Appraisals for the Mere

I published a mere 18 blogs in 2018 - 6 here and 12 at the other place (OpenCatholic). "Mere," which is fair, but not sad-making. Blogs seem quite old-fashioned of a sudden. I mean, who bothers to write occasional essays anymore, and in the sort of hum-drum language I use? I tried reading an article over at SI (Sports Illustrated) on the NFL (National Football League) playoffs and had to give it up; so exciting was the prose that I had no idea what was being communicated, except excitement. So I'll take my 18 in '18 and go about making it 19 or more this year, but whatever I end up with will be a good deal more than if I quit, which I have never seriously considered doing.

The WOP (World of Poetry) is exciting too, or what I hear of it. I see that I write blogs, as do a few other souls, and I even write poems - again, occasionally. I enjoy not writing even more than writing; or I am fond of it, dwelling on the afterlife of furious conceit. Thank God that's over, I think, and then I go about not writing poems. It's wonderful.

I merely work, tend to my family and friends, pray, run, read. As one example of what I do that is not writing, I've just come back from drinking coffee from my wife's cup. Does it taste better from my cup? she asked. It's more satisfying, I replied.

Good writing posits one in distinctions, and so silence is good writing, too. Quiet is better than a shout in Elecro-Land U.S.A. How I enjoyed playing the pinball machines at C.B.G.B.'s, especially PP (Pink Panther). Never did I dream I would live the last half of my life in one.

But writing that is useless - and I hope we are all agreed that the good poem at least offers itself as being useless or, strictly speaking, of no practical value whatsoever - that is almost as good as silence itself. Though I am wary of writing from a position of silence. That seems a bit hypocritical: isn't actual, effective silence the best possible argument against noise? I mean if we are committed to living our ideals, etc.

And, so, I have been churning in the background somewhat. I could and perhaps even should do more - upgrading websites to Wordpress, making some decisions to streamline this and regulate that, getting the "word" out. blah. blah. blah. But no. I like things just as they are, right now. Exactly now. I don't see that I have a position or school or point of view definitive enough to evangelize or defend. I think I will leave my religion to my religion and my poetry to the poetry and let it all come out as it will. Or perhaps life is made perfect in silence. I wonder....