"What's it all about ? "

What do these quotes have in common ?;

   "It was a dark and stormy night"  (Snoopy, et al)

     "In the beginning . . . "  (Genesis)

         "Life is difficult "  (Peck, The Road Less Travelled)

            "Marley was dead" (Dickens, A Christmas Carol)

                "Elmer Gantry was drunk" (Lewis, Elmer Gantry)

                   "I wear the ring" (Conroy, Lords of Discipline)

     If you recognized some or all of these as the first lines of literature, give credit to whomever fostered in you a love of reading.  Coming up with an 'catchy' opening phrase or sentence can be the largest obstacle in writing.  Somewhere in one of Albert Camus's novels he told of a person who labored for thirty years to have the perfect opening line for his Magnum Opus.

   Before his indiscretions came to light, Bill Cosby was a well-known and quoted comedian, adept at one-liners and memorable titles. A memoir of sorts he called I Started Out as a Child. Sounds like a perfect descriptor.

   Were you to write the story of your life, what would you choose to title it and what would be the introductory sentence? Particularly, if you want it to point towards a kind of summary statement of "what it has all been about".

  The late psychologist, Erik Erikson, birthed the concept of life stages and various "tasks" to be addressed in each.  For those 65 and older, he considered the dichotomy to be "Integrity versus Despair". One consequence of his model has been a use of writing one's  life review which differs from reminiscing.  Whether the   process follows a chronological or topical format, one article described the outcome as an affirmation that "one's life has been well-lived, makes sense, and brings a sense of peace and satisfaction". (Intriago, "How a Life Review comforts the  elderly and prevents late life depression", Seniors Matter,  May 4, 2021). Whether or not such a perspective of meaning, purpose and integration of one's values is resolved can make the difference between late-life Integrity or Despair.

   Bearing down hard on my 84th birthday and possessing a reasonable memory, I have been attracted to the idea of writing my own life review... whether for progeny or for my own understandings.  And, I hope to attach an addendum in a dozen or so years from now !

   Several years ago, at the counseling center where I practice,  I led a group of older  persons on  such a journey. Unanimously, they expressed benefit from the experience.  (If such an undertaking interests you, assistance abounds via computer search and books.)

   Now, reminiscing can be pleasurable . Just today, after I had emailed my daughter a couple of clips from a television program we had enjoyed in her youth, she asked if I were "going down tv memory lane ?". Well, maybe strolls along that route can provide specifics of our lives, life review can come closer to providing personal insights posed in Hal David and Bert Bacharach's song, What's it All About, Alfie ?

   For my title, I think I will copy that of the late Grady Nutt ... So Good, So Far.  Still trying to find that just right first sentence, though.

     Satchel

"Two Faced"

 

      To call someone"two-faced" ranks high in the handbook of insults.  Among other things, it designates the person or thing as being   duplicitous, deceitful, and not to be trusted.  And, for most of the human race, there is often a gap between the person we prefer to be perceived as and the other side . . . maybe what Dr. Karl Jung called our  "shadow".  Perhaps the 'saving feature' is that it is usually not malicious... and more often motivated by a fear or anxiety about some insecurity. But, as the cliche has it, I digress.

   The  image above is of the Roman god, Janus.  He the keeper of  doors, of transitions, of looking both to the past and to the future. And, of course, our month  January is its namesake. Good old January !! Here in our state, the weather has had difficulty deciding the appropriate season.  On Sunday, January 2, local temperatures hovered around 70*. We even ran the air-conditioner. Next day the temperature had dropped and we had a couple of hours of heavy snowfall which accumulated; then two or three hours later . .  . gone like  Frosty the Snowman !  The top picture was taken at 10:57 a.m. on January 4, 2022; the bottom taken at 3:11 p.m. on the same day.  Talk about being "two faced"!

     

    Janus carries at least two interpretations: first, a keeper of doors . . . past and future, of being in a place  to  gaze at the past while anticipating the future . . . turning points, transitions. Secondly, deliberately 'talking out of both sides' of one's mouth  When the latter prevails, well, the past, present and the future are susceptible to many distortions and misuses . . .  dependent upon one's agenda and motives

   Opinions vary as to who  coined the phrase: " The future ain't what it used to be." That one is attributed to Yogi Berra. A more 'sophisticated' version : "The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be" originated with French philosopher Paul Valery. Regardless of who first wrote/said that and with 

whatever degree of grammatical correctness, examples abound of deliberately misusing (o.k.., lying about) the past and what that portends for the future.  When those distortions  occur,  "two faced" does not capture the cynicism of current  day 'Janus-es'.  

  "The times, they are a'changing".  May 'Janus' possess the clarity of vision and integrity to guide us through these transitional times.

    Satchel