Where Do We Go From Here?

A Creative Road Map

Water Moccasin in a Drizzle. Durbin Creek Backwater.

Last week I had the opportunity to be on stage with the legend, Robert Arleigh White. He invited me to be a part of one of his RAW talks. The focus of the talk was the tropical storm Helene and the devastation in western North Carolina. Robert (Bob) was brilliant on the stage as usual. He pushed the crowd to the edge of tears then brought them back to a chortle with his self-deprecating humor. Toward the end of the session I joined him on stage to answer questions from the audience about Helene and my experiences escaping the remnants of the storm. The questions were mainly whys and whats but the last question during the Sunday session was particularly memorable. “Where do we go from here?” It was not only about the North Carolina storm but also about the events of 2024 in general.

Shadow with Hatpins. Cary State Forest.

So the question. “Where do we go from here?” In the basically liberal audience there was a palpable pall over the room. The election earlier in the month left all of our tribe reeling in its wake. “This couldn’t be.” was one response. “A rapist? A treasonous tyrant?” voiced by others. “A felon?” The reality of our uncertain future hung heavy in the air of the venue. Anticipating the next move by the self-proclaimed dictator was taking more band-width than our brains could offer.

Back to the question. “Where do we go from here?” There are a plethora of adages about dealing with adversity. When they go low, go high. Take the high road. When you lie with dogs you get up with fleas. A few come to mind. In light of these sayings I have a few opinions about where we should go from here.

Bob White brought up a conversation we had about this same thought. He reminded me that I had said, “I just want to make the most beautiful things I can.” I do stand by that. I also think that it is up to us as creatives and those who support creatives to offer new ways of looking at things.

Climate Chaos

It isn’t rocket science to look at climate related events during the last decade and realize that our weather patterns are deteriorating. It seems that we have hundred or thousand year events weekly in our nation. Record heat. Wildfires. Record snow storms. Erratic hurricanes. We understand that nothing will be done during the next four years to help curb climate change. Ignoring the facts for the last thirty-plus years has left us in a too-little-too-late situation it seems. We need to understand that in order for our species to survive the impending climate doom we need to act locally.

The instructions from the flight attendant ring true. Put you own oxygen mask on first before you start helping others. This is the attitude we take with abating climate catastrophe. Look at your home and your neighborhood. Develop strategies for you, your family and your friends and neighbors. Think of stockpiling potable water. Store enough dried and canned food to get through a few weeks at least. Look at alternative cooking situations. Develop an understanding of solar power. Ask yourself how you can use passive solar energy in heating your home, cooking and bathing. Think about all your needs. Install rain barrels and cisterns.

Rain Lilies on the Santa Fe.

Plant a Garden

Gardening is one of the most subversive activities a person can do. Grow your own food and you will be healthier and happier. Teach your children where food comes from. Picking fresh vegetables off your windowsill or your deck will make you a better person. If you are blessed with more space put some raised beds in your yard. Venture your plantings on to City Right of Way (CROW) and share your bounty with passersby.

Plant vegetables and fruits for your tummies and flowers for your souls. Plant nectar and host plants for butterflies and moths. These will also offer protein sources for birds. Plant berries for them also. If you have white-tailed deer who travel through instead of cussing them, plant extra for them to eat. Surround yourselves with the bounty of the earth.

In my later years I’m much less interested in the tidy well-maintained landscape than a yard spilling onto the streets and paths. I love seeing tiny plants push through cracks in concrete. Ferns clinging to the bricks.

Ice shadow, Chapel Hill

Write

Record your thoughts. Get a hard copy of a Thesaurus and expand your vocabulary. When they go low, you go high. As a subversive act, teach your children how to make a sentence. Compose a paragraph. Expand a thought into an essay. In the end this will pay off. History will think kindly of you.

Write that song that has been rattling around in your noggin for the last twenty five years. Compose poems. Learn the various poetic poems. Embrace metaphors.

Put pen to paper and finish that great American novel you know you were born to write. You never know what it’s worth if you don’t get it out.

If none of that works at least journal. Develop a practice of writing everyday instead of television and endless scrolling. You will see your attitude change significantly.

Tea Party Tree. Ocklawaha 2016 Drawdown

Sing

Go out to the beach and sing a song as loud as you can into the breeze. Nobody can hear it but you will feel better. Go to choral performances. Sing along in your head. Hum a tune at the grocery. People will think you are crazy. Let them.

Sing in your car. If you don’t know the words use la la la, or da da da. Again, people in traffic next to you will roll their eyes but let ‘em.

Hike

Get a trail guide for your area. Get into the woods one day a week. Walk for miles. Look for birds and wildflowers. Snails. Mushrooms. Lizards.

Take up painting

You know there’s something you’ve always wanted to do. Do it.

Make Your World Grand

So, now is the time to make your world grand. It’s obvious that no one else is going to do it for you. Push your life towards the sublime. Cook meals to the best of your ability. Serve them to your family and friends. Take extra to the homeless on the street. Hold the door for that woman with the baby that doesn’t speak your language. Smile and speak to people who are different from you. Be kind.

So, Where do we go from here? Let’s go in and work on ourselves then go out and show the world how to be. How to live a life informed by good and beautiful instead of ugly and hateful. It’s up to us, the creatives and the community who supports us.

Years ago at a gardening conference in Callaway Gardens I met one of the presenters. His name was Ryan Gainey. Unfortunately this vibrant and talented garden designer died in a house fire several years ago. One thing he said during his talk stuck with me all these years. He said he was not particularly religious but he practiced the age-old art of tithing. Instead of giving ten percent to a church he shared his good fortune with the arts. He bought art from struggling artists, he attended musical performances, bought books from new authors and supported community art programs. Let’s practice that. We can build a world that is better.