ὁδὸς ἄνω κάτω μία καὶ ὡυτή

The way upward and the way downward
is one and the same  — Heraclitus

V

To communicate with Mars, converse with spirits,
To report the behaviour of the sea monster,
Describe the horoscope, haruspicate or scry,
Observe disease in signatures, evoke
Biography from the wrinkles of the palm
And tragedy from fingers; release omens
By sortilege, or tea leaves, riddle the inevitable
With playing cards, fiddle with pentagrams
Or barbituric acids, or dissect
The recurrent image into pre-conscious terrors—
To explore the womb, or tomb, or dreams; all these are usual
Pastimes and drugs, and features of the press:
And always will be, some of them especially
When there is distress of nations and perplexity…

–excerpt The Dry Salvages by T. S. Eliot

At a recent discussion a member of our circle announced that by 2030 the point-of-no-return will be reached if humanity does not make drastic reduction in carbon fuels consumption soon.  The fate of humanity will be sealed.  He was referring to climate catastrophe.  I doubt he did the research himself.  Perhaps he read something in the Wall Street Journal?  There are daily reports of pending or of actual terrors. 

The New York Times reported an inflation rate of 8.3 percent, the highest rate in 40 years.  The Times also reported close range vicious battles in eastern Ukraine.  The U.S. Navy is restricting the operational capacity of the Independence class USS Omaha (LCS-12) Littoral Combat Ship, or LCS, following the detection of structural damage. At least six ships have been impacted by this issue, which has been determined to be a design defect.  This report is according to The Military Times.

What do I know this morning?  I know that the coffee is pretty good here at Starbucks.  My cup of java is hot, as tasty as I could hope.  I know that the trees in the backyard are flowering – the crab apple, the flowering pear and the red bud.  I know there is work to be done today, mulch to be spread, a two foot high statue of a whimsical rabbit to be placed in the back yard, and grass to mow.

The photos were taken yesterday.