REFLECTIONS ON LIFE -- SEPT. /OCT. 2018

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED

                  

As I did for the Primary Election in the spring, I am beginning this “Reflections”

with a list of the major candidates I will vote for in the general election.  I cannot recall any election where the stakes were even close to those before us now – countless elements of social, economic, and environmental justice.  I believe all of these human beings to be very highly qualified in both understanding the many complicated difficult issues facing us as a democracy, but also, and perhaps even more importantly, of the extreme danger we are facing in preserving our democratic form of government.  (I am listing only candidates who would represent my election district)

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U.S. Congressman Elijah Cummings – for me, the most courageous and inspirational public office holder (when re-elected, Elijah may well hold the position of overseeing that justice be brought to the executive branch of U.S.

Government.)

Maryland Governor Ben Jealous.   I am encouraged beyond words to have the opportunity to vote for a candidate with Ben’s insight, integrity, intellect, courage, humility, dedication and clarity. The Howard County Teachers Association has given him a very strong endorsement.  You may want to check that organization’s website which gives very clear and strong reasons for their endorsement.  (Much has been said and written about our current governor’s popularity.  I agree with many in saying he certainly appears to be a nice guy. Only recently has Ben Jealous been on the scene, and it has become very clear, very quickly how superior he would be on virtually all issues related to social, economic, and environmental justice.  I have read all of Ben’s words during the campaign and talked with him in person on two occasions.  Each time I walked away with a deep sense of hope and a lessening of fear about our future.  I have heard some say it is problematic that he has not held elected office before.  Not to be sarcastic, but is that really a good measure these days?

Maryland Attorney General   Brian Frosh has taken the lead across our nation in successfully challenging actions by President Trump which unconstitutionally interfere with personal rights. For that, our entire nation owes him gratitude.

Maryland Senate, District 12         Clarence Lam

Maryland Delegates, District 12   Terri Hill and Eric Ebersole

                                                      These three incumbents have served us with hard work, dignity, and integrity for four years.  Jessica Feldmark will complete the state delegation with deep experience and hard work. County Executive Calvin Ball      Calvin has a deep understanding of justice. County Council    Deb Jung      I know she represents the priorities of District 4

BE CERTAIN TO VOTE.  DEMOCRACY DEPENDS ON IT.

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REFLECTIONS ON HOME IN COLUMBIA

Life outside the window by my bedside changed last month.  Our homeowners association has hired a company to check all 60 townhomes for faulty cedar siding boards and then paint all of the homes including trimming.  They have done a very good job, and the Latino guys are great to have around the neighborhood.  There is a major sad side effect however:  the squirrels have moved away, hopefully temporarily. I believe it must be the incessant, though necessary, clanging of the tall ladders in order to reach the third floor level where our bedroom is located.  We have been home for two weeks now, and this morning I spotted the first squirrel.  I was so excited! He was not visible from my bedside window but rather from the window above the headboard which requires my getting out of bed.  The workmen packed everything up and left the neighborhood yesterday.  Hopefully, the absence of clanging will call the squirrels back home.  I miss them terribly.

Back to school, autumn 2018. In the weekday mornings we now see elementary school kids with their backpacks walking down our street to the nearby elementary school.  That sight gives me such a warm feeling – those girls and boys stepping out briskly on their way to learn……...

In September, for my monthly recording on Howard Community College Dragon digital radio program, I interviewed Colleen Morris, President of the Howard County Education Association, about life as a teacher in Howard County today.

Episodes of the Dragon radio show I do at HCC can be found at http://dragondigitalradio.podbean.com/category/reflections-on-life/.

Colleen was a teacher herself for years.  Although she loved teaching, she left the classroom to take on the role of advocating for public policy to make our schools as effective as possible given the pressure of dealing with ever changing technology and an increasingly diversified student population.  I learned a great deal from her and believe you will as well in listening to the podcast.

“ It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.”

Albert Einstein

For October, I interviewed Lloyd Knowles who served as a member of the Howard County Planning Board at the inception of Columbia.  Later he served as a member of the Howard County Council and Chairperson of the Zoning Board.  He had moved to Columbia from the Laurel area specifically to be a part of Jim Rouse’s “Garden for Growing People”.  As an electrical engineer working at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, the concept of a new town fit him like a glove.  Lloyd put in countless hours in the 70’s to help make Columbia one of the most desired place in the U.S. in which to live, work and raise a family.  It so happens that, for the past 25 years, he has also been my husband, providing me, a literature major and law school grad, with an in-house resource of technical and scientific knowledge.

REFLECTIONS ON ZACH

Watching the kids walk past our home on their way to elementary school brings up very clear images of Zach’s learning and playing soccer as a member of a visiting team on the field of that same elementary school.  Lloyd and I would walk over to the school field with our folding chairs and watch his team play.  He loved the game and exuded energy and determination. Years later Zach would demonstrate even greater and more inspiring determination in living with brain cancer. Though I am certainly not a sports aficionado, I know there could never have lived a champion in any sport that demonstrated more courage than Zach did in living with cancer.  He literally took care of everyone around him – both mentally and spiritually. He continues to inspire players at his high school, Centennial, and countless young – and not so young – players everywhere. Indeed his inspiration extends well beyond the playing fields to life in its entirety – mental and spiritual as well as physical.

