Beth, bravo for a brilliant, insightful, and searing essay on the drama that continues to unfold in America. We practice self-care when we bravely and boldly tell the truth. I'm cheering you on my dear friend. I'm also recalling the George Orwell quote that it so relevant for these days: "A society becomes totalitarian when its structure becomes flagrantly artificial: that is, when its ruling class has lost its function but succeeds in clinging to power by force or fraud." Succinct and unvarnished. I'm so taken by your painting of the cloud--it's here that I find I can recalibrate and restore myself faith in creativity. It is here I can reinvent and go on taking care of myself, taking care of my loved ones, taking care to continue to make art. Thank you dear Beth!
Thank you, Gerry, for your thought-provoking, supportive comment. I love when you say, "We practice self-care when we bravely and boldly tell the truth." This is so true. Telling the truth is liberating, and feeling free enhances our self-care.
Yes, many hard events are happening in America, and they break my heart. Thank you for providing another Orwell quote. I've always been such a fan of his work.
And thank you for your compliment on my cloud. I am so glad you got so much out of it. Clouds have a healing, soothing quality for me, so I really want to create a cloud I'm really proud of.
Thank you as always, dear friend, for your support, especially during these trying times.
Something unexpected surfaced for me when you wrote about art and self-care. It made me think about art not as healing, but as evidence. Proof that something in us refuses to be fully commandeered. Almost like a receipt that says, I was here, I felt this, I did not disappear.
The cloud you describe feels important in that way. Clouds are transient, uncontainable, and impossible to police. They do not argue. They just exist. There is something quietly subversive about that right now. Creation as documentation of aliveness, not optimism. That layer added depth to the piece for me. 🧡
Thank you so much for your insightful comment. Yes, art is certainly a form of self-care, but lately, my art has taken on the kind of meaning that you have gleaned from it: I'm not a political artist, but my art is making a statement that I have borne witness to the horrors that are unfolding in the U.S., and that art triumphs.
Your interpretation of the cloud is spot-on. My paintings lately have taken on a subversive feel to me because totalitarian regimes want to destroy all kinds of cultural creations: books, artifacts that prove a people was once here -- art being one of them.
I appreciate your astute analysis, my friend. Thank you.❤
Good straight forward and wise words, Beth. Yes, we have a dictator in office and yes, many people know it, see it and are working to change it. We will prevail. What the ICE did in Minneapolis murdering innocent and good people is their undoing. They can’t hide because we won’t let them.
I agree: art is essential, especially now. Look to the creators of the past who used it to shine a light in the darkness. I remember reading 1984 and Clockwork Orange in school. It was used to teach a lesson to us all. I never would have thought we would ever have to relearn that lesson. But here we are.
Creating is essential: write, paint, draw like those who lived through this before us. Shine a light into this darkness now, so we can see it and change it and move forward.
Also just remembered another book that fits in with this group: Animal Farm
Yes, Animal Farm. Another awesome book, thank you. I happen to be a huge fan of Orwell.
Thank you so much for your comment, and I am enjoying your perspective here: "What the ICE did in Minneapolis murdering innocent and good people is their undoing. They can’t hide because we won’t let them." Perfectly said.
Deep down inside, they know what they are doing. What I cannot fathom is how they can live with themselves day after day and night after night. They will have to live with themselves -- and hopefully the law -- when the regime falls.
I agree that creating is so necessary, and, as you put it, "Shine a light into this darkness now, so we can see it and change it and move forward." Beautifully said. We creatives need to keep shining our light.
I read "1984" years ago along with "A Clockwork Orange", but I want to read it again. It's all so distressing. What gives me hope is what you wrote - "But so many people of the United States and the world at large know the truth." I hope it's not many, but most. We do have truth on our side. I hope it's enough. It's no longer political, it's moral. We have an obligation to witness and record truth. Thank you for doing that right here in your essay.
