Sunday Musings – August 13, 2017
I arrived in Los Angeles on Friday to visit my son and the woman he is dating. She very generously picked me up from the airport and drove me all the way to Studio City through the Los Angeles traffic. Not surprisingly, given who my son is, she is a delightful person – bright, creative, interesting and enormously kind. She is Japanese whose ancestors were among those Japanese U. S. citizens interned during WWII by the U. S. government despite the fact that many, like her family, had been United States citizens for many years. Later that evening I got to visit with my son.
Again, not surprisingly, he continues to be a delightful man as he continues to grow emotionally, spiritually and intellectually. I would choose to spend time with him even if he was not my son. This, of course, is what most parents hope for.
Yesterday, Saturday, while his girlfriend did what she needed to do, my son, Jamie, took me to the little Tokyo section of Los Angeles. We arrived via the subway. I love riding the subway – I find the diversity of Los Angeles and the energy very different than that of New York City. Of course, one is always confronted with the enormous number of homeless people which includes the mentally ill, the addicted and those who for various reasons cannot afford housing or those few who choose to make their home in the open. How many of those who choose this option because of mental illness I have no idea. I do, of course, know that here in the United States we have yet to find a balance between the need to treat those who are too mentally ill or addicted to make a decision to seek treatment and the need to protect the rights of those of who were formerly institutionalized because of sexism, racism, homophobia or other prejudices on the whim of a parent, spouse, or community member. My experience is that most of the homeless, including the mentally ill pose no danger to me or others, but there is a code of conduct which must be followed. Of course, when someone is high, psychotic or otherwise not able to distinguish friend from foe one needs to be cautions while respectful.
I am also aware that in the subway system the graffiti which is so much a part of New York city is very sparse in Los Angeles.
Jamie and I went to the Japanese American National Museum where there is an extensive exhibit of this history of the internment of United States citizens of Japanese origin during World War II. President Roosevelt signed the order which resulted in this shameful period of United States History.
At the museum, we were greeted by Bob, an 85-year-old man and who, as a child, spent time with his family in internment camps. He had a 3-ring binder with photos and documents relating to his family history which he generously shared with us.
The other related exhibit at the museum features the history of a very famous actor of Japanese origin, George Takei, who has been very active in warning his fellow citizens of the danger of repeating history by the treatment of Muslims which seems to be encouraged and supported by President Trump.
In little Tokyo we stopped to listen to and chat with Arthur Kakane a street musician who is crippled from a fall but who is still performing. We found out from him and from Google that he is a former high school teacher, a musician who has been on America Got Talent and has even played in Pittsburgh. He is fluent in Japanese, Spanish and English. Once again I found myself wondering why some folks, no matter how much they suffer physically or emotionally, continue to keep functioning and do not give up on living a full life.
Later Jamie and I spent some time in little Tokyo and then met up with his girlfriend. We had dinner at a lovely Korean restaurant while continuing to have conversations about our day, the food, preferences and all those details of our respective lives which do not get discussed in depth in our emails.
Still later we saw the movie Toilet – a film created and filmed in India.
Today I have walked to and from the gym, stopped for a cup of coffee, and greeted the homeless. I also noted the trash cans which are spilling out for a radius of many feet. Not to be missed was the temporary homes of many people in the mini-park area, on the park benches, or any place which provided a modicum of comfort.
The goal again today is to be present and to notice how often I judge or label some event or person as good, bad, safe, unsafe, friend, foe, or otherwise create some distance.
Written August 13, 2017
I arrived in Los Angeles on Friday to visit my son and the woman he is dating. She very generously picked me up from the airport and drove me all the way to Studio City through the Los Angeles traffic. Not surprisingly, given who my son is, she is a delightful person – bright, creative, interesting and enormously kind. She is Japanese whose ancestors were among those Japanese U. S. citizens interned during WWII by the U. S. government despite the fact that many, like her family, had been United States citizens for many years. Later that evening I got to visit with my son.
Again, not surprisingly, he continues to be a delightful man as he continues to grow emotionally, spiritually and intellectually. I would choose to spend time with him even if he was not my son. This, of course, is what most parents hope for.
Yesterday, Saturday, while his girlfriend did what she needed to do, my son, Jamie, took me to the little Tokyo section of Los Angeles. We arrived via the subway. I love riding the subway – I find the diversity of Los Angeles and the energy very different than that of New York City. Of course, one is always confronted with the enormous number of homeless people which includes the mentally ill, the addicted and those who for various reasons cannot afford housing or those few who choose to make their home in the open. How many of those who choose this option because of mental illness I have no idea. I do, of course, know that here in the United States we have yet to find a balance between the need to treat those who are too mentally ill or addicted to make a decision to seek treatment and the need to protect the rights of those of who were formerly institutionalized because of sexism, racism, homophobia or other prejudices on the whim of a parent, spouse, or community member. My experience is that most of the homeless, including the mentally ill pose no danger to me or others, but there is a code of conduct which must be followed. Of course, when someone is high, psychotic or otherwise not able to distinguish friend from foe one needs to be cautions while respectful.
I am also aware that in the subway system the graffiti which is so much a part of New York city is very sparse in Los Angeles.
Jamie and I went to the Japanese American National Museum where there is an extensive exhibit of this history of the internment of United States citizens of Japanese origin during World War II. President Roosevelt signed the order which resulted in this shameful period of United States History.
At the museum, we were greeted by Bob, an 85-year-old man and who, as a child, spent time with his family in internment camps. He had a 3-ring binder with photos and documents relating to his family history which he generously shared with us.
The other related exhibit at the museum features the history of a very famous actor of Japanese origin, George Takei, who has been very active in warning his fellow citizens of the danger of repeating history by the treatment of Muslims which seems to be encouraged and supported by President Trump.
In little Tokyo we stopped to listen to and chat with Arthur Kakane a street musician who is crippled from a fall but who is still performing. We found out from him and from Google that he is a former high school teacher, a musician who has been on America Got Talent and has even played in Pittsburgh. He is fluent in Japanese, Spanish and English. Once again I found myself wondering why some folks, no matter how much they suffer physically or emotionally, continue to keep functioning and do not give up on living a full life.
Later Jamie and I spent some time in little Tokyo and then met up with his girlfriend. We had dinner at a lovely Korean restaurant while continuing to have conversations about our day, the food, preferences and all those details of our respective lives which do not get discussed in depth in our emails.
Still later we saw the movie Toilet – a film created and filmed in India.
Today I have walked to and from the gym, stopped for a cup of coffee, and greeted the homeless. I also noted the trash cans which are spilling out for a radius of many feet. Not to be missed was the temporary homes of many people in the mini-park area, on the park benches, or any place which provided a modicum of comfort.
The goal again today is to be present and to notice how often I judge or label some event or person as good, bad, safe, unsafe, friend, foe, or otherwise create some distance.
Written August 13, 2017
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