Siege Diaries 7/4/2021

Today’s Daily Stoic writing prompt: Am I keeping the flame of virtue burning?

From the meditation: “The goodness inside you is like a small flame, and you are its keeper. It’s your job, today and every day, to make sure that it has enough fuel, that it doesn’t get obstructed or snuffed out. Every person has their own version of the flame and is responsible for it, just as you are. If they all fail, the world will be much darker–that is something you don’t control. But as long as your flame flickers, there will be some light in the world.”

This reminds me so much of the friend who has lit a candle and posted a photo every night during this entire ordeal. Sometimes, knowing that there is just one more flame out there is all I need to know that I’m not alone. It makes my own flame burn brighter. But I also know there are others who look to my own flame for inspiration and guidance, and that is sometimes all I need to know, even when I’m feeling hopeless. I know I can be a force for thoughtfulness, kindness, and justice in this world, even when that flame is small. My enough is enough, so long as it’s done in good faith, and so long as I do not contribute to the extinguishing of the flames of others.

*****
This year, unlike last year, I barely noticed the passage of July 4. I was really pining for a classic Upper Arlington parade (and what would have been my 35th high school reunion) in the still-early days of the pandemic. Now that my high school is coming down, I can feel a little of that weight of nostalgia starting to lighten a bit as the physical building recedes into memory. They’ve torn down the old blue Lazarus building at Kingsdale, too.

Really busy day today–and that was probably why I barely noticed the date.. Just one module of Indigenous Canada done, but I did finish up my suit and spent 7+ hours roleplaying. I may make the vest out of the blue material tomorrow–as I recall, the vest pattern goes very quickly.

Some long-term plans were made for a get-together with our bubble friends at the end of the month, where everyone will be at least two weeks post-dose 2.

Oddly enough, Canada Post delivered today–my orange Every Child Matters shirt (and a very cool pair of earrings from the same place, Totem Design House), and the book on Frank Lloyd Wright’s Freeman House that I found out about during the Wright PekaKucha last month.