumpkin Are You?

10/30/2020

My granddaughter Maggie’s jack-o’-lantern reminds me of a song about pumpkins in a field that feared to be carved and illuminated. They claimed it was safer to stay put and simply die on the vine. But a lone voice among them responded that here was their opportunity to light up the darkness.
     So what kind of pumpkin am I going to be during this time of national unrest? One that gives in to the gloom, or a jack-o-lantern spreading light? No matter who wins in the elections, am I willing to shine in the shadows of dissent around me? Will I be a peacemaker, glowing in the dimness of discord that spreads through vicious speech and writing? Dare I to be a flare of hope?
     Peter Mayer sings about this struggle of pumpkins in “John’s Garden” here.

The Peril of Tagging

10/9/2020

If you’re getting your kicks out on America’s iconic Route 66, here’s one scene you don’t want to miss - Cadillac Ranch, classic Cadillacs buried nose down in a barren pasture outside Amarillo, Texas. Bring spray paint, and you can be among the thousands who have tagged these Caddies since they were “planted” more than four decades ago.
     When I saw this, I wondered what profound thing I could write about this public art display. Such as: “all our treasures eventually turn to rust,” but who doesn’t already know that? Then when I lifted an aerosol and sprayed a car, the truth smacked me in the face. The wind whipped the paint back at me, and if I hadn’t ducked, I would have become as colorful as the cars.
     The lesson? “What goes around, comes around.”
     So in these days when slanderous political poison pollutes our atmosphere, perhaps I’d better be careful what I say. It might blow back on me.

Why Steer Clear of Purple Cows

9/17/2020

Some humor as we step around the dung that’s slung during election season:

My mama taught a little rhyme when I was just a yearling.
She had a beef with purple cows: “Beware of them, my dearling.

I never saw a purple cow, I never hope to see one.
But I can tell you anyhow I’d rather see than be one.”

But then one day a steer appeared so luminescent bright.
And I believed that he was here to give me new insight.

I got behind this champion, so wise and strong and tough.
My heart he charmed, my vote he won, with all his righteous stuff.

I thought he’d open wide my eyes to things I did not know.
Then bovine bright, to my surprise, gored me with a blow.

His words turned out to be pure bull. I’d trusted every lie.
And all the promises he made were nothing but cow pie.

So in these days when doo-doo flies from both the left and right
I’ll try to keep my head up high and stay above the fight.

And thank you, Mom, from head to tail for warning me when young,
For purple cows do cross my trail. I’ll side-step purple dung.

Why a Different Point of View Matters

7/31/2020

Meet my neighbor Joe Razes, who’s willing to get up close and personal to catch the best perspective for a photo, even when it means the risk of becoming a floor mat for a stampeding steer. Joe’s audacity pays off. He captured an award-winning portrait of longhorns that displays both their strength and their vulnerability. It turned out they were more frightened of him than he was of them. The only damage Joe incurred during several photo sessions was when a bull named Shoot ’Em Up eyed him, pawed the ground, then lumbered over and nibbled on his fallen hat.
     Which is how our biggest fears are sometimes, aren’t they? From a distance, they stare at us like raging bulls ready to charge. But when we dare to face them and work through them, they aren’t so frightening after all. Sometimes what we need is to view our problems from a different angle.
     So during this time of Covid, what’s the big fear staring you in the eyes?

Joe Razes's award winning photo