Chuck Yeager, October 14th 1947 said “just before you break through the sound barrier, the cockpit shakes the most.”
Chuck Yeager was the first test pilot to successfully fly faster than the speed of sound. Engineers did not know if he would survive the flight as they worried the sound barrier was like flying into a brick wall.
The past eight years have shaken the life out of many of us both literally and figuratively.
We are on the precipice to take flight to a new level of greatness for our country or hit a brick wall.
Thank you Mary for flying with us and being one of our pilots!
Maybe every time someone complains about Trump being treated differently the response should be, “oh, so you want us to stop treating him better than anyone else would be treated?”
I so desperately want to move past 2015, 2016 and 2020/Jan. 6 so badly. It seems like we are in a perpetual loop of hell because of the MAGA cult. Across the street from my Mom's house in suburban Chicago (that has Dem electeds at every level of government) the older white male owner of that house put up a small flag pole and hung a Trump 2024 flag on it. His neighbor two doors down has a gay son and I'm worried about his mental health having to look at that all the time while he's home from college this summer. This has never happened on my Mom's block in the 48 years she (and my Dad before he died in 2019) has lived there. Thank you for everything you are doing Mary. Sending you lots of love!!!
Thank you Mary for continuing to give us your personal insight. This cannot be easy for you to continue to do since it brings up so many family memories. But like you we are living it to. Love the suggestion to get away from the rhetoric and soothe our minds. We have a long and treacherous road ahead of us as a country. Prayers and peace to all...
Hi Mary. I finally became a paid subscriber because I believe you are an important link to learning the truth about your uncle during this crucial time in American history and how we can get through this together. I wish there were one sustaining link between all the states in our country to unite in faith and trust and wanting normalcy for our country and how we can get there. I too agree that the arts are a compelling way to experience an elevated inner freedom. Thank you for being here 🇺🇸
The bottom feeders are still enthralled to the music man and will continue to enjoy the angertainment. The solution will be to send him off to an obscure prison, where he can be marginalized and spend his time reading love letters from his admirers. If Jeffrey Dahmer was able to get some love letters, then I would think the Donald should be able to as well. Hopefully we’ll make it to that point without a hot Civil War in the interim.
This is the FIRST time, in 7 years, that the actions of the Orange Sadist's cult has made any sense to me. As Mary writes: "As for the Democrats, they have not yet wrapped their head around the fact that Donald has figured out something most others have not: white evangelicals, the white working class, the Proud Boys and their ilk, aren’t voting against their self-interests, they are voting for what is of most interest to them and what most animates them—white supremacy, Christian nationalism, and hatred of the other."
Mary, I’m going to focus on the beauty of the art you posted, and on the spiritual benefits of museum-going.
My husband grew up in the Bronx, and as a youngster in the 50’s and 60’s (he’s a wee bit older than me), would take the subway to visit the Museum of Natural History, the Met, and his favorite, the Frick. He eventually became an industrial design major at Pratt in Brooklyn, so he took his art appreciation seriously.
I’m a So Cal gal born and raised, and was introduced to LACMA at a young age by a very culturally astute mother. She also started taking me to the LA Phil as a 9 year old. (I love symphonies, my husband operas. We chose to accept this disparity in our musical tastes.)
Imagine my surprise 38 years ago to meet a man who not only loved going to museums, and as a child, went to those institutions by himself on the subway, but would go to them happily with me! I was jealous of his easy access to the places I would grow to love but had a hard time getting to. LA, freeways... ya know?
It became a running family joke that no matter where we were, Mom (me) would drag the boys to a museum - Amsterdam, Sydney, Hawaii, Utah, NYC, Tanzania ( well, that’s a living museum so no complaints there), wherever, and our hometown gems the DeYoung and the Legion of Honor.
I believe, like my mother and my husband’s mother, to have instilled a love of beauty and of learning into my children.
We desperately need these moments of calm, of reflection, and of gentle discovery to guide us and support us through these turbulent times. It is there in the subtle complexity of a Rembrandt still life, in the rousing 4th movement of a Beethoven symphony, in the graceful notes of a Puccini aria, and in the simplicity of a blossoming rose.
I’m so grateful for the gentle admonitions you and the sisters-in-law continue to provide to help us all with our patience. Joyce has encouraged people to draw near to the people you love, care for them, and now your encouragement to take breaths and even develop a greater appreciation for art. I have been so over wrought for the last 3 years I had forgotten that I am actually a decent musician and love music. Oh, and are you still looking for an editor? 😂🎸🦎 Thanks, so much. The interview on Last Word recently was really good.
Trump's authoritarian cult is rapacious. I fear the Democrat's seeming innocence and naivety will fail to create new ideas and actions on how to confront this "brave new world". Our justice system will do its thing as it is now....slow though it may be. All the emerging "defending democracy" groups need to coalesce. ....now. The high alert is everywhere. We need new thinking, strategies, plans........at least I do. Thank you, Mary L. Trump for your pertinent literate Broadsides. Thomas Paine would approve.
Thank you Mary, for your eloquence in these uncertain times. Being in nature or turning to/making art is a balm I use to tamp down my anxiety. I recently read in the Washington Post why birds and their songs are good for our mental health, so I’ve been seeking that out too. It helps. You’ve got that covered with your sweet feathered friend!
Chuck Yeager, October 14th 1947 said “just before you break through the sound barrier, the cockpit shakes the most.”
Chuck Yeager was the first test pilot to successfully fly faster than the speed of sound. Engineers did not know if he would survive the flight as they worried the sound barrier was like flying into a brick wall.