Something about looking at clouds is restorative and hopeful, so what a great subject to choose to paint right now. Do we look to clouds for answers, to calm, to find hope, or merely to reflect? Maybe for all those reasons.
So yes, keep creating your art. We need and appreciate it. We appreciate you! And thank you so much for the mention. I appreciate that as well, my friend.
Both great books. And sobering ones, too, that capture so much truth. You are right that we are grappling with moral issues, not political ones.
Yes, the backlash against the dictator's administration seems good thus far, but a few things bother me: the administration is pulling back slightly, not because they believe the murders and other crimes against humanity such as kidnappings, are wrong, but because they want the American people to feel terror and to comply, and this isn't quite going the way the domestic terrorists want.
The other thing that disturbs me right now is that the dictator's approval rating is considered low -- 30 percent of Americans, roughly, support him. WTF? This makes no sense to me at all. How can so many Americans support this horrid regime?
And the U.S. has extended its cruelty and greed worldwide: Venezuela, killing the people on the boats, etc.
Regarding art, we need to continue creating -- whether it be writing, drawing, acting, dancing, etc. Art is our way out. I appreciate you too, my friend. Lots.
As I am revising the the finale of my time travel adventure series, Edge of Yesterday, today, I chose to create and post to Notes a memory of Zora's that seems apt for this time.
These are truly saddening times and you have spoken so passionately about them here Beth.
I watch the morning news update each day here in the UK with horror and disbelief at the events in the US, forever hoping that positive change will happen for you. We have a politician here who admires the US administrations approach and who already has a foot in the door of Downing Street with the support he's garnering. I truly hope that change will come to stop these murderous thugs.
Finding your peace within creativity is the way forward, and there's no better subject than clouds to turn to. Symbolising peace, working with them creatively is so healing, whilst following your own creative spark in itself brings joy. Wishing for brighter days ahead for you and your country.
Thank you so much for your kind words and your good wishes toward me and the U.S. It is truly difficult to believe that all this is happening here in the U.S., and it is difficult right now to live here. So many divisions between people, and so much hatred and meanness.
The great people of Minnesota are illustrating how to peacefully protest, as well as their courage, strength, perseverance, and caring for each other.
I hope that UK politician is in the minority. Admiring our administration is not a good sign.
Yes, as you know, creativity is essential. I love clouds, and I really enjoy painting skies. So relaxing to dive into the canvas and be creative with a cloud, for sure.
Thank you, Lin, for all your support, compassion, and your creativity. I am hoping that this regime falls sooner than later.
Wonderful and wonder-filled subject, the cloud. It's where my eyes wander when I'm sitting on the porch, as if the answers are tucked into the fluffy folds. Cloud gazing slows me down, gives me a reason to pause. These are more than just states of being, they're tools for moving forward, just as art is. Your art makes beauty in the world. It makes people stop and think, ponder, consider... Art is a counter-balance to the regime's cruelty and greed.
Art is what will help us find our way back. When the regime ends, and I do believe it will end, art, as in music, dance, poetry, prose, gardening, quilting, tending to -- these things will help us find our way back. I need to stare into the billows and cushions of clouds, and find a "vision." We are going to need a new vision. It begins with those who "make" things instead of with those who destroy.
As, always, Beth, I'm grateful for your work and the wisdom it produces, so I sign off again as, "your forever friend and fan. . ." Looking forward to the changing shape of your cloud, and the changing shape of things to come.
You are completely right: our new vision will start by those who create, not destroy, things. I so appreciate your words and powerful insights. I love when you say, "When the regime ends, and I do believe it will end, art, as in music, dance, poetry, prose, gardening, quilting, tending to -- these things will help us find our way back." I agree with this 110 percent! It's true; art of all kinds outlast regimes.
I'm so glad you like the cloud thus far. I'm also a cloud watcher, who gets lost in these beauties of the sky. I love to gaze upward (or downward if I'm in a plane), and just marvel at these billowing clouds. And I love that they can absorb/reflect so many colors and come in all sorts of shapes. I'm sort of a cloud chaser.