I have written before of the Zach photos and memorabilia that line the sill of the window beside my bed.  I awake each morning to the presence of Zach’s spirit and go to sleep each night deeply aware of that same precious presence.

Zach’s “little” sister, Julia, now a college graduate, has taken on a staff position with The Zaching Against Cancer Foundation.  Zach himself founded this organization near the end of his life on this earth.  It does remarkably good work in helping families with kids dealing with brain cancer. Her dad recently sent me a podcast in which she is speaking to a group about the Foundation and the inspiration her brother continues to spread in so many places.  She gave an inspirational talk, without notes, as if she had been doing public speaking all her life. On November 17 the Foundation is holding its annual racing event at Turf Valley. Lloyd and I always do one of the walks – 5K, I think.  Hundreds of runners with a big tent party afterwards. Check it out on the Foundation’s website and come join us.

REFLECTIONS ON BALTIMORE, MY HOME TOWN

 “Baltimore police have confirmed that a 32-year-old man who was fatally shot during the funeral of 18-year-old Marcus Brown on Wednesday was his older brother, Maurice Brown Jr. of the 300 block of Lyndhurst Street in West Baltimore.”  The Baltimore Sun     September 14, 2018

The site of this shooting is just a couple of blocks from Saint Bernardine’s elementary school to which I walked every day from the age of six through 13.  Again I ask “where is the justice in my having been safe there and today’s kids not?  Again I answer.  There is none.

While we were travelling two good news announcements about Baltimore occurred. Both the Lexington Market and H.L. Mencken’ home will be restored.

The Baltimore Sun                                                                      September 13, 2018

“Where is the leadership? If Baltimore doesn’t save Lexington Market soon, it will be lost forever."                                                                    Patricia Schultheis

The market, where my Mom and I would take the streetcar to shop when I was a pre-school age little girl has very significant historical value.  Of equal sociological value, today’s kids will be able to experience a totally different experience – and one closer to nature, I might add – than in today’s mega grocery stores.

The Baltimore Sun                                                                  September 15, 2018

“Repurposed Mencken House to open in 2019”

H.L. Mencken was a controversial humorous journalist, satirist, and critic.

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Stream of consciousness.  I recently received in the mail (snail mail) an envelope from Suzanne, a close friend of my sister, Martha.  After graduating from high school, they both entered the novitiate for the order of nuns who taught at St. Bernardine’s.  My sister spent the last four months of her life with us in our home. When she died 20 years ago after years of living with cancer, we held her funeral at St. Bernardine’s .  I spoke of Martha at that funeral.  So did Suzanne.  In the envelope that recently arrived in our mailbox was a copy of the words she had chosen for that deeply spiritual occasion,  “Reflections on the Life of Helen Martha Gilner, October 10,1931 – March 30, 1999”.  The words that continue to touch me most deeply recount how Martha, after ending her work as a teacher, prepared meals for Baltimore’s indigent at the Franciscan Center.  When I would drive my sister to University Hospital in Baltimore for her chemo treatments, along the curbside “street people” standing on the corners would call out “Martha, Martha.”  I am so deeply grateful to have these priceless memories and to have had Martha as a sister for more than 60 years.

REFLECTIONS ON PUBLIC POLICY

HOWARD COUNTY

There have been several possible approaches to addressing the future of lower Main Street in Ellicott City down by the Patapsco River.  I believe it’s extremely important that we do a thorough informed series of engineering, environmental, and historical studies before making the final decision.  It would be unwise to quickly approve major changes to this major site in the history of the United States of America where the very first train ride in the country took place.

MARYLAND

The Baltimore Sun                                                                 October 10, 2018

“Progressive senator also served as U.S. prosecutor for Maryland after his appointment by President Kennedy”

Jacques Kelly, Christina Tracie, and Frederick N. Rasmussen

I had the good fortune to meet Joe Tydings while he was serving as U.S. Senator from Maryland. In the very early days of Columbia he spoke at the Columbia Democratic Club.  At that time I was a young mom who had recently been appointed to the Howard County Board of Appeals and a citizen activist on environmental and healthcare issues.  “Joe”, as he liked to be addressed, had been defeated for re-election to that office before 1974 when I was first elected a member of the Howard County Council.  Years later we reconnected when I was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates.  He occasionally visited during the legislative session and went on to dinner in the evening with some of his friends who worked as staffers in Annapolis. I was fortunate to sometimes go along.  I recall how fluent he was, particularly in environmental issues.  He remained a purist regarding democracy, as well as an unapologetic idealist.

            

U.S.

The Baltimore Sun                                                                     October 14, 2018

“Cummings could become chief Trump investigator”

If anyone has the courage, integrity, wisdom, fortitude, and determination to do this work for our nation, it is Congressman Elijah Cummings.  It is truly a blessing to have Elijah as MY Congressman

REFLECTIONS ON OUR PLANET BEYOND THE UNITED STATES

France, Italy, and Austria

Lloyd and I celebrated our 25^th wedding anniversary on October 10; we decided to celebrate by retracing the steps of our three-week honeymoon in Western Europe   I had kept a journal including the small hotels in which we had stayed.  Lloyd made reservations in the same places in France, Italy, and Vienna.  We traveled by train, each carrying one small- to medium-size suitcase.  We were blessed with blue, sunny skies every day.

