While there’s no video of my guest lecture at the Wiltshire College & University Centre on the comparisons on the COVID response in America contrasted with the UK from Thursday last, an actor portrayal might be as follows…(I’m the befuddled cat trying hard to be articulate. Obviously.)
Actually, I behaved. Sort of. When one of the ladies kept mentioning a “spot of tea”, and another was in front of floral curtains that masked a rainy day outside, and everyone kept talking in a gorgeous accent, I was the picture of reservation.
Even Kramer from Seinfeld would have agreed.
“Oh, he was real good, Jerry, real calm.”
It was a delight to be there, or on Zoom at least. What gracious ladies.
“Shocking..!”
As a “young lad” it seemed the way to rock the boat would be to play the electric guitar in the library, like Eddie in the “Hot for Teacher” video, strolling along the tables ripping some crazy solo.
Oh, sure, the librarians would toss ya (theoretically), but for real fear in their eyes, try mentioning:
“I think the corruption inherent in scientific institutions could be equated with the problem plaguing organized religion. Casual Atheism and Flat Earth Theory seem to catch on to this in the opposite fields. Maybe I could talk to the patrons about that. ”
(Not that I blame them for sweating.) (And I commend them for giving me a chance to have a real conversation. Good news: nobody threw anything, and we’re doing a similar series again this year. Come on by the talk at Buchanan, VA, this Thursday, April 4th.)
To be shocking, talk real. That’s dangerous.
You Can’t Take Me Anywhere
Professor “L” invited me to address her class of social workers in Chippenham, England. The topic: experiences working in an American nursing home during COVID, as outlined in Cities on a Hill, contrasting that with the UK response.
A friend of mine, she’s heard me wind up and say what I think. Her eyes widened slightly (who could blame her?) as I finished the main part of the presentation, and we started to discuss questions.
Oh no, oh no, he’s off the rails.
It wasn’t five minutes before the class was talking about the latent evil in the human heart, post-totalitarian systems, and what to do about it.
“Oh, have you read Havel? There’s this essay you’ve got to check out!”
You can’t take me anywhere.
Staying On Track
But–we didn’t go off the rails. (Not much, at least.) There’s a fine line between open conversation and chaos, between underlying causes and a political fist-fight, between what’s productive and educational, and what’s bombastic.
Wanna know how I got these scars?
It was so good to talk with these ladies. We wrestled with big questions: how do you avoid burnout? How do you keep caring? If the average career of a social worker is seven years, according to one participant, how do you keep on keeping on? How do you confront the darkness in your own heart? How do you function in a system that you might disagree with? What’s the price the citizen has to pay for being part of the system, and is it conducive for a good life?
Will you be an everyday angel, or a petty tyrant?
Well?
“And therefore…”
Nobody had any “and therefore” answers, and boy was that nice. These ladies run smack into ethical brick walls every day, quandaries that’ll break your brain and your heart.
Sometimes, I get to hide from the world in my work. They don’t.
It was good to hear what they had to say, and to remember that living is both hard, and something that one might confront. Easter season is the perfect time to think about these things.
Thank you for making the world better, ladies. Keep up the good work.
Spiffing!
–Josh