The Family Silver

I have a large drawer full of the family silver with monograms going back to my great grandmother. Several of the pieces are probably Victorian, purpose a mystery. The Victorians had a knack for creating a serving implement for anything. These days we often have fairly lengthy discussions about whether it is necessary to put anything other than a fork on the dinner table! We don't use any of it anymore and nobody wants it, but one can't just chuck monogrammed silver into the charity shop. I am rather sentimental about it too...

We're back to more or less our normal routine after the excitement of the protest march on Saturday (just a bit more about that in a minute) and a lovely neighborhood Fathers' Day gathering yesterday. Most of the group have sons who have all known each other since kindergarten. Several of them were there including our two grandsons, Will and Peter. We haven't seen Will since Christmas and it was a total surprise to see him there when we walked in. John was the eminence grise being the only  grandfather there. There was a ton of delicious food and good company. I saw John at one point talking to Tim on his watch...the modern Dad personified! Matt is AWOL at the moment but not as invisible as he might think because I have tracked his phone to La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Having had some time to think about it and catch up with my Heather Cox Richardson 'Letters from an American' I have a few final thoughts about the No King protests. First, the response from Blippers from all over is really heartening and uplifting, and I do thank everyone who has visited my Saturday journal. The response means I am way behind on comments but I also realize that my thoughts and pictures have had an impact I didn't expect.

I can't offer any reason why there are still any  people who support Trump other than the fact that he is a master of manipulating the media, he feeds his lies to the right wing side and bashes the left wing side as 'biased' and 'fake'. In manipulating the media he is also manipulating his MAGA followers who have now reached the point of being so entrenched that they repeat his lies even when they don't believe them.

On the other hand, and I say this guardedly, I am beginning to feel that the tide IS turning. That people are willing to turn out in huge numbers in cities across the nation to wave American flags and to show their solidarity with each other and their rejection of Trumps' policies. It felt like the divisions he has worked so hard to create are being crossed. That the people who still support him unquestioningly are mainly politicians  and oligarchs  who support him to maintain their control on power. But the mainstream is beginning to rise up against his divisive, cruel, greedy policies. 

I also confess to a secret satisfaction that the military parade was NOT a success and that he was seen looking miserable behind the barricades he had to erect around himself and 'his' parade.  He co-opted an event that was supposed to honor the Army's 250th anniversary, many Congresspeople stayed away and the troops responded by ambling down the parade route in protest. It also just happened to rain on his parade....