The following caught our attention in all three nations:

Cleanliness of the streets

Care for artistic elements

Upkeep of railroad system

Plethora of outside cafes

TURKEY

Reading of the apparent torture and murder of Post contributing columnist, Jamal Khashoggi, and the peace and beauty of his last column in this publication which I read every morning, I found myself in need of help in order to avoid despair.  I turned to the small book that never fails to sustain me, “Being Peace” by Thich Nhat Hanh.  I keep it on my bedside table adjacent to Zach’s altar.  I so strongly agree with the reviewer who described this volume as “a glass of water in the desert”.  It has certainly has been that for me.

REFLECTIONS ON OUR UNIVERSE

The Washington Post                                                          September 2, 2018

“Four planets glide across the sky”                                    Blaine P, Friedlander Jr.

I realize that this article is now approaching two months old, but I so love the imagery of “the Beatles crossing Abbey Road, and you’ve got a ticket to watch.”

Since we were more or less at the same latitude in France, Italy, and Austria as we are here in Columbia, night sky watching was quite similar to what it would have been were we at home.  And watch we did.  We enjoyed three weeks of clear skies and no rain.  The offset of the western European skies against the waters of the Mediterranean was gorgeous.

Nothing’s going to change my world

“Pools of sorrow, waves of joy

Are drifting through my open mind

Possessing and caressing me

Across the Universe

~Lennon and McCartney

Be well and love life.

~ Liz

Episodes of the Dragon radio show I do at HCC can be found at http://dragondigitalradio.podbean.com/category/reflections-on-life/.

REFLECTIONS ON LIFE –June 2018

REFLECTIONS ON HOME IN COLUMBIA

We have had many clear nights recently. The full moon and bright stars shine through the windows above our bed’s headboard and along side my side of the bed.  Lightning bugs have contributed their flashing – on and off, on and off, on and off – many of them, but not synchronized.

Our potted geraniums and impatiens have filled out with bursts of color, The wisteria that grows up from the ground in the back of our home and entwines itself among the rungs of our main back deck had an immense spurt of growth necessitating our trimming it substantially in order to see the pond.  Surprise!  A new addition to our decks’ animal kingdom.  Deep in the burst of wisteria leaves, and entwined around and around the inch thick vine, a black snake.  I had been pruning right around it when I suddenly saw this little white “face” about 3/4inch in diameter. I must admit, I am afraid of snakes.  I stopped pruning and checked on it every five minutes or so.  It was staring straight out at me. About the fifth time I checked, it was gone.  Now I wonder “where”?

Our squirrel family is larger than ever this year.  Looking over the rail to the ground deck, I once spotted eight squirrels gobbling up the spilt seed from the bird feeder.  That’s a full house at nighttime when they all sleep in the maple outside the window above our headboard.

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Be sure to check out this Howard Community College Dragon Radio episode of my interviewing Columbia naturalist and environmental advocate, Ned Tillman. Episodes of the Dragon radio show I do at HCC can be found at http://dragondigitalradio.podbean.com/category/reflections-on-life/.

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This month I spent a good bit of time attending the annual Columbia Festival of the Arts - music, films, theater, and the magnificent backdrop of Lake Kittamaqundi.  Sometimes I went with Lloyd, sometimes with a friend or friends, and sometimes alone. How fortunate we are here in Jim Rouse’s new town where he provided for “the CEO and the janitor to live in the same community”.  May we demonstrate the will to keep it so.

The Baltimore Sun                                                     June 17, 2018

“Author’s driving passion” 

Michael Chabon’s ‘Pops’ reflects on parent’s role

By Mary Carole McCauley

I have previously written in “Reflections” about novelist, Pulitzer Prize winner and Columbia native, Michael Chabon.  His latest publication, “Pops:  Fatherhood in Pieces” is a collection of essays published three weeks ago just in time for Father’s Day.  Lloyd and I have it on order.  We anticipate that it will be delightful as well as deeply insightful as are his thirteen books published since Michael left Columbia for college. Chabon has written of the positive impact growing up in Columbia had on him and his writing.  Though I never met him here in Columbia, I attended the launching of one of his books in a bookstore near San Francisco.  His work gives rise to a deep sense of pride in me.

The Washington Post                                                                           June 29, 2018

“5 killed at Capital Gazette in Annapolis

Gunman’s motive said to be grudge”

Tragedy so close to home.   The Annapolis Gazette occasionally interviewed me when I was a member of the legislature.

“A shooting at a newspaper, even a local paper that mostly steers clear of national politics, opens a window into the economic dislocation that has altered the way Americans work and how they learn about their communities”.  The same could be said about The Columbia Flier/Howard County Times

REFLECTIONS ON ZACH

In my deepening concern about the deterioration of world order, including in our own nation, I intentionally call on Zach’s wisdom in his quotes.  Here are some of those I now find most helpful in maintaining equanimity.  Thank you, Zach.

Time is so precious. Take nothing for granted

Look into my eyes. It’s ok if you’re be scared.  So am I.