Clouds do slow down time for me, as well, and they are the beings of the imagination for kids and adults alike.
Maybe that's why I adore painting skies. They can be challenging to paint, but it's a labor of love.
Thank you so much for your kind, thoughtful comment.❤
Great cloud, Beth. I like it. As far as what this country is turning into, a couple of days ago I unfriended an acquaintance I have known for a number of years. In fact, I dated him for a bit just before I met my husband. I just couldn't justify calling him a friend anymore, even though I knew he was on the other side, and having to read his most despicable posts on Facebook about the most recent murder in Minneapolis. He was actually blaming the victim for being murdered. I just won't tolerate it any longer.
Good for you, Nancy, for unfriending that acquaintance for his loathsome remarks. Blaming the victims for their murders is not okay. I have relatives who support the regime, and I've frankly had it. It's kind of difficult to break away from relatives completely, but I have surely distanced myself.
Too many Americans still support what's going on. I cannot fathom why.
I'm so grateful for your kind words about the cloud. It still needs a lot of work, but it had to start somehow!
Beth, you have named the regime correctly. These people are homicidal sociopaths and they will get worse before the ship can be turned around. The horrors have worked their way into my subconscious and it is coming out in my artwork, too. Keep speaking and writing the truth. I won’t tolerate even a tiny hint of MAGA-ism, I equate supporters of this regime with the Nazis in the streets of Minneapolis. It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that there is still at least 30 percent support for this in a country of 340 million people. That’s a lot of Nazis. Do we have the will as a country to destroy this regime and reform our country? I don’t know. I don’t expect it to happen in my lifetime, but I will do all I can to move in that direction while I’m still here.
Amen, Alene! Yes, they are Nazis in our own land. I never thought I'd see the day when we'd have a regime, not a government, of homicidal maniacs. The horror is affecting me, too. At first, it took my words away, but then it took my sleep. I have so much trouble sleeping that I'm exhausted all day long. And when I do sleep, I have nightmares.
You know, the news was saying that his approval rating (I won't say his name) is way down, so I'm thinking, how low? Thirty percent! Like you, this number struck me; how can so many people support him? Roughly one-third of our population supports the asshole. What is wrong with people that they don't see or choose not to see the problems caused by the regime? I mean human rights are basic, are they not?
No, 30 percent of our population is comprised of Nazis who cheer on the cruelty and murders -- and the lies, of course. Lack of critical thinking pervades our society. Yes, they will get worse as time goes on. I can't wait for them to get what they deserve. These sociopaths are not accountable at this point. Disgusting excuses for humans.
Beth, your words carry such fierce clarity and heartbreak, and I’m so deeply moved by the way you're holding both outrage and hope in the same breath. In the midst of all this devastation, your commitment to creating beauty ... even one textured cloud at a time ... feels like an act of quiet resistance. Sending you so much love, light, strength and gentleness as you keep painting your way through these difficult days. 🙏💖🕯️
Thank you so much, Deborah. I so appreciate your beautiful words. It's true that despite hard times, there are always creatives who won't stop creating, such as artists and poets. The world needs creatives to really show everyone what is important in life.
You are so right: my cloud represents quiet resistance to me. And its fluffiness or soon-to-be fluffiness makes me feel good inside. Thank you for your support during these hard times. Hoping that better days lay ahead -- for the U.S. and other countries, as well.❤
Beth, bravo for a brilliant, insightful, and searing essay on the drama that continues to unfold in America. We practice self-care when we bravely and boldly tell the truth. I'm cheering you on my dear friend. I'm also recalling the George Orwell quote that it so relevant for these days: "A society becomes totalitarian when its structure becomes flagrantly artificial: that is, when its ruling class has lost its function but succeeds in clinging to power by force or fraud." Succinct and unvarnished. I'm so taken by your painting of the cloud--it's here that I find I can recalibrate and restore myself faith in creativity. It is here I can reinvent and go on taking care of myself, taking care of my loved ones, taking care to continue to make art. Thank you dear Beth!
