Ross in the Downtown Core... No to War... and Diogenes Things...

Ross did not run out of dreams... But, like Martin Luther King he run out of time... He did all that he fancied... and at times, he improvised on the spur of the moment... Those improvisations were as much fun as his serious outlook and introspective challenges were thoughtful, also uplifting...

We were just roaming the streets in the downtown... He admired the contrasting architecture of the city... The old dwindling fast and the modern steel and glass replacing them... He loved the old... he embraced the new with a passion... He had contradicting impulses and appreciated the  contrasting beauties... 
 

The charm of the  old... and the intoxication with the new...

As he insisted that people are "allowed" in their way of living and doing, he also appreciated the beauty of all and everything... The good, the bad, and the ugly had all their funny and unique beauty... He loved them all and got a high on the "good"; had a loving tolerance for the bad; and enjoyed the kick out of the bad... he appreciated each and all for their joy and singular charm... 
   

There is a restaurant in this... The Marche... and Ross absolutely loved to be there...

It was an intellectual challenge to experience his minimalist simplicity... Its childish purity exuded from every pore of his being... He may have come across as mediocre, anti-intellectual, and not interesting in his reasoning... but his immaculately faultless logic was yet another reason which attracted me... 
We roamed the streets... observed the fun and the funny... and enjoyed the exuberance of the city... Inhaled the noise of the people with the fume of the cars... At times we laughed at the outrageous honking and the obnoxious scream of people... But Ross absolutely adored the yelling kids... He had a soft spot for all the kids... He could have played with them for eternity... and have both intellectual stimulus and sustainable fun... He was nurturing Rossie after all... unfathomably deep inside him... 



... People protesting about something, anything is a common spectacle in any downtown core... and our city was not an exception... That day, we encountered a large crowd walking and chanting against the war in Iraq... The previous day the second invasion of Iraq had begun... At first, Ross was amused about the crowd... then he got intrigued and engaged in conversation with few of them... Later, he was charmed by the agitation... and started chanting with them... He insisted that we join them... and there was no harm... It was a peaceful demonstration... So I agreed...
Ross went to a man, looked like an usher-security... and yelled above the chanting crowd... "Remember we were here with you... We are walking with you... We are on your side..." He wanted to emphasize his Irish look... He wanted them to remember that a "white" man was in solidarity with them... He wanted to be noticed... He desired to be remembered...

   

Only the dead have experienced the END of war... 

After all, war is a waste of human and material resources... and Ross was correct...

We walked few blocks with them... They stopped and we went to the subway... While in downtown, Ross insisted that I do not drive... So as we can have as much fun with the booze as we desired... he did not want me to be safe... it was his way of demonstrating his care...

   

The next morning when I visited the chapel... He was very serious... while departing he called me back...
"I want to talk with you..."
"Sure. Other things can wait...", I yielded.
"Yesterday evening I thought about everything... and I decided that I will not visit the U.S. any more..."
"But you visit every summer with your brother... to meet friends on the other side of Nova Scotia... in the U.S.", I said.
"I already phoned my brother yesterday evening and told him about my decision..."
"That's good... then we'll have more of you...", I tried to joke and went to my work... to my sanctuary... to my classroom...
And, 
Ross kept his promise despite his Irish twin brother's protests...

*** 

...And Other things... Which will be dedicated to Diogenes... and from now on I will subtitle it
"... And Diogenes Things..."

There are many anecdotes about this man, who laughed at aristocrats and is said to have walked around Corinth with a lit lamp in daytime, looking for "a human being". 
The most famous one is the one about his meeting with Alexander the Great. When Alexander asked the cynic, who lived in a barrel (actually, it was a huge clay jar)...
Alexander: "What can I do for you..."
Diogenes: "You're blocking the sun... Step out of my sunlight..."

Alexander was greatly impressed and said; "truly, were I not Alexander I would have wished to be Diogenes". 

We always find the ways and the means to fund wars... 

 

But... leave people with contaminated running water... This is not the "Wretched of the World..." far away where we cannot see... This is right in the middle of us... In prosperous North America... in Flint, Michigan... 

The water in Flint, Michigan is contaminated with lead... and poisonous... But for few months now NOTHING has been done... Till the media exploded the facts into the consciousness of the people...

The water is poisonous... It is contaminated with lead... and this just in the middle of North America... What a shame...

The water is contaminated for months... and the state government is covering it up...

letting people to consume the contaminated water...

They say... Flint is a not-well-to-do city and the majority of the residents are African American... People, including Hilary Clinton, have accused the Mayor of negligence... because the population is mainly African American and poor...
This should not happen in North America... But it happens over and over again... In Native reserves... in poor neighbourhoods...
The money for war is not limited... But the money to look after the people is always in dispute... among the different groupings of the establishment...
What a shame...

***

And a Student-Friend Concluding Her Email writes...

Finally, to end off this e-mail, I wanted to comment on your short bit about Justin Trudeau.[Refer to the blog posts few days earlier...]  People are constantly making comments about how he is too young, too idealistic, etc.  

I love it.  

That is the kind of leader we need.  Our country has been in the hands of people who don't understand how to actually be excited about its future for too long.  I think his youth brings a fresh breath of air into our lives.  There is a website that I follow sometimes, called TrudeauMeter.ca and it allows people to follow along with the promises made and how many are in progress, how many have been achieved, and how many have been broken.  

I love it! 

I think it's a great way to keep the country informed with what is going on in the government.  This is a great tool that should be in place from now on for every leader and governing body we have.[Emphasis added...] So far, He has achieved 9, broken 4, and has 24 in progress still out of 212 promises.  Pretty cool.

Have a great week!

Dear friend,
The mayor of Flint, Michigan will definitely fail on the LearderMeter that you are referring... I hope he will resign and clear the water...