Be who you were born to be

No time for doubt.  Believe

I want the world to be a better place because I was here.

REFLECTIONS ON BALTIMORE, MY HOMETOWN

The Baltimore Sun                                                    June 23, 2018

“Exhibit looks at city’s role in slave trade

Homewood Museum hosts ‘Purchased Lives’ Display”

Jacques Kelly                In the neighborhood

 I have written in months past about my high school years in Baltimore across Wyman Park from that city’s Museum of Art.  In recent months there was significant press coverage about the removal of a confederate leader’s statue from this park, more than fifty years since I had regularly passed it without the slightest insight into its connection to slavery.  Now this article sheds more light on the extent of slavery in this area of the city where I attended high school.  The Homewood (name of the Johns Hopkins University neighborhood) Museum is now hosting an exhibit on the American slave trade in the 19^th century, “Purchased Lives.”

Now for the connection to Howard County.  In the 18^th century, the main gardener at Homewood mansion, Izadod Connor, had been born a slave at Doughoregan Manor.  He and his wife, Cis, a spinner of linen, were moved to Homewood to work for the Carroll family.  After the death of Charles Carroll, the Connor family was shipped to Louisiana.  Izadod never returned.  Cis and her numerous children “lived out their years back in Howard County at Doughoregan, and gained freedom only when other slaves were freed in l864.”  My awareness of these connections is not without pain.  The land upon which our current home sits off of Cedar Lane was once part of the Manor

We plan to visit this exhibit that runs through July 27 at Homewood Museum, 3400 N. Charles St. in Baltimore, also in proximity to my high school

REFLECTIONS ON PUBLIC POLICY—LOCAL, STATE, NATIONAL

County of Howard

Lloyd and I recently invited one of our region’s most respected landscape architects to our home.  We sat out on our back deck and view the magnificently lush green grass and foliage encompassing us and surrounding the pond.  We asked him some questions about what will be needed to prevent more flooding in Ellicott City.  His response:  Replacing the underground pipes under Main Street with much larger ones that could handle massive runoff such as we experienced two times recently.  His answer:  Whatever other elements to reduce runoff are employed, it will be absolutely necessary to replace the underground pipes with much larger ones than those already in place.  He added that it would be very costly.

I wonder whether $90 million would help?  That is the amount of the TIF (tax increment financing) gift recently given by our county government to the Howard Hughes Corporation (HHC) which is doing the very lucrative continuing development of Downtown Columbia.  HHC is one of the largest such companies in the U.S.

State of Maryland

The Washington Post                                                                      June 16, 2019

“Chesapeake Bay is healthiest it’s been in 33 years, scientists say

A $19 billion federal plan is helping to restore the nation’s largest estuary”

by Darryl Fears

For the first time in many years, ALL regions of the bay are showing at least some improvement.  We have such a long way to go and without our close attention and determination, the Bay could slip back farther in the wrong direction again.  In Howard County, possibly the most important steps we can take is to reduce runoff into our many streams, the headwaters of the Patuxent and Patapsco Rivers.

The Washington Post                                                                       June 12, 2018

“Prisons lift limits on access to books"

Drug smuggling prompted policy

Md. inmates’ advocates had decried ‘ban’

By Ann E. Marimow

Thank you to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for so effectively shining a bright light on the potential prisoner rehabilitation element of access to good literature.

The Washington Post                                                                          June 16, 2018

“For the biggest group of American Workers, wages aren’t just flat.  They’re falling”

by Jeff Stein and Andrew Van Dam

Economic Justice is slipping further and further away in our nation.

United States of America

The decision of the Supreme Court of the United States to uphold our president’s immigration ban leaves me with no words.  I can only hold this tragic occurrence in quiet meditation.  I say the same regarding Supreme Court Justice Kennedy’s decision to retire.   Until I attain a place of greater clarity, I will remain silent.

Within hours of writing the previous paragraph, the following words from my favorite Washington Post columnist, E.J. Dionne, were delivered right to our front door:

“Our constitutional system of ‘checks and balances’ works only if those in a position to operate the levers of checking and balancing do their job.  It is clear that (some members of Congress and some appointees to the Supreme Court) have no taste for such work.  For the moment, President Trump is mostly unchecked and unbalanced.”  These words provided the greater clarity I wanted, not positive, but clarity nonetheless.

In the Vancouver newspaper we read a very interesting story of how Canada is reacting to the President’s import tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. They have identified a number of Republican districts in the U.S. that could swing to Democrats this fall. They then search for U. S. goods that are very popular in Canada and also important to the local economy in the Republican’s district. Canada has slapped a heavy import taxes on those imported items. For instance, a House seat now held by a Republican in a Philadelphia suburb is home to the only maker of steel beer kegs in North America and those jobs are vital to his district. Wham, slap a big tax! Another: Republican districts in Calif. and Colorado produce sleeping bags that are in demand in Canada—WHAM. Orange juice from Florida, ketchup from Penna., soy sauce from Wisconsin, and so on. They did their homework.

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“The Atlantic”                                                                           June 2018

“The Birth of a New American, “ARISTOCRACY”

“The class divide is already toxic, and is fast becoming unbridgeable.  You’re probably part of the problem.”

