Leo Tolstoy | The Direction of Intention

Shadow and Substance [David’s blog on Two Artists Tuesday]

Posted on September 22, 2026 by davidrobinsoncreative

“Even in the valley of the shadow of death, two and two do not make six.” ~ Leo Tolstoy

When I am stuck or empty of thought, when I do not know what to write about, I sometimes jump into quotes to get me moving. The quote is like a pebble that starts an avalanche. This quote assures me that there is sense to be made, that there are universal rules that apply to all. We are born. We all die. Gravity keeps our feet on the ground even though the ground is a ball spinning through space. Two and two make four, even if the current occupant of the White House insists that it is six.

“A false friend and a shadow attend only while the sun shines.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

I have a theory about maga republicans. They are false friends, keeping close to their dear-leader as long as the sun shines. Sundown is coming, if not already here. They are already fading. Some have stopped attending but they have already rendered themselves as substance-free, nothing more than shadow. The question becomes, “Will we believe them when they claim to be thought-full, 3 dimensional, independent, caring and well-intended representatives of their constituents?” I hope not. I hope we-the-people have more substance than that, a higher expectation of the people who are meant to represent us.

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.” ~ Nelson Mandela

There is a dial called “If they gain, we lose,” that the wealthy twist every time this nation actually approaches equality. It’s a very old dial, installed at our nation’s inception. It has been extremely useful for protecting privilege when the greater rabble question the inequities in a nation purportedly based on the ideals of equality and freedom-and-justice-for-all. The current lot have been cranking the dial. Despite their fears and repeated efforts to divide us, to demolish democracy and enrich their holdings, the mountaintop of our desires remains. Perhaps this will be our last pass through the valley? Perhaps we will finally be willing and able to disconnect the dial, erase the concocted divisions and, together, reach the mountaintop?

“Beware that you do not lose the substance by grasping at the shadow.” ~ Aesop

Growing older, stacking experiences, is a great teacher of shadow versus substance. Our nation has just passed its 250th year though it seems locked in a cycle of shadow-grabbing. Separating substance from shadow is a skill that comes from an honest review of history. The good, the bad, and the ugly – all of it – is necessary for clarifying what matters and what does not. Is a ballroom essential while the people starve? Is a president profiteering from his office an official duty that betters the community and advances our society? It begs two related questions: How long are we will to pretend that shadow is substance? How long can we enable shadow-grasping before we lose our national substance, before we become nothing more than a shadow?

“When virtue is lost, benevolence appears, when benevolence is lost right conduct appears, when right conduct is lost, expedience appears. Expediency is the mere shadow of right and truth; it is the beginning of disorder.” ~ Lao Tzu

A pebble starts an avalanche.

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE SHADOW

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Beautiful. Perhaps.[David’s blog on Flawed Wednesday]

Posted on August 20, 2025 by davidrobinsoncreative

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” ~ Leo Tolstoy

We have watched Barney-the-piano change over these many years. As he ages and falls apart we discuss how he has become more beautiful. It is a sentiment that we do not allow for ourselves as we have also aged and changed over these many years.

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” ~ James Baldwin

There are days that I do not recognize myself. I look in the mirror and see my grandfather. I look in my heart and am surprised by what I see. In these past months I have discovered my intolerance and I am proud of my intolerance. I have discovered my hard lines of belief. I do not believe that masked men should be plucking people off the streets. I do not believe we should scrub history to make white supremacy palatable. Now, when I look in my heart, I know exactly what I believe. And I like what I see.

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” ~ Nelson Mandela

I recently wrote a play about this nation’s resistance to education. Educated people ask questions. Educated people are not easily drowned in propaganda. Educated people do not fear learning that they are wrong because the point of education has nothing to do with right or wrong answers and everything to do with expanding hearts and minds. Minds that expand reach toward the unknown. Minds that close stagnate in the safety of what is known. Entropy, the gradual decline to disorder.

“Change is the only constant.” ~ Heraclitus

Barney is beautiful. He has been home to chipmunks. He is a resting spot for squirrels. Birds revel where he once sported keys. He has dropped all illusions of grandeur and each day reveals his true nature. He makes progress toward earth. He does not resist his natural path. That is the secret of his beauty.

“Make every effort to change things you do not like. If you cannot make a change, change the way you have been thinking. You might find a new solution.” ~ Maya Angelou

Master Marsh once told me that when caught himself complaining about something that he had three choices. Shut up (stop complaining). Do something about it. Or leave. In the current reality of our nation I am not able shut up. In fact, I feel it is necessary to raise the volume. That is what I am doing. We write and write and write. We ask ourselves every day, “What more can we do?”

“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” ~ Albert Einstein

In their advanced age both Maya Angelou and Albert Einstein arrived at the same conclusion. They agree with Leo Tolstoy: to be better on this earth, we need to change our thinking. We need to think about changing ourselves. Looking at our nation (ourselves) doesn’t it beg the obvious questions: What are we thinking? Are we capable of changing our thinking?

Perhaps, as we dissolve, as we crumble like Barney, we will discover at the core of our national story the rot of exclusion. Then, perhaps, we can face our dysfunction, root it out, and change our thinking. Perhaps we can become the inclusive home that our nature – and our founding ideals – intended us to be. Beautiful. Perhaps.

read Kerri’s blogpost about BARNEY