Antidote

Living alone up here, in a nonreligious way I am in the world, but not of it.  That's not to say I don't stay informed about what's going on out there.  I actually watch a number of news shows a day...not the rant-and-rave "talking heads," but straight-forward reporting.  I won't say I understand the changes in the world today, but I try.  For the most part, it all makes me wish for what I remember as the simpler, kinder days of my past.  It is also the reason why I am so reluctant to go out and "be among 'em."

I turn on the early morning news to get a grip on the weather.  Hardly a day goes by that there isn't a shooting or two down in the valley.  That is sad in itself, but nothing like the loss of life in Gilroy, El Paso, and Dayton this last week.  Precious life seems to have little to no value anymore.  Probably my most used phrase these days is, "I don't understand."

After hours of watching the carnage this weekend, I needed a break, an antidote, a way to make it all go away for a little while.  As luck would have it, TCM was playing a series of Shirley Temple movies.  Heidi (1937) and The Little Princess (1939) were just what the doctor ordered.  Drama, humor, and that darling little girl.  Arthur Treacher, a great supporting actor, was in both films, a bonus.

A few hours of good movies and walks with the ever-calm GB did their magic.  Watching bats at dusk was another highly recommended panacea.  I hope everyone finds their own antidote and some peace.