The timing of this article in the one monthly periodical magazine that I read from cover to cover every month is remarkable.  It’s as if the editors had someone sitting in on the minds of the majority of our Supreme Court.

REFLECTIONS ON OUR PLANET BEYOND THE UNITED STATES

You may recall my writing last year about attending retreats in New Your and California with Buddhist monk Jack Kornfield.  For about 25 years he has been one of my greatest spiritual, as distinguished from religious, teachers.  I very recently received his regular e-mail message listing the locations in the U.S. where he will be teaching. This message listed three Mindfulness Teachings for the month of July in London, Oxford, and Paris.  I’m sure they have their own Mindfulness teachers in those cities, and yet I felt so good to read that there is someone in the U.S. who they believe help them in these troubling times.

The Washington Post                                                         June 9, 2018

“Allies and experts see threat to the world order

Economic partners fear lasting harm from trade wars, discord”

In a recent conversation with Lloyd, I said I know I’m not alone in my state of disbelief.  No, rather than disbelief, it is my difficulty in believing, how we in the U.S. are now perceived  - and justifiably so – by our former allies.

“What worries me most … is the fact that the rules-based international order is being challenged. What is surprising … is that the challenge is driven not by the usual suspects, but by its main architect and guarantor, the U.S.”

European Council President Donald Tusk

The Washington Post                                                          June 23, 2018

“Facebook’s fight against fake news goes global"

Before Mexico’s election, a handful of vetters try to keep democracy honest”

By Elizabeth Dwoskin

Following serious problems caused by the broad distribution of fabricated news regarding the recent Mexican election, Facebook says it is determined to prevent such abuse in the U.S. midterm elections.  Not to be sarcastic – and I truly mean that – but “good luck!”

REFLECTIONS ON OUR UNIVERSE

June 21 marked the summer solstice, the time at which the sun is at its northernmost point in the sky.    For me, it also serves as a clear reminder that half of yet another year has passed since my last birthday, which is on December 21, winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. This also reminds me to take a good close look at how I have spent those six months – in Love or in Anger?  I very much needed that reminder this year.

Wisdom for this troubling time during summer solstice:

“Be like the flower, turn your face to the sun.”

                                              Kahlil Gibran

“Pools of sorrow, waves of joy

Are drifting through my open mind

Possessing and caressing me

Across the Universe

~Lennon and McCartney

Be well and love life.

~Liz

Past editions of this newsletter can be found at http://lizbobocolumbia.blogspot.com/.

REFLECTIONS ON LIFE – May 2018

Absolutely Everything is Connected

A one-time change in my traditional format with this one-time important insert:

UPCOMING COUNTY AND STATE ELECTIONS

Campaign signs are springing up all over Columbia.  On June 26th our primary election will be held for local, state, and national offices.  I have chosen to lead off this “Reflections” with my upcoming election opinions because I have received more questions than ever on whom I am supporting in the contested races in my districts.  Here they are:

U.S.  Congress:                     Elijah Cummings

State Senate District 12:       Clarence Lam

State Delegates District 12:  Eric Ebersole and Terri Hill

County Executive:               Calvin Ball

County Council District 4:   Deb Jung

Four years ago, the first time in 20 years that I had not been on the ballot as a candidate to represent my legislative district in Annapolis, I chose to support Terri Hill for State Delegate. Terri won that election and was joined by Eric Ebersole and Clarence Lam to serve as members of the Maryland House of Delegates representing District 12, which includes all of West Columbia and a large part of East Columbia. 

This year I am endorsing, supporting and actively working for all three of the incumbent state legislators in their re-election bids:  Eric Ebersole, Terri Hill, and Clarence Lam.  Eric and Terri are running for re-election to the House of Delegates.  Clarence is running for the State Senate seat that is being vacated by Ed Kasemeyer who is leaving public office after many years. Lloyd and I have spoken often during the past four years of how each of them has represented our viewpoints in virtually all public policy issues that have come before the Maryland legislature during that time.  Clarence, Terri, and Eric have represented us with integrity, hard work, and well-informed good judgment.  All three of them have demonstrated the courage to support social, economic, and environmental justice, sometimes in the face of strong opposition by moneyed interests.  It is important to note that Howard County Education Association, the local teachers’ organization, along with numerous other environmental, social and economic justice organizations have also endorsed Clarence, Terri, and Eric.

There was a time when Lloyd and I were big supporters of Mary Kay Sigaty, who is running against Clarence Lam for the open Senate seat. We spent countless hours in our home working on her first County Council campaign and introducing her to our supporters.  We worked hard to recruit many volunteers. And even rehearsed her first cable TV spot in our family room. 

I realize that she has put much time and energy into her current office, but her demonstrated values differ deeply from those she espoused in our home. I particularly cite the instance of the $90 million gift given to the developer of Downtown Columbia by our county government. Ms. Sigaty led that movement and has been quoted in print saying that this gift was “essential.”  I find this very troubling, particularly considering the unmet need for funding for moderate and low-priced housing, a school site in downtown, adequate social services, and environmental protection. The county government has done very little to provide even moderately priced housing.   In another economically unjust aspect in the district in which I live, Councilmember Sigaty has also overseen the redoing of the Wilde Lake Village Center.  Now in place of a grocery store, we have only a CVS drugstore that carries a few food items at a much higher cost than that charged by a Giant or Safeway.  So much for economic justice for the moms with young kids. Where is Jim Rouse’s dream of “a place where the CEO and the janitor can live in the same community”?

