Last Friday was wicked weather, minus 25dC, with blowing snow and snarled traffic. I gave Elisabeth a ride to her graduation ceremony at the Unitarian church at 1700 1st street NW. We were there from 11am to around 2pm, with a friendly group of graduates and visitors.

This is where I met Tim and as the conversation in our coffee group evolved, I happened to mention the name of Tony Judt. “Oh, you know Tony Judt?!”, was Tim’s reply and off we were conversing about our history interests, Tim professionally and I as layman. This resulted in a follow up invite by Tim to Elisabeth and I, for a tea in the coming week!

Oh, you know Tony Judt?!

I bowed out of visiting John and Annie last Saturday morn on account of the cold weather. Instead, Michelle and I had coffee at Savour at about ten until about one in the aft! We always have a very lively conversation and are never stuck for a topic, though we do not talk about all topics.

On Saturday and even Sunday evening I rearranged books in my living room and even stuff in the storage. All books are now off the floor, while the CD’s and tapes are properly stacked and partly stored as well. I discovered that I have quite a few empty boxes and empty areas, which I can use more efficiently. The storage area has never been rearranged since I moved in ten years ago, so it warrants some attention.

I have also noticed that my attitude has changed about what I want to keep and what not. In 2004 I had about ten moves behind me since 1999, so I just put stuff in place and left it there, fed up with all the temporariness I had experienced.

On Sunday I walked down to the Palliser to meet up with my friends and listen to Herman’s talk titled ‘Christmas stress‘, but which was in effect about Isaiah’s - the OT prophet - verses regarding the promise of the Messiah, whose name will be ‘wonderful counsellor, mighty god, everlasting Father and Prince of peace.’

As I listened and recalled learning those verses at a child, I was amazed how at my age of 78 I still find solace and comfort in those words. And, as I shared my realisation with the group during coffee, it turned out to be the experience of others as well. So, it is important to realise that what we teach our children remains with them through adulthood and we should take care accordingly, lest we work and teach a new generation towards a detrimental destiny. I attended ‘a school with the bible’, today we have schools with consumer values and company logos.

I attended ‘a school with the bible’, today we have schools with consumer values and company logos.

Last night I studied in my Maya tome for a couple of hours. I did the beginning of village life in detail and browsed around as well, noting aspects relating to beliefs and religion. I have read and annotated most of chapter 20, Maya at Present. I find it a stretch to think of the high civilisation that was once the Maya and read about their low status today, yet surviving, adapting and at times thriving five hundred years on!

As I ask myself what I can extract from that five hundred year cultural process, I tend to lean to the observation that the experience of the Maya may have happened many times over in human history. What is unique about the Maya, Aztec and Inca cases is that we - West European and settlers - are the bringers of this kind of change and live with it in our midst, all in recorded history.

In other words we have a documented cases of cultural genocide within the world of our own making and we can learn from it how human cultures have interacted in the past. And recall as well, that in some cases those vanquished in power, triumphed in culture.

In that regard I find it interesting to witness how the transplanted European religious frameworks have diminished, while the interest in the perceived indigenous value system and its ceremonies have become more prominent in our public space and awareness.

Study of this process can show how cultures and religions in earlier times blended and adapted, influencing each other over long periods of time, rather than the one replacing another at certain dates.
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