Thank you, Gerry, for your thought-provoking, supportive comment. I love when you say, "We practice self-care when we bravely and boldly tell the truth." This is so true. Telling the truth is liberating, and feeling free enhances our self-care.
Yes, many hard events are happening in America, and they break my heart. Thank you for providing another Orwell quote. I've always been such a fan of his work.
And thank you for your compliment on my cloud. I am so glad you got so much out of it. Clouds have a healing, soothing quality for me, so I really want to create a cloud I'm really proud of.
Thank you as always, dear friend, for your support, especially during these trying times.
Something unexpected surfaced for me when you wrote about art and self-care. It made me think about art not as healing, but as evidence. Proof that something in us refuses to be fully commandeered. Almost like a receipt that says, I was here, I felt this, I did not disappear.
The cloud you describe feels important in that way. Clouds are transient, uncontainable, and impossible to police. They do not argue. They just exist. There is something quietly subversive about that right now. Creation as documentation of aliveness, not optimism. That layer added depth to the piece for me. 🧡
Hi Alex,
Thank you so much for your insightful comment. Yes, art is certainly a form of self-care, but lately, my art has taken on the kind of meaning that you have gleaned from it: I'm not a political artist, but my art is making a statement that I have borne witness to the horrors that are unfolding in the U.S., and that art triumphs.
Your interpretation of the cloud is spot-on. My paintings lately have taken on a subversive feel to me because totalitarian regimes want to destroy all kinds of cultural creations: books, artifacts that prove a people was once here -- art being one of them.
I appreciate your astute analysis, my friend. Thank you.❤
So true. George Orwell 1984 and what’s happening now. I hope art brings sanity and peace. Take care. Dita
Thank you, Dita. Sanity and peace -- what we really need at this point.
Good straight forward and wise words, Beth. Yes, we have a dictator in office and yes, many people know it, see it and are working to change it. We will prevail. What the ICE did in Minneapolis murdering innocent and good people is their undoing. They can’t hide because we won’t let them.
I agree: art is essential, especially now. Look to the creators of the past who used it to shine a light in the darkness. I remember reading 1984 and Clockwork Orange in school. It was used to teach a lesson to us all. I never would have thought we would ever have to relearn that lesson. But here we are.
Creating is essential: write, paint, draw like those who lived through this before us. Shine a light into this darkness now, so we can see it and change it and move forward.
Also just remembered another book that fits in with this group: Animal Farm
Hi Susan,
Yes, Animal Farm. Another awesome book, thank you. I happen to be a huge fan of Orwell.
Thank you so much for your comment, and I am enjoying your perspective here: "What the ICE did in Minneapolis murdering innocent and good people is their undoing. They can’t hide because we won’t let them." Perfectly said.
Deep down inside, they know what they are doing. What I cannot fathom is how they can live with themselves day after day and night after night. They will have to live with themselves -- and hopefully the law -- when the regime falls.
I agree that creating is so necessary, and, as you put it, "Shine a light into this darkness now, so we can see it and change it and move forward." Beautifully said. We creatives need to keep shining our light.
Hi Beth,
I read "1984" years ago along with "A Clockwork Orange", but I want to read it again. It's all so distressing. What gives me hope is what you wrote - "But so many people of the United States and the world at large know the truth." I hope it's not many, but most. We do have truth on our side. I hope it's enough. It's no longer political, it's moral. We have an obligation to witness and record truth. Thank you for doing that right here in your essay.
Something about looking at clouds is restorative and hopeful, so what a great subject to choose to paint right now. Do we look to clouds for answers, to calm, to find hope, or merely to reflect? Maybe for all those reasons.
So yes, keep creating your art. We need and appreciate it. We appreciate you! And thank you so much for the mention. I appreciate that as well, my friend.
