The Feather Test [David’s blog on DR Thursday]

Posted on November 12, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

My inner mythologist reminds me that the ancient Egyptians held that the heart, not the brain, was understood as the dwelling place of intelligence and conscience. The heart held life’s memories. After death the heart would be weighed against a feather and if it was heavy with ill intent or wrongdoing, it would disintegrate. The feather was symbolic of balance and truth. A light heart entered the afterlife.

It is not hyperbole to suggest that no one in the current administration would pass the feather test. Truth has been under assault for over a decade by these white nationalists while their strategy of chaos has made balance neigh-on impossible. Is it any wonder that an exhausted populace voted (finally) to scrub this corruption from the communal body?

The tension that continually tears us apart is a persistent split-intention. We can either be a nation in pursuit of equality for all or we can be a nation that protects the privilege of the few. As we have learned, we cannot fulfill a singular vision of democracy with two oppositional ideals. As has become clear in this election cycle, our division is not between black and white, red and blue – our division is between the top and bottom. 93% of the nation’s wealth is held and controlled by the 1%. 40 years of deregulation and trickle-down nonsense has left the people surviving on crumbs while the privileged few has us at each others throats.

It is easy to enrage a brain. Feed it a steady diet of “you-are-a-victim”, whip up an imaginary enemy, stoke the fire of “us versus them”, and the brain will see red regardless of evidence to the contrary or verifiable truth. This administration and its fox have been genius at making maga-brains see nothing but red.

Amidst our split-intention, the people just chose to return to the heart path, the brother’s/sister’s keeper path – the path of truth and balance. The every-man-for-himself path, an ugly illusion rife with ill-intent and fueled by wrongdoing, is collapsing but not disappearing. As I understand it, this is a pattern in our history, the tug-of-war between the desire for equality pulls against classism. We stand at a moment of opportunity, a moment of structural tension. We can in this moment, if we choose, once and for all put to rest the ill-intent of disparity, the nightmare of authoritarian inequality and servitude held by a privileged few. It was the dream of the confederacy. It was the star followed by the robber barons. It is the northstar of maga.

We will one day weigh our destiny against a feather.

Will we, once and for all, chose the heart path of equality, equal justice, equal rights, equal opportunity…or will we repeat the pattern and start the swing back toward division, fueled by propaganda enraged brains?

I Have Walked This Path Before, mixed media on board

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE HEART LEAF

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Today’s The Day [David’s blog on Not So Flawed Wednesday]

Posted on November 11, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

We were saving them. I’m not sure why. Prayer flags, a new set. A few years ago the old set literally disintegrated having fully released their prayers to the wind. We had the new set for so long that I forgot that we had them.

The day after the election Kerri said, “Today’s the day.” Peace, compassion, inner strength and wisdom had returned to the nation. At least that was our hope. After voting, hanging the new prayer flags seemed like a proper gesture of hope, a way that we could release prayers for the restoration of goodness onto this deeply bruised and battered nation. It felt good. We watched the flags catch the wind. The mantras inscribed on the flags are meant to benefit all people, all beings.

For a moment, watching the brilliant colors wave, I wondered why we didn’t hang them in the middle of this authoritarian horror. It would seem that was the time when prayers for peace were desperately needed. Why did we wait? It is a question that has no single easy answer.

But there was this: watching the election returns roll in throughout the night, the complete blue-rebuke of the hatred and corruption and the elevation of a new generation of diverse, well-intended leaders, I felt like a battered sailor standing on deck who has survived a deadly storm. The waters still roil but the new day brings the certainty of survival with the sunrise. In our great relief we climbed the mast and hung a new set of prayer flags to reaffirm in ourselves that we lived through the battering storm and might now set a course to port. We hung our prayer flags to celebrate life, our nation’s inner strength showing up at last, the prospect of peace, a resurrection of compassion, and a resurgence of wisdom.

We waited because, deep down, we believed this day would come, that the wildly diverse people of this nation would rise and, together, release strength, peace and compassion upon this battered land.

read Kerri’s blogpost about PRAYER FLAGS

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Hey! [David’s blog on Two Artists Tuesday]

Posted on November 10, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

From our station in the sunroom where we are attending to the needs of our ailing Dogga, we have a clear view to the potting bench and garden. Most of the herbs are gone. We’ve pulled the mint, parsley and cilantro. The jalapeno peppers are done. Yet, even though we are at the end of the growing season, the tomato plant is still producing like gangbusters. Multiple green tomato clusters populate the vine.