It is also very important that we support Deb Jung for the County Council representing District 4.  I believe Deb can and will breathe life back into Jim Rouse’s values of social, economic, and environmental justice in our community.

I urge you to join me on June 26 or at one of the earlier voting opportunities at the Florence Bain Senior Center or one of the other early voting sites.

I have been asked to announce my support for many other local candidates.  I realize that every elected office is important, though I believe it is more appropriate for me to focus only on the district in which Lloyd and I live.

I have rarely, if ever, been so concerned about the lack of social, economic, and environmental justice in our Columbia community, Jim Rouse’s “Garden for Growing People”.  I understand that conditions change with time.  It is simply unacceptable, however, for his basic principles of social, economic, and environmental to be abandoned.  I could not be at peace if I did not address it strongly.

Peace, Liz

REFLECTIONS ON HOME IN COLUMBIA

A reminder that episodes of the Dragon radio show I do at HCC can be found at http://dragondigitalradio.podbean.com/category/reflections-on-life/.

May was well underway with its blossoms in our yard, mostly dogwood and azaleas, visible from the windows on three sides of our townhome.  Lloyd’s wood- sided box garden of lettuce and radishes was taking root and exhibiting rows of bright, spring-green small leaves visible from the two upper decks.  Birds and squirrels were very busy with their nesting and other spring activities.  Bird feeders on all three levels had constant diners stopping by for the sunflower seeds.  The heron began its slow stalking back and forth along the ponds’ edges.  Occasionally we could spot a hawk perched watchfully and well camouflaged by the maple leaves. Frogs’ moans were clearly audible all through the night.  In daytime, tiny frogs jumped in the downstairs back yard fountain that Lloyd designed and built ten years ago.  A lone huge blacker-than-black crow regularly visited our shallow birdbath at the foot of the front entrance steps.  Or could it possible have been a raven like the ones being spotted in some places in Maryland, though somewhat west of Howard County?

Then the heavy rains came and stayed and stayed and stayed.  The ponds lost their deep blackness and turned a muddy brown.  Lloyd’s lettuce and radishes were completely washed out. Tree branches waved wildly from one direction to another, amazingly without snapping, at least in our yard.  Days passed.  Weeks.  No one could deny our lack of control over nature.  Dangerous and yet awesome.  Nature, you do not play by the rules of us humans.  Then again, due largely to climate change, many of our “rules” are becoming increasingly vague.  Or could it be that we simply never realized there are no “rules” where nature is concerned?

We arrived home from our two glorious weeks in Canada, to find that there had been a serious fire in two of the four townhouses that share common walls in our community.  We had learned about it from my daughter, Chris, while we were still travelling. A third townhouse, our next-door neighbors’, had smoke damage only.  Our end unit was blessedly untouched.  The other three homes in our grouping of four remain empty until repairs are completed.  Lloyd and I are aware, particularly during the night that something very basic is missing. It’s too quiet around here! Due to much activity in repairing the damage, this May “Reflections on Life” is coming to you a week late.

While we were away one of Columbia’s very early residents, Fern Eisner, died suddenly and unexpectedly. She was a loving woman who in turn was much beloved by many.  Years ago we were both members of a women’s group that gathered monthly in rotating homes in. Believe it or not, I can recall being quite shy when I first joined the group.  Fern was one of the women who helped to “draw me out.”

In addition to being a warm, caring, vibrant woman, Fern was a very accomplished photographer.  She took many photos of Wilde Lake and Lake Kittamaqundi in the early days of Jim Rouse’s new town.  I particularly love the morning haze of vapor rising from the lakes’ waters, a trademark of Fern’s.  She also took seemingly countless photos of Columbia’s residents, particularly families and kids.  Several of them have graced the walls of Wilde Lake’s Bagel Bin for decades, including a precious one of two of our grandkids – Patrick and Greta Knowles.

We arrived home in time to attend a beautiful memorial service for Fern at the Oakland Mills Interfaith Center.  Shep Jeffries, another dear friend and very early resident, who with his family shared a back yard with the Eisners, led the service.

He brought a beautiful balance of reverence, sadness, and joy to all present.

My last time with Fern was about two months ago.  We walked together around Lake Kittamaqundi.  I will forever see her with her long graceful gait whenever I walk around this lake, the beauty of which she preserved for posterity so clearly in her photos.

REFLECTIONS ON ZACH

When I awoke on the morning of May 4, I was instantly aware that it was Zach’s 25^th birthday. I usually begin the day with meditative readings and “sitting” in Lloyd’s office adjacent to our bedroom while he continues to sleep.  This day I simply sat quietly.  Zach was there with me.  I called up memories of him as a newborn baby, then as a smiling chubby one-year-old, then on through his childhood to his elementary, middle, and high school years, and finally to his one semester at the University of Maryland.  Clearly there was deep wisdom within Zach since his very young years

I now sit typing this “Reflections” in our dining room.  One corner of this room is dedicated to Zach.  A glass-top table holds a copy of the program from his funeral mass, “In Thanksgiving to the Author of Life and in Celebration of the Gift of Zachary Lederer.”  Underneath the high school graduation photo of Zach, looking so straight on that I can feel his presence, is the quote that Zach chose to accompany this photo in his Centennial High School yearbook:  “A life is not important except the impact it has on other lives.”  Jackie Robinson.

