Summer passes.  Yesterday Kamala Harris was introduced as Joe Biden’s VP running mate.  Already she is a lightning rod for name calling, character assassination.  A QAnon candidate from Georgia prevailed in the primary and is certain to be elected to represent that district in the House of Representatives.  I feel dismay on the one hand, and tranquility on the other, — QAnon is a bat-shit crazy on-line cult.  However, what could be more extreme than literal belief in a dying and resurrected God?  All is well.  Isn’t it?

Perhaps belief in the mythic, the extremes of gods and demons is a human necessity to structure our reality.

As mentioned in a previous blog post I have started running again.  Running is an activity that I enjoyed as a kid.  I’ve also found consolation and interest in the solitude and beauty of Nature.  Nature is tirelessly alert, aware, observant — keen powers of observation are necessary to life, to survival. 

At mid-day yesterday I went for a run along the Fox River from my house in Batavia north, toward the dam in Geneva.  The departure is from my backyard, that is marked by the figure of the white Buddha.  I wonder if I am becoming Buddhist?  Does a label matter? 

The path is well used by walkers, runners, and the bicyclists.  About midway there is an unpaved cutoff that plunges beneath the tall oaks, which runs within a few feet of the waters edge.  This section is unpaved and relatively unused.  That’s where Nature’s action is most likely to be happening.

I took these photo’s on my run.  It is a small Sony camera that fits easily inside my jeans pocket.  There are ample objects and occasions of interest along the path, and a photo is perfect for “freezing time” in order to more firmly embed the always fleeting, more firmly in memory.

I enjoy the solitude of running along a path in the woods.  In sections that are in full sunlight, the heat is palpable with the stifling humidity of evaporation.  Most of the way is shady however.  One passes under some giant trees that must be at least several times my life-span in age.  I paused to photograph a massive oak, the branches seeming to reach into the sky, touching the clouds.  At least three of us would be needed to reach around it’s girth.  Such tree is a forest god.  They do die however. 

Running along the unpaved cutoff I explored several promising fishing spots right at the river’s edge.  I’ll have to return early some morning to test these places out.  Such places are ideal for exploring with the two grandchildren, a avid fishermen and  fisherwoman.

Reaching Geneva, the dam is a welcome sight.  I walked around a bit, watched three voracious black comorants that had claimed a small outcropping of rocks in the middle of the river.  On the return run home I’d walk at intervals when winded, or when encountering wild flowers that I wished to photograph. 

Running, enjoyment of Nature, is like passing my own shadow. 

How many are the ways to be “a Juke Box Hero?”

Juke Box Hero is one of Foreigners greatest hits, published in 1981, certified as platinum, with over a million downloads.

Juke Box Hero

By Foreigner

Standing in the rain, with his head hung low
Couldn’t get a ticket, it was a sold out show
Heard the roar of the crowd, he could picture the scene
Put his ear to the wall, then like a distant scream

He heard one guitar, just blew him away
He saw stars in his eyes, and the very next day
Bought a beat up six string in a secondhand store
Didn’t know how to play it, but he knew for sure

That one guitar, felt good in his hands
Didn’t take long, to understand
Just one guitar, slung way down low
Was one way ticket, only one way to go

So he started rockin’
Ain’t never gonna stop
Gotta keep on rockin’
Someday he’s gonna make it to the top

And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
He’s a juke box hero
He took one guitar, juke box hero, stars in his eyes
Juke box hero, he’ll come alive tonight

In a town without a name, in a heavy downpour
Thought he passed his own shadow, by the backstage door
Like a trip through the past, to that day in the rain
And that one guitar made his whole life change

Now he needs to keep rockin’
He just can’t stop
Gotta keep on rockin’
That boy has got to stay on top

And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
He’s a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
Yeah, juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
With that one guitar he’ll come alive
Come alive tonight

Yeah, he’s gotta keep rockin’
He just can’t stop
Gotta keep on rockin’
That boy has got to stay on top

And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
He’s a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes
Just one guitar, put stars in his eyes
He’s just a juke box hero, aah aah aah
Juke box hero, juke box hero, he’s got stars in his eyes
Stars in his eyes