Here's a small, personal story: It was 2016, and we were in a vegetarian café in Eugene, Oregon, where my son was working on his M.A. in Journalism. He was telling us (his dad and me) how he felt about a controversial issue. I was so moved by the eloquence of his hand gestures - and how they mirrored the depths of his heart and mind - that I took this photo while I was listening to him.
Here's another story, one of worldwide significance: In 1970, West Germany's Chancellor Willy Brandt set a wreath on a memorial for Warsaw ghetto victims. And then, instead of making a speech, he knelt on the steps and bowed his head.
"I looked into the depths of German history, and, under the weight of the millions of those who were murdered, I simply did what men must do when words fail," he wrote in his memoir.*
What gestures - large or small - do you notice around you? A flip of hair. A pat on the head. A furtive exit. What do those actions have to say? Maybe they're the starting place for greater understanding. They could also be the springboard for a story or poem.
*Tyler Marshall, October 9, 1992, "Willy Brandt, Post WWII German Statesman, Dies," Los Angeles Times.
No comments:
Post a Comment