Hi Nancy,
Both great books. And sobering ones, too, that capture so much truth. You are right that we are grappling with moral issues, not political ones.
Yes, the backlash against the dictator's administration seems good thus far, but a few things bother me: the administration is pulling back slightly, not because they believe the murders and other crimes against humanity such as kidnappings, are wrong, but because they want the American people to feel terror and to comply, and this isn't quite going the way the domestic terrorists want.
The other thing that disturbs me right now is that the dictator's approval rating is considered low -- 30 percent of Americans, roughly, support him. WTF? This makes no sense to me at all. How can so many Americans support this horrid regime?
And the U.S. has extended its cruelty and greed worldwide: Venezuela, killing the people on the boats, etc.
Regarding art, we need to continue creating -- whether it be writing, drawing, acting, dancing, etc. Art is our way out. I appreciate you too, my friend. Lots.
"Keep creating." Yes, that's the Rx, Beth.
As I am revising the the finale of my time travel adventure series, Edge of Yesterday, today, I chose to create and post to Notes a memory of Zora's that seems apt for this time.
Lessons we cannot afford to forget.
https://substack.com/@robinpayes/note/c-207454726
Thank you for your comment, Robin. I so appreciate your input.
Wow, it's wonderful that you are working on the finale. Does it feel bittersweet? I loved the passage you provided in your note. Very apropos.
Dense cloud cover, fog.
When bright sunrays don’t reach us,
with grow lights we grow.
Hi Marisol,
Stunning poem and so applicable to today. Thank you!
These are truly saddening times and you have spoken so passionately about them here Beth.
I watch the morning news update each day here in the UK with horror and disbelief at the events in the US, forever hoping that positive change will happen for you. We have a politician here who admires the US administrations approach and who already has a foot in the door of Downing Street with the support he's garnering. I truly hope that change will come to stop these murderous thugs.
Finding your peace within creativity is the way forward, and there's no better subject than clouds to turn to. Symbolising peace, working with them creatively is so healing, whilst following your own creative spark in itself brings joy. Wishing for brighter days ahead for you and your country.
Hi Lin,
Thank you so much for your kind words and your good wishes toward me and the U.S. It is truly difficult to believe that all this is happening here in the U.S., and it is difficult right now to live here. So many divisions between people, and so much hatred and meanness.
The great people of Minnesota are illustrating how to peacefully protest, as well as their courage, strength, perseverance, and caring for each other.
I hope that UK politician is in the minority. Admiring our administration is not a good sign.
Yes, as you know, creativity is essential. I love clouds, and I really enjoy painting skies. So relaxing to dive into the canvas and be creative with a cloud, for sure.
Thank you, Lin, for all your support, compassion, and your creativity. I am hoping that this regime falls sooner than later.
I'm with you in hoping that too.
Wonderful and wonder-filled subject, the cloud. It's where my eyes wander when I'm sitting on the porch, as if the answers are tucked into the fluffy folds. Cloud gazing slows me down, gives me a reason to pause. These are more than just states of being, they're tools for moving forward, just as art is. Your art makes beauty in the world. It makes people stop and think, ponder, consider... Art is a counter-balance to the regime's cruelty and greed.
Art is what will help us find our way back. When the regime ends, and I do believe it will end, art, as in music, dance, poetry, prose, gardening, quilting, tending to -- these things will help us find our way back. I need to stare into the billows and cushions of clouds, and find a "vision." We are going to need a new vision. It begins with those who "make" things instead of with those who destroy.
As, always, Beth, I'm grateful for your work and the wisdom it produces, so I sign off again as, "your forever friend and fan. . ." Looking forward to the changing shape of your cloud, and the changing shape of things to come.
Hi Stephanie,
You are completely right: our new vision will start by those who create, not destroy, things. I so appreciate your words and powerful insights. I love when you say, "When the regime ends, and I do believe it will end, art, as in music, dance, poetry, prose, gardening, quilting, tending to -- these things will help us find our way back." I agree with this 110 percent! It's true; art of all kinds outlast regimes.