The squirrels could not be more excited. Each day we watch them scurry along the fence line, drop down to the bench, creep to the edge, make a carefully considered selection, and pluck a tomato. They hop to the deck rail with the newly picked tomato-prize and gnaw the top off right before our eyes.

Kerri delights in their scoundrel tomato raids. “Isn’t that cute!” she exclaims. I used to have visions of springing out the door, yelling a manly, “Hey!” In my fantasy the squirrel drops the tomato and flees but in reality, the one time I sprang out the door, the squirrel took a bite and held up the tomato as if saying, “Hey, neighbor!” They know I am all bark.

I am my father’s son. As a boy he grew up hunting squirrels, not for fun but out of necessity. As an older man who was no longer in poverty, he couldn’t bear to hurt a squirrel. When the varmints ate the peaches from his prized tree he live-trapped them and took them to a local park. He kept a BB gun in the garage to scare them away, never aiming to hit them. When his sight went bad he accidentally nicked one and his eyes were misty with regret for the rest of the day. That was the day he retired his BB gun. I know that if my manly yell caused the tomato-robbing-squirrel to fall and break a leg, I’d never forgive myself.

All of that is to say that I am secretly pleased that the squirrels see right through me. Now, as we sit with Dogga in the sunroom and watch the daily raid on the tomato plant, when Kerri delights in the squirrels’ successful raid and says, “Isn’t that cute,” I can honestly reply, “Yes. Yes it is.” When the squirrel holds up the spoils we exchange a quick man-nod as if to say, “Hey, neighbor!”

read Kerri’s blogpost about TOMATO SQUIRRELS

www.kerrianddavid.com

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Simple Gifts [David’s blog on Merely A Thought Monday]

Posted on November 9, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

And in the wink of an eye, the goblins, witches, pumpkins and piles of bagged candy disappeared from the store shelves. Twinkly lights, candy canes, jolly elves, gift wrap, bulbs and baubles of many colors have taken their place. It marks the happy return of the oddest of dessert collisions, the fruit cake.

I once knew a man who celebrated the Christmas holiday by giving a ritual gift of an orange and two walnuts. He grew up in poverty and the simple gifts were a reminder of a time when an orange was a precious treasured gift. He wanted to remind the people he loved that love was more important than the shape, size or cost of the gift.

I feel as if the results of the election are a ritual gift of a similar nature. The blue wave is a reminder: all the money in the world could not buy the power of our democracy. Even though 93% of the nation’s wealth is currently in the hands of the top 1%, the real power of the nation is with the people when united. Simple.

We exit the season of ghouls and dark spirits and enter a new season of light, generosity and joy. A simple ritual gift, an orange and two walnuts, can show us the way. Love is more powerful than money or division.

In this new season we help each other to stand, dust ourselves off, renew our dedication for generations to come to basics like decency, morality and human rights . We can help each other reclaim and redistribute the prosperity siphoned from the people by a generation of ill-intended Scrooges. With this blue wave, this ritual of renewal, we remind ourselves – and our descendants – of what we really value – and reaffirm that the American Dream is something we must continually create together.

read Kerri’s blogpost about SIMPLE GIFTS

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The Choice [David’s blog on Two Artists Tuesday]

Posted on November 3, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

This yard sign in our neighborhood is not hyperbole. The choice in this election could not be more clear. The power in a democracy is with the people. The power in a dictatorship is with the dictator. The choice is ours to make. Vote today if you have not already voted. Use your power. Make your choice. Democracy or dictator?

read Kerri’s blogpost on THE CHOICE

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We Vote [David’s blog on Merely A Thought Monday]

Posted on November 2, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

“Because we are imperfect souls, our knowledge is imperfect. The history of learning is an adventure in overcoming our errors. There is no sin in being wrong. The sin is in our unwillingness to examine our own beliefs, and in believing that our authorities cannot be wrong.” ~ Neil Postman, The End of Education: Redefining the Value of School

As others have said, this is the most consequential election in modern times. Although the three words on this shirt might seem relatively straightforward, they are anything but. They mark the line that divides us. They are the simple actions that will either save our democracy or doom us to dictatorship. Read. Think. Vote.

There is nothing more dangerous in these times than a “low-information” voter. In our last election over 70 million people entered the voting booth with belief-that-was-divorced-from-fact-or-basic-information. No Reading. Even less thinking. We -all of us -are now experiencing the consequences of this mistake. The consequences grow more dire with each passing day.

