Clare Consultation, LLCPosted on May 6, 2011 by Mary Clare
Bin Laden’s Death & What We Really Want
I heard no fireworks. In the center of the rural Midwest, I was aware of no celebrations – raucous or otherwise – in bars, in living rooms, in church fellowship halls. I was an outsider. Just visiting. I may not have been sensitive to the signs. Midwesterners are also known to be a rather reserved bunch. But, this winter I’ve had occasion to observe both Green Bay Packers fans and energized mass… Read More
Posted on April 29, 2011 by Mary Clare
Things that are More Important
Obama released his birth certificate. Kate and William finally walked the aisle. Then the phone rings yesterday. One of my dearest of dears doesn’t know what to do. She is a hair’s breadth from ending it all. They are unmistakable when they show up, these things that are more important. Yesterday, regarding this week’s focus on the part of the news media Dan Rather said Come on, gang. Really? or something to… Read More
Posted on April 25, 2011 by Mary Clare
Vacation in Redemption Season
…Posting this on Monday morning in Malta — Qawra, to be exact — in a piazza at the edge of St Paul’s Bay with free public wifi access. Only took me three days to find this place (sort of a miracle, really) and only a 2 mile walk from the hotel. Easter came and went. The wind and surf were and continue impressively high. It’s not quite tourist season here, which is… Read More
Posted on April 24, 2011 by Mary Clare
With Luck
…a blog post from Malta tomorrow. Keep EX:Changing!
Posted on April 16, 2011 by Mary Clare
On the Willingness Not to Know
Donetta Brehmer was a cheerleader at Tivy High School. I think she was even Homecoming Queen one year. She was two years ahead of me, so rarified on that count alone. Donetta was pretty much the quintessence of a teen idol in the way of astronomical popularity and such. You never know who is going to be a teacher. I sat just in front of Donetta in Senora Paxton’s Spanish class. We… Read More
Posted on April 8, 2011 by Mary Clare
Looking under the Hood — AKA Whiplash in Wisconsin
In American elections the principle of democracy known as majority rule is in play even if the majority doesn’t bother to vote. This, naturally, is reflected in our elected officials. Right? Ask Wisconsin. Elections are about change. They can be about democracy. Then there’s the notion of EX:Change. It’s the idea I’ve been so captivated by since the 2008 presidential election and the electrifying cross-partisan enthusiasm for the word change. When change… Read More
Posted on April 2, 2011 by Mary Clare
“Lead,” She Said.
If we’re ever going to begin to grapple with the problems we have collectively,we’re going to have to move back the veil and deal with each other on a more human level. Wilma Mankiller (1945 – 2010) Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation Today I sat with two Elders in my community – two Grandmothers. Both of these designations, elder and grandmother, carry ambiguous valence in a culture (mine) so taken with… Read More
Posted on March 25, 2011 by Mary Clare
Libya, a First Draft, and Pondering Truth
Back in the 2000, my friend Amy Schutzer published a novel she titled Undertow http://www.calyxpress.org/books.html. She considered another title: What Version of the Truth Do We Tell? I’ve just finished the first draft of 100 Voices: Americans Talk about Change. Really! The first draft toward publication in September, 2011. That’s amazing enough, but the reason I mention it here has to do with truth. It has to do with the incredible candor… Read More
Posted on March 18, 2011 by Mary Clare
Ice Cream with a Korean American Nuclear Physicist
St. Patrick’s Day began with a cultural experience. I’m visiting rural Wisconsin. I like it. I like the people. I’m learning from them. The culture I encountered yesterday morning is not unique to Wisconsin, but it had its own uniqueness. At 7:30, nearing my favorite coffee shop, you know, the Sweet Spot I mentioned some weeks ago, I hear crowd noise from the very small downtown area (two and a half streets,… Read More
Posted on March 11, 2011 by Mary Clare
Eve
I don’t remember exactly the year. Maybe it was 1979. Probably summer, but more likely spring since summer in Baton Rough, LA can be beyond the capacity of all but its own hearty inhabitants to survive. There was the protection of the stately oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Whatever the season it was mild enough to leave untroubled the breathlessly fine fabrics and careful protocol involved to make the wedding as glitteringly… Read More