Jackie was one of Zach’s major heroes.  Lloyd and I went to see the movie “44” with him when he was 19 and living with a brain tumor.  Jackie must have in some way known Zach when he made that statement.

REFLECTIONS ON BALTIMORE, MY HOME TOWN

While in Canada, we spent a few days in the town of Jasper.  It was a convenient location to drive through the Alpine-like forests, visit mountain lakes, and spot wildlife – including bears (or in our case, a bear). For lunch one day we stopped in a restaurant named “The Raven.”  We talked with the waitress who told us she was aware that a major U.S. football team was named The Ravens.  She did not know that the team was from my hometown, Baltimore.  She also had no idea of Edgar Alan Poe or his most famous poem.  I Googled it and we had a great conversation.  The restaurant had some beautiful and very creative hand-painted artwork of very large dark-black ravens displayed on its walls.  We suggested the restaurant create a hand written scroll of Poe’s masterpiece and hang it on the wall.  I believe they are going to do that.  More connectivity!

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In my April Reflections I wrote at length about Lloyd’s and my attendance at the Kennedy Center of a play in honor of Ta-Nehisi Coates and how absolutely thrilling for me to get to exchange “hello’s” with this brilliant spokesperson for racial justice who grew up in my childhood neighborhood in West Baltimore, though he came 40 years after me.  Just before we headed out to Canada, I read that Ta-Nehisi would appear at the Baltimore Museum of Art while we were away.  This Catholic girls’ high school that I attended was located just across Wyman’s Park from the museum, and such a fitting place for me to hear Ta-Nehisi speak.  I heard it went beautifully, and in retrospect, I wouldn’t have traded for the opportunity I had to spend five days with Eckhart Tolle.  I’m sure I will get to hear Ta-Nehisi again, and now that I think about it, he and Eckhart have more than a little in common in their messages to us fellow human beings, including being present and conscious as much as possible.  So many good teachers in this world of ours. And we need every one of them.

REFLECTIONS ON PUBLIC POLICY - COUNTY, STATE, AND NATION

Howard County - Ellicott City

It would take volumes for me to cover the countless news articles about the tragic flooding AGAIN in Ellicott City while Lloyd and I were away.  Although it will not undo the damage done nor the people harmed, I think it is wise that we are beginning to take a closer look at the cause of these drastic floods.  I will be spending some time with some environmentalists and land use planners, many of whom live right here in Howard County and possess deep knowledge on the subject, about where we go from here.  Back as far as 1989, when I was serving as Howard County Executive, we proposed and obtained County Council approval for some tighter development restrictions.  I want to know the status of these laws now. Meanwhile, I hold the grieving survivors deep in my heart and soul, particularly during meditation.

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The Baltimore Sun                                                          May 6, 2018

“Tracking historic sites in danger

Preservation group studies county historic properties that are threatened”

Several years ago, I served on the board of the nonprofit “Preservation Howard.”

This was in keeping with my focus on historic preservation as an elected official.

At that time it was very gratifying to be able to preserve numerous sites in historic Ellicott City: the log cabin on Main Street and the old firehouse which was located on a steep hill off of Main Street so the horses pulling the heavy water container and big fire hoses could get a running start downhill.  Another project we initiated at that time was the stabilization of the Patapsco Female Institute ruins, located high on the hillside of Church Road, which now serves as the summer home for Maryland’s Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, a magnificent backdrop for the Bard’s dramas.

Whoever dreamed that preservation would soon become an issue in Columbia? Fortunately for us, Fred Dorsey, the head of this nonprofit, and its other members realized the historic importance of the building that once housed the original Columbia Exhibit Center, which preserved the highlights of the unique process Jim Rouse utilized in creating Columbia, arguably the most successful planned community ever.  Thank you, Fred.  We are all indebted to you for your continuing dedication, diligence and vigilance.

State of Maryland

The Baltimore Sun                                                                 May 15, 2018

“Maryland’s plan to control health costs gets U.S. O.K.       Andréa K. McDaniels

The Baltimore Sun                                                                 May 19, 2018

“Maryland tops states in decline of prison population”         Michael Dresser

We can be grateful that our state of Maryland is taking the lead in these two crucial areas of public policy:  health care costs and prison population decline.

* * *

In the June 6 edition of his electronic publication, “Maryland Reporter,” former Columbia Flier reporter, Len Lazarick, writes “Joe Tydings: The man we thought we knew but didn’t very well.“ I was privileged to know Senator Tydings over the years, including since he left office quite a few years ago.  He would occasionally visit Annapolis when I was serving in the House of Delegates.  I am looking forward to attending a gathering with Joe sometime soon where he will discuss his book. I strongly agree with Len.  “Rediscovering Joe Tydings – “My Life in Progressive Politics:  Against the Grain” is a must read.  “If you read but one political autobiography in the next 10 years, make it this one, for sure.  And don’t rush your reading, but instead take your time savoring every single word, no matter how long it takes – It’ll be worth it, for it’s that good, really.”

