NIrvana and enlightenment

 

The White House on Sunday amplified President Trump's call to rebrand New Mexico as "New America," reposting an image from the president's Truth Social account with part of that state's name crossed out in red and replaced with "America."

Donald Trump in his childish senility is quite proudly showing off his efforts to erase "Mexico" from that state's current name.  It's sad that he is so mentally compromised, as well as quite unfortunate for both our country and the world that he is now still in leadership. His cognition and memory have been ebbing ever since his election this time last around, something that has happened to other political figures advancing in age, as was discussed before on these pages.

I myself at age 88, also have memory problems, writing daily prompts on a kitchen desk calendar. But I am well aware of my cognitive decline and not in a leadership position anyway. 

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 A couple got married in a flooded Philippine church.Right from the start, they got their feet wet about being married and began facing their new life together. 

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 "De-population" is now replacing "over-population" as a serious global concern, leading to birth incentives being offered both in Europe and here in the US. 

Following the example of some European countries, New Mexico now offers no-cost universal child care for working families regardless of household income. Whether or not that will actually boost births there remains to be seen. The jury is still out in Europe wherever child care is free, though providing it perhaps actually keeps family size from shrinking even further. In general now, the desired maximum number of children per US family is 2. This ends up being about 1.8 kids per family on average, as some have only one child or even none, so not enough for full replacement, which would require 2.1 kids per family.   

Now how are youngsters doing in free childcare in New Mexico, where demand outstrips childcare supply?
 

The kids in New Mexico may be doing all right, but are more of them being born there as a result? That is still the big question.  

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Moving on now across the ocean, to a single dingy overloaded with migrants which 

 just entered the English channel.

What do migrants to Europe, to the UK, and here to the US hope to find when they actually arrive? Nirvana? Heaven on earth? Maybe peace and serenity?  If so, they will be disappointed, encountering similar problems and challenges wherever they might actually go. (Wouldn't life seem purposeless without any challenges at all?)

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Google says: Nirvana in Buddhism is the ultimate spiritual goal, representing the complete extinguishing of greed, hatred, and delusion, and of suffering and the cycle of rebirth and death. (That sounds rather like Christianity's own heaven.)

Nirvana may include the following:

Spiritual & Mental States

Enlightenment: Awaking to ultimate truth.
Bliss: Extreme happiness.
Peace: Freedom from disturbance.
Serenity: Calmness and quietness.
Tranquility: A peaceful, stress-free state.
Ecstasy: Overwhelming joy.

Ideal Places & Conditions

Paradise: A place of extreme beauty and delight.
Heaven: A place of pure happiness.
Utopia: An imagined perfect place.
Eden: A clean, peaceful garden-like haven.
Shangri-la: A hidden, remote utopia. 

Sorry, migrants, but there is no Nirvana or Eden anywhere on planet earth--just hard work, suffering, and moments of joy and pleasure, all of that happening right here right now, also everywhere else, even in a brand new place, even back where you just came from. 

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This next message came from a couple who just moved into assisted living. Is that their own personal nirvana? They say it is certainly their final home now, right here on earth.

hi barbara,

we've just moved into Ingleside, DC, very nice w/a patio. people are great, interesting backgrounds, all seniors like us. lots still to do to clear our house of 45 years..

                                                        Here above we all had met together, not so very long ago, 
                                    And this is the new place where they are living right now. 

Yes, assisted living offers companionship, fun, and hot meals already prepared, set out for you right on a table. These meals may taste homemade, but you didn't have to make them yourself. 

We also have a senior center in Berkeley Springs, as seen here below, but no assisted living as yet. 

I am so glad to be living now with my son Jon and our dog Willow, hoping to never need group residential care. 

            Here I am eating lunch.

I cannot be too specific about this next observation, regarding something that may have happened to some readers as well. I had asked a friend for advice to help handle a situation very similar to one confronted by her very own family, but back in the fairly distant past. Yet she acted like she didn't know what in the world I was  talking about, as if about something she had never ever encountered. In fact, she seemed quite defensive, which makes me think that even my mentioning it was painful. So, of course, I completely dropped the subject. Has anything like that ever happened to any of you?  It's our cue to avoid that particular subject, no matter how much time has passed, unless the other person brings it up first. Maybe some friends only "get over" a painful situation by just never thinking about it at all any more?

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Illinois mother texted friends about Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial hours before killing her 2-year-old, prosecutors say

It seems that an epidemic of family child murders may have been unleashed right now, so maybe its best not to report on them beyond their immediate localities lest copycats try to follow suit.

 

Friends, family, and caregivers need to be aware and alert without seeming to make child murder an expected and common event, which may then serve to incentivize vulnerable parents to just do the same.

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Here now is an mail exchange with a good friend in Honduras, inviting me to visit there once again, so get out your Google translator. First is my message to her.

Gracias, Nely, veo que ese niño Oliver ha crecido! ¿Qué edad tiene ahora? 

Ya me hace falta un nuevo pasaporte y el dinero para viajar, porque a los 88 ahora estoy viviendo con mi hijo Jonathan (copiado aquí) (padre de 2 hijos que no viven con él) y ya yo no estoy trabajando. No hay necesidad de interpretación médica del español en hospitales aquí en West Virginia, lo que yo hacía en DC. Además, me falta energía a mi edad. El 4 de septiembre es también el cumpleaños del hijo que he perdido, llamado Andrew. Es muy difícil perder a un hijo, como se imagina. .Abrazos, Barbara

This is Nely's reply:

Hola Barbara, siempre es un gusto saber de usted, hoy que le comenté a Oliver que nos había enviado correo y que quería verlo en fotos ,me preguntó ,que porque ya no venía a casa? le expliqué que no tenía su pasaporte, nosotros estamos bien solos con mucho mucho calor este año prácticamente no hubo invierno y hay bastante escasez de agua, los campesinos perdieron todas sus cosechas.

Le envío fotos de Oliver, le enviamos un fuerte abrazo con todo nuestro aprecio y cariño 

En la foto que Oliver sale acostado está arropado con la mantita que ud le regaló cuando él era bebé, cuida mucho su manta 

[Her family photos couldn't be pasted here, or copied.]

Oliver ya tiene 8 años ya. ¡Cómo pasa el tiempo!

Cuánto lo siento Bárbara, perder a un hijo debe de ser un dolor muy fuerte y creo que nunca se supera, pero mientras recordemos a nuestros seres queridos ellos viven entre nosotros, ojalá podamos nosotros ir a visitarle realmente la extraños mucho, lo bueno que con la tecnología es más fácil estar en contacto. 

Saludos Doña Bárbara. 

Un fuerte abrazo, Nely.