I'm so glad you like the cloud thus far. I'm also a cloud watcher, who gets lost in these beauties of the sky. I love to gaze upward (or downward if I'm in a plane), and just marvel at these billowing clouds. And I love that they can absorb/reflect so many colors and come in all sorts of shapes. I'm sort of a cloud chaser.
Clouds do slow down time for me, as well, and they are the beings of the imagination for kids and adults alike.
Maybe that's why I adore painting skies. They can be challenging to paint, but it's a labor of love.
Thank you so much for your kind, thoughtful comment.❤
May we continue to create and hold a light -- creation not destruction! Big hugs my artist friend.
Great cloud, Beth. I like it. As far as what this country is turning into, a couple of days ago I unfriended an acquaintance I have known for a number of years. In fact, I dated him for a bit just before I met my husband. I just couldn't justify calling him a friend anymore, even though I knew he was on the other side, and having to read his most despicable posts on Facebook about the most recent murder in Minneapolis. He was actually blaming the victim for being murdered. I just won't tolerate it any longer.
Good for you, Nancy, for unfriending that acquaintance for his loathsome remarks. Blaming the victims for their murders is not okay. I have relatives who support the regime, and I've frankly had it. It's kind of difficult to break away from relatives completely, but I have surely distanced myself.
Too many Americans still support what's going on. I cannot fathom why.
I'm so grateful for your kind words about the cloud. It still needs a lot of work, but it had to start somehow!
Beth, you have named the regime correctly. These people are homicidal sociopaths and they will get worse before the ship can be turned around. The horrors have worked their way into my subconscious and it is coming out in my artwork, too. Keep speaking and writing the truth. I won’t tolerate even a tiny hint of MAGA-ism, I equate supporters of this regime with the Nazis in the streets of Minneapolis. It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that there is still at least 30 percent support for this in a country of 340 million people. That’s a lot of Nazis. Do we have the will as a country to destroy this regime and reform our country? I don’t know. I don’t expect it to happen in my lifetime, but I will do all I can to move in that direction while I’m still here.
Amen, Alene! Yes, they are Nazis in our own land. I never thought I'd see the day when we'd have a regime, not a government, of homicidal maniacs. The horror is affecting me, too. At first, it took my words away, but then it took my sleep. I have so much trouble sleeping that I'm exhausted all day long. And when I do sleep, I have nightmares.
You know, the news was saying that his approval rating (I won't say his name) is way down, so I'm thinking, how low? Thirty percent! Like you, this number struck me; how can so many people support him? Roughly one-third of our population supports the asshole. What is wrong with people that they don't see or choose not to see the problems caused by the regime? I mean human rights are basic, are they not?
No, 30 percent of our population is comprised of Nazis who cheer on the cruelty and murders -- and the lies, of course. Lack of critical thinking pervades our society. Yes, they will get worse as time goes on. I can't wait for them to get what they deserve. These sociopaths are not accountable at this point. Disgusting excuses for humans.
Yes, the cruelty and the stupidity are staggering. The new political slogan should be “it’s the stupidity, stupid!”
Beth, your words carry such fierce clarity and heartbreak, and I’m so deeply moved by the way you're holding both outrage and hope in the same breath. In the midst of all this devastation, your commitment to creating beauty ... even one textured cloud at a time ... feels like an act of quiet resistance. Sending you so much love, light, strength and gentleness as you keep painting your way through these difficult days. 🙏💖🕯️
Thank you so much, Deborah. I so appreciate your beautiful words. It's true that despite hard times, there are always creatives who won't stop creating, such as artists and poets. The world needs creatives to really show everyone what is important in life.
You are so right: my cloud represents quiet resistance to me. And its fluffiness or soon-to-be fluffiness makes me feel good inside. Thank you for your support during these hard times. Hoping that better days lay ahead -- for the U.S. and other countries, as well.❤