Conversations with Calliope- Health and Environment

(Seaside)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What's up today?
JOE: I'm taking a break from wrestling with technology.
CALLIOPE: What brought that on?
JOE: My commitment to writing a column and newsletter for the coming Saturday.
CALLIOPE: Do you have a topic in mind?
JOE: I do.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: I want to write about how our concern about finances and health intersect with the way we treat our earth.
CALLIOPE: It sounds like a task for a lifetime rather than a column.
JOE: I agree. Still I want to address it. The problem is how to say something meaningful in 500 words.
CALLIOPE: Quite a challenge. How do you plan to approach it?
JOE: That's what I have been pondering. Maybe I will present it as one of my life mysteries and just open up the topic.
CALLIOPE: That would be a start. Nobody seems to be thinking much about these connections.
JOE: I'll get my mental wheels turning and see what happens. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Gift of the Earth

(Sunset on Honeoye Lake)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Still meditating on last night.
CALLIOPE: On what specifically?
JOE: Sunset. I spent the day reading and talking about what we do to the earth and don't even seem to notice our destructive ways.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: Despite it all, the earth favors us with treats such as fantastic sunsets despite all our worst habits.
CALLIOPE: An interesting thought.
JOE: My question is where it will take me.
CALLIOPE: Do you have any ideas?
JOE: Not specifically. I realize I can't change everyone's attitude about the earth any more than I can change how people treat each other.
CALLIOPE: You're not God.
JOE: Exactly. Even God leaves it to us how we treat the earth and each other. Although we have free choice, we also must accept the consequences of our decisions.
CALLIOPE: Maybe you should write about the connection.
JOE: I have been, but maybe I need to do more of it. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Lift Bridge- Brockport, NY)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine.
CALLIOPE: How did your writers meeting go last night?
JOE: I heard from several members that they could not make the meeting. However only one other member showed up.
CALLIOPE: Were you disappointed?
JOE: It was not what I expected but Larry and I had a chance to compare notes on the literary scene and on marketing in particular.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you made the best of it. How did you do with your writing yesterday?
JOE: I had planned to do some recordings but then realized the deadline for my next column was fast approaching.
CALLIOPE: What did you write about?
JOE: Credit and cash. I think personal and government choices to live on the basis of money we hope will come in creates problems at both levels.
CALLIOPE: You don't usually address political issues.
JOE: No I don't. I didn't approach it from a political point of view but rather one of responsibility.
CALLIOPE: Were you pleased with it?
JOE: Yes. I am considering venturing out into some other politically charged issues. Talk with you tomorrow.