The last time I defended the terminally Fox-misguided-crowd by suggesting that they were living in a propaganda bubble, Kerri quickly shut me down. “They have a device in their hands that enables them to fact check every lie they are being sold,” she said. “There is no longer any excuse. They can read. They can think. They must like this cruelty. They are cheering for this corruption. They want to believe what they are being told.”

If the polls are to be trusted there are many people out there who made this mistake, who voted for this ugliness, who are now examining their belief. They are learning, which is to say that their belief is finally – finally – meeting the facts. They are facing the reality of what they voted for. They are thinking. Lately, we have heard over and over again, “But I didn’t vote for this.”

And so, we vote. We – all of us together – have a chance to overcome this error. We will then have the chance to examine our beliefs, to ask how so many with so much access to information refused to access it. But first, we read, think and then vote.

read Kerri’s blog about READ, THINK, VOTE

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The Same But Different [David’s blog on DR Thursday]

Posted on October 29, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

Walking toward the channel we passed two women engaged in an intense conversation. “It’s this unexplained exhaustion!” one said to the other. Kerri leaned in and whispered to me, “There’s nothing unexplained about it, living each day in this political nightmare. We’re all exhausted!” Amen.

We’re counting down the days to the election though we’re not naive enough to believe a blue wave will end the crazy times. Initially, if what we read is true, it will open the floodgates to the mayhem. Authoritarians do not go down easily since accountability for their corruption will come with the loss of power. We’re fastening our seat belts.

It had been months since we walked the southern segment of the trail. It’s been flooded much of the summer. Or too hot. And, with all the water, we feared the legions of mosquitos would carry us away. After several cool nights and a series of clear fall days, the trail called to us, “Give it a try!” Dogga was having a good day so during his afternoon nap we took the window of opportunity, strapped on our sandals, and drove to the trailhead.

It felt like years since we’d walked this path. It was like strolling the halls of elementary school after graduating college. Known but weirdly altered. The path was the same – but somehow different.

We reminisced. “Do your remember! This is where we saw the bobcat.” And, “Remember when this was underwater and we walked through it anyway.” After several memories I realized what we were doing: touching back to stable times. We were revisiting the time before the devastation of our democracy, before the ICE terror, before the kakistocracy destabilized our nation and the world.

We’ve always walked these paths when we needed to sort through difficult questions or to reclaim our center when we felt off balance. This time was different. With the reminiscence came some angst. And some grief. And some anger. This walk was not about regaining our calm or finding a simple solution, it was about taking a breath before stepping back into the turmoil.

We surprised a grey heron. It was enormous and flew just far enough away to feel safe. A turtle sat on a branch above the water sunning itself. It plopped into the the pond when we walked by. We stopped in a well-known stretch of trail lined by tall reeds. It always inspires a photo or two. The autumn sun was intense, “We should have worn our hats!”

We were silent as we returned to the trailhead and the car.

There is a before and there is an after. The trail we sought lives in the before. The trail we walked this day was solidly in the after, the same but different. And, we realized, it’s not the trail that has changed – it is us. We are more wary now. Less trusting. Disconnected from some family members. Shocked at the ugly underbelly of the nation. Knowing that there is no way to repair what is broken but certain that, if the democracy survives, there could be a new and better chapter though it will take decades to achieve.

We’d caught our breath. We’d glimpsed a distant hope. We felt the exhaustion in our bones. We began a new relationship with our old friend, the trail-going-south, the same but now remarkably different.

Red Goat, Orange Bunny, iPad image

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE REEDS

votevotevotevotevotevotevotevotevotevotevote

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What You Believe [David’s blog on Not So Flawed Wednesday]

Posted on October 28, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

“But what you believe about the future will change how you live in the present.” ~ Daniel Nayeri, Everything Sad Is Untrue*

I am a harsh critic of myself. When lost in thought and reviewing my past choices I rarely extend the grace to myself that I easily extend to others. I can’t catch a break. Who hired this guy? It’s just my luck to get assigned the one inner-editor without a sense of humor or a shred of humanity.

I was deep in my self-flaw-review when we rounded the bend and left the cool shade of the trees. “Whoa!” she said. In the fall, there is a dramatic difference in temperature from shade to sun. She stopped abruptly and turned back. On the left side of the trail was a single dandelion. “The last one!” she exclaimed, already framing her shot. A dandelion survivor. A brilliant pop of yellow against the green.

I adore these moments of spontaneous enthusiasm for the tiniest reason. This one served to completely lighten my inner discord. Like Daedalus with wings, her dandelion-eagerness was contagious and lifted me from my maze of dark reflection.