* * *

United States of America

The Dallas Morning News                                                     May 20, 2018

“Episcopal bishop gives royal wedding an American flair”

You may ask “why “The Dallas Morning News”?  When we arrived at BWI for our flight to Canada, we learned that our flight was cancelled.  Flying through Dallas appeared to be the best option.  As it turned out we had to spend the night in a hotel at the Dallas airport.  Hence “The Dallas Morning News”.

I loved reading of the United States contribution to the magnificent wedding ceremony in Great Britain, not only the dignified and inspiring Bishop Michael Curry, who happens to be African American, but also the “stirring renditions” of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me” and Etta James “This Little Light of Mine”.  My daughter, Chris, Zach’s mom, loved to sing that song when she was a little girl about three years old.

REFLECTIONS ON OUR PLANET BEYOND THE UNITED STATES

Canada

Following six days at Lake Louise participating in a retreat with Eckhart Tolle, Lloyd and I took a bus through the Canadian Rockies to the town Jasper, a popular site for skiers and mountain climbers.  We had tickets to take a train from Jasper to Vancouver and were looking forward to the overnight ride with deep anticipation.  We subsequently learned that this historic and romantic passenger train through the Rockies is struggling for survival.  Trains are sometimes cancelled outright and are perpetually late – often by tens of hours.  Sadly, much of the route is single-tracked.  Massive amounts of Asian goods coming through the port of Vancouver and headed to the major cities in the east are overloading the meager capacity of the tracks.  Freight gets priority since it is the railroad’s moneymaker.  Tis pity, tis shame.  We eventually went to Vancouver (a magnificent city) by bus over essentially the same route.

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The Globe and Mail – Alberta Edition                                      May 24, 2018

 “The federal cabinet has invoked national security threats to block the proposed $1.5 billion takeover of Canadian construction giant, Accon Group Inc., by a state-owned Chinese enterprise – a decision that is likely to cause a rift with Beijing.

Clearly the U.S. is not the only re-evaluating its trade relationships with China.

Germany

The Baltimore Sun                                                          May 13, 2018

“Merkel decries U.S. withdrawal from Iran deal, gets peace prize”

This German woman, who in my opinion now comes as close as anyone to deserving the title “leader of the free world” spoke in Assisi on the occasion of her being honored for the welcome Germany gave to Syrian refugees.

China

The Washington Post                                                       May 3, 2018

“He was growing old alone.  So he asked to be adopted”

“A man’s plight highlights problem of an entire generation in China aging without

 enough support”

With so much in the news currently about China, as well as Lloyd’s and my experience visiting this vast and deep nation with a sister city contingent from the Columbia Association, I found this human interest article about aging quite moving.

REFLECTIONS ON OUR UNIVERSE

The Washington Post                                                               May 7, 2018

“Hawking left a last mindblower to mull” How a multiverse might work”

I wrote of the amazing mind and life of Stephen Hawkins and how his book “A Brief History of Time” had such an impact on me, a human being for whom understanding science is not a strong card (Just ask Lloyd.)

“Hawking, who died March 14 at age 76, overcame a devastating neurological disease to publish groundbreaking insights into black holes and other mysteries of the cosmos”

“We are not down to a single unique universe, but our findings imply a significant reduction of the universe to a much smaller range of possible universes.”  (Hawking in an interview last fall) ”To the very end, he (Hawking) was not afraid to take on the toughest problems, and the problem he’s taking on is the one that gives me a headache.”  (Fellow cosmologist Michael Turner}

Yesterday evening we attended the annual spring gathering to support The Columbia Foundation, a charitable organization founded in the very early days of our new town.  For years it was held in the Rouse Company headquarters building on Lake Kittamaqundi.  After that iconic building was converted to a Whole Foods, following years of studies of it’s becoming the main arts center for our county, the Foundation moved its annual event to Howard Community College.  This year it was held in the magnificent new Science and Technology building.  Upon leaving, we saw a posting on an electronic board of a photo of Hawkins sitting on a jagged mountaintop with his legs dangling over the side and this accompanying quote: “So remember.  Look at the stars and not at your feet.”

To me that wise choice of material on display reflects the College’s deep and clear message to its students of the importance of spirit (as distinguished from religion) as well of mind.

The Washington Post                                                                  May 15, 2018

“Images of universal appeal:  NASA website offers one out-of-this-world photo after another”

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Beyond amazing!

In his book, “The Universe in a Single Atom,” published in 2005, the Dalai Lama writes:  “This book is not an attempt to unite science and spirituality (Buddhism being the example I know best) but an effort to examine two important human disciplines for the purpose of developing a more holistic and integrated way of understanding the world around us, one that explores deeply the seen and the unseen through the discovery of evidence bolstered by reason.”    

Google “The Dalai Lama and Stephen Hawking” and listen to an amazing conversation between these two loving, brilliant human beings.         

“Pools of sorrow, waves of joy

Are drifting through my open mind

Possessing and caressing me

Across the Universe

~Lennon and McCartney

Be well and love life.

~ Liz