The past eight years have shaken the life out of many of us both literally and figuratively.
We are on the precipice to take flight to a new level of greatness for our country or hit a brick wall.
Thank you Mary for flying with us and being one of our pilots!
Maybe every time someone complains about Trump being treated differently the response should be, “oh, so you want us to stop treating him better than anyone else would be treated?”
I so desperately want to move past 2015, 2016 and 2020/Jan. 6 so badly. It seems like we are in a perpetual loop of hell because of the MAGA cult. Across the street from my Mom's house in suburban Chicago (that has Dem electeds at every level of government) the older white male owner of that house put up a small flag pole and hung a Trump 2024 flag on it. His neighbor two doors down has a gay son and I'm worried about his mental health having to look at that all the time while he's home from college this summer. This has never happened on my Mom's block in the 48 years she (and my Dad before he died in 2019) has lived there. Thank you for everything you are doing Mary. Sending you lots of love!!!
Thank you Mary for continuing to give us your personal insight. This cannot be easy for you to continue to do since it brings up so many family memories. But like you we are living it to. Love the suggestion to get away from the rhetoric and soothe our minds. We have a long and treacherous road ahead of us as a country. Prayers and peace to all...
This is the best essay I've read all year, Mary. You absolutely NAILED what we're up against. Thanks for giving a damn!✊️
Blistering and eloquent at the same time, deeply first-personal. Thanks Mary. Really enjoying your writing.
Excellent. We do need to include in our lives art, music, and I would include volunteering.
Hi Mary. I finally became a paid subscriber because I believe you are an important link to learning the truth about your uncle during this crucial time in American history and how we can get through this together. I wish there were one sustaining link between all the states in our country to unite in faith and trust and wanting normalcy for our country and how we can get there. I too agree that the arts are a compelling way to experience an elevated inner freedom. Thank you for being here 🇺🇸
The bottom feeders are still enthralled to the music man and will continue to enjoy the angertainment. The solution will be to send him off to an obscure prison, where he can be marginalized and spend his time reading love letters from his admirers. If Jeffrey Dahmer was able to get some love letters, then I would think the Donald should be able to as well. Hopefully we’ll make it to that point without a hot Civil War in the interim.
This is the FIRST time, in 7 years, that the actions of the Orange Sadist's cult has made any sense to me. As Mary writes: "As for the Democrats, they have not yet wrapped their head around the fact that Donald has figured out something most others have not: white evangelicals, the white working class, the Proud Boys and their ilk, aren’t voting against their self-interests, they are voting for what is of most interest to them and what most animates them—white supremacy, Christian nationalism, and hatred of the other."
Mary, I’m going to focus on the beauty of the art you posted, and on the spiritual benefits of museum-going.
My husband grew up in the Bronx, and as a youngster in the 50’s and 60’s (he’s a wee bit older than me), would take the subway to visit the Museum of Natural History, the Met, and his favorite, the Frick. He eventually became an industrial design major at Pratt in Brooklyn, so he took his art appreciation seriously.
I’m a So Cal gal born and raised, and was introduced to LACMA at a young age by a very culturally astute mother. She also started taking me to the LA Phil as a 9 year old. (I love symphonies, my husband operas. We chose to accept this disparity in our musical tastes.)
Imagine my surprise 38 years ago to meet a man who not only loved going to museums, and as a child, went to those institutions by himself on the subway, but would go to them happily with me! I was jealous of his easy access to the places I would grow to love but had a hard time getting to. LA, freeways... ya know?
It became a running family joke that no matter where we were, Mom (me) would drag the boys to a museum - Amsterdam, Sydney, Hawaii, Utah, NYC, Tanzania ( well, that’s a living museum so no complaints there), wherever, and our hometown gems the DeYoung and the Legion of Honor.
I believe, like my mother and my husband’s mother, to have instilled a love of beauty and of learning into my children.
We desperately need these moments of calm, of reflection, and of gentle discovery to guide us and support us through these turbulent times. It is there in the subtle complexity of a Rembrandt still life, in the rousing 4th movement of a Beethoven symphony, in the graceful notes of a Puccini aria, and in the simplicity of a blossoming rose.
Peace be with you all.
You don’t sound hopeful. I don’t think he will win another election, but he has unleashed authoritarian wannabes.
Praying for a miracle, fearing for my children.
I’m so grateful for the gentle admonitions you and the sisters-in-law continue to provide to help us all with our patience. Joyce has encouraged people to draw near to the people you love, care for them, and now your encouragement to take breaths and even develop a greater appreciation for art. I have been so over wrought for the last 3 years I had forgotten that I am actually a decent musician and love music. Oh, and are you still looking for an editor? 😂🎸🦎 Thanks, so much. The interview on Last Word recently was really good.
Trump's authoritarian cult is rapacious. I fear the Democrat's seeming innocence and naivety will fail to create new ideas and actions on how to confront this "brave new world". Our justice system will do its thing as it is now....slow though it may be. All the emerging "defending democracy" groups need to coalesce. ....now. The high alert is everywhere. We need new thinking, strategies, plans........at least I do. Thank you, Mary L. Trump for your pertinent literate Broadsides. Thomas Paine would approve.
Thank you Mary, for your eloquence in these uncertain times. Being in nature or turning to/making art is a balm I use to tamp down my anxiety. I recently read in the Washington Post why birds and their songs are good for our mental health, so I’ve been seeking that out too. It helps. You’ve got that covered with your sweet feathered friend!
Thank you, Mary, for your column.
The Republican responses scare me.
Take Care. 💙