Yellow is joy. It is optimism. Even Van Gogh knew that the source of this vibrant yellow was courtesy of the sun. It dope-slapped my critic. Not a polite slap but a resounding, hard, “Whap!” Enough already. Drink the joy of this enthusiasm. Revel in this tiny gift from the sun.

I breathed a sigh of relief having just escaped the Minotaur of my own mind. In these moments of flight-to-the-present I know the dark memory maze is only a shadow-creation, barely more substantial than fantasy. Judgment from afar is only loosely rooted in actual events.

I am equally capable of filling the sad chronicle with sunny yellow. Most of my bad choices, in retrospect, turned out to be excellent decisions in the long run. I suppose it all depends upon where I decide to focus, where I think the story ends.

This memory, this moment, I focus on the sun, the warmth, and the gratitude for walking a path that brought me to unbridled enthusiasm for an autumn dandelion.

I learn again and again something that is also true: what you believe about your past will change how you live in the present.

***

*read this book. It is awesome.

also – vote.vote.vote.vote.vote.vote.vote.vote

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE DANDELION

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Take A Breath [David’s blog on Two Artists Tuesday]

Posted on October 27, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

Sometimes the path serves as a pressure release valve. It’s curious that the need for a release-of-pressure often comes as a surprise. It’s like a mile into the path you suddenly allow yourself to breathe, completely unaware that you were holding your breath.

There’s plenty of reasons right now to hold your breath.

How many times recently have you heard or said this phrase: “I can’t believe where we are.” Or ask, “How did we get to this place?” References to our nation. Disbelief that we are teetering on the edge of authoritarianism.

The election is one week from today. In normal times no one would be holding their breath. These are not normal times.

In normal times, the people have the power. It’s sacred. It’s called The Vote. In normal times politicians honor the results of the vote. There was -and is – no reason not to honor the result since fraud in our elections is exceedingly rare. The politicians of the past believed in the democratic process even if the results did not go their way. Again, these are not normal times.

As of this moment The People still have the power, The Vote, but the current occupant of the White House and his party no longer believe in the democratic process. They are working overtime to undermine The Vote, which means they will do anything to undermine The People. It’s why we are collectively holding our breath. We’ve seen what they are capable of doing to stay in power.

The pundits and polls tell us that there will be a blue wave. The People are sick-and-tired of holding their breath. The pundits also tell us that if there is a blue wave it will likely trigger the ugliest phase yet. The last time the current occupant of the White House lost he unleashed a mob on the Capitol with the intent of stopping the certification of The Vote. That was child’s play compared to what he will do – or so we are told.

As Kerri often says, “They have no reverence.”

It’s the reason we head to the woods and walk the path. On the path we are immersed in Reverence and quiet. The gunk falls away and a greater truth rises. Pressure releases. Breath returns. Sanity is restored.

If there is a blue wave we will, for a moment, take a breath. We will afford ourselves a sigh of relief. And then we will take a deeper breath, one that we can hold until the newly elected congress is seated and the checks and balances that make our democracy viable are restored. Still, when it is all too much, when we need to bath in peace and quiet, we will head to the woods and walk the path, where, for a few moments we will surprise ourselves – and allow ourselves to breathe.

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE PATH

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Make A Statement [David’s blog on Merely A Thought Monday]

Posted on October 26, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

A week and a day until election day. It is an election that will either save our democracy or end it. The stakes could not be higher.

I have been encouraged by the line of early voters at City Hall. A local told me that he’d never seen lines like this before.

I have been discouraged by the pundits who expect that the political races across this land will be close. I wonder how that is possible given the depravity and disappearing act of the republican congress. The economy is in shambles. Our allies are abandoning us. Our food chain is soiled. We are embroiled in another endless war. The corruption is in plain sight. The republican candidates are as vile as their leader. How is it possible that any of these races will be close?

The common wisdom is that the democrats must win by a mile since we know that the wannabe-autocrat will contest the results. He has done almost everything in his power to undermine our free and fair elections. He has done almost everything in his power to undermine his own party. He knows that a democratic congress means accountability-for-his-corruption-is-coming. The Epstein Files will come out. Putin will no longer have full control of his puppet strings.

And so the people must come out to vote en masse because it cannot be close. We’ve slipped this far. This election cannot merely be won. It must be a statement.

Let’s make a statement. I will vote. I will protect our right to vote. Will you? The stakes could not be higher.

read Kerri’s blogpost about VOTE

www.kerrianddavid.com

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