Overwhelmed?

After my last post I was pondering what I was going to write about for this post, then I thought of Kathy, who is a lovely woman with whom I had lunch recently. Tearing up almost throughout our meal, she said: I am feeling so Overwhelmed these days! The reason for her feelings is that she has been for several months taking care of her husband who had developed dementia, and had hip surgery shortly after that needing care 24/7. Moreover, he had fallen the week before we met and she couldn’t lift him up so she had to call the ambulance. Over and above everything else she was distraught that she had to do that. I totally understood as I had to call on my son-in-law and grandson on two occasions when my husband, then getting weaker, also fell. I, too, had felt Overwhelmed frequently during the entire eight years that he was on dialysis. That constant feeling of being Overwhelmed has many Negative Consequences such as being Unhappy and feeling as if Drowning. Over and above that: managing medications, doctor’s appointments, diet, bath time etc. and, yes, all of it is Overwhelming! This made me want to write about this “Overwhelmed” feeling, and so I emailed some of my close wonderful older friends to find out whether their circumstances always, sometimes, or never made them feel Overwhelmed. Here is some of what they said:

“I don’t have the luxury of feeling Overwhelmed as I take care of my sick  husband 24/7. It has become a way of life for me.”

“Some days just thinking of making the bed is Overwhelming! Also, putting things off and then having to catch up with my chores, the unpaid bills, and unanswered emails!”

“I order my groceries on line, and my bills and accounts are being managed by my wonderful children. Before they stepped in it was certainly Overwhelming!”

“A status change is Overwhelming. Going from working to retirement is quite an adjustment! Managing chores, accounts, social activities, cooking, buying anything online is so stressful when all of the these were once a breeze!”

“Keeping my schedule of doctor’s appointments is Overwhelming! Too many body parts now need attention!”

“Checking my To-Do list for the week is Overwhelming, although the list has mundane items: clean the bathroom, change the sheets and do the wash, make a doctor’s appointment, pick up my medicines and groceries, etc. Nothing of consequence, yet it can sometimes feel Overwhelming!”

Phew! I was so relieved and grateful to read their answers, because I was thinking that maybe I was the only one who feels Overwhelmed on certain days!

I was planning on continuing with my fun post when the News broke about Gaza, and had me glued in front of the Idiot Box! So as I write this my heart is laden with grief, and I am Overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions once the bloody hell again! Fuck!

. . . a brutal attack by Hamas on the Israeli-Gaza border had occurred, and the thousands of rockets that Overwhelmed Israel’s Iron Dome causing appalling and horrifying death and destruction to so many was as Stunning as it was Barbaric! Equally Barbaric was the unsurprising – actually, quite expected – Israeli Government’s Overwhelming and Savage response. Is there Anyone but the Delusional who thought that this was the beginning of a pathway to the Liberation of the Palestinian People from a brutal and inhumane Israeli occupation? Let me be clear: is the choice for the Palestinian People an Immoral, Inhumane, Illegal Israeli Occupation and Subjugation? Or, is it an Immoral, Authoritarian, Undemocratic, Ruthless Iran-like regime? Neither of these two options would be my choice! Neither! Having said that, I totally and fully understand how frustrated, angry, despairing and hopeless the Palestinian People are after eighty years of incarcerations, demolitions, annexations, expropriation of lands and property, provocations and an Israeli narrative that has dehumanized them, skewed the historic facts, and spread myths and propaganda – which have gone into warp speed since that fateful Saturday. Yes, the attack was definitely a traumatic experience for the Israeli People, however, sadly, trauma has become part of the inherited Palestinian psyche passed on from one generation to the next. So, while I am against ALL Violence and Wars, I totally understand how all that would energize feelings of revenge and violence. I am desolate and infuriated also! But, Context is Important, for Nothing happens in a Vacuum, and we should remind the World that the Jews in Hitler’s Concentration Camps were so furious at what Hitler was doing that some of them became radicalized and that was how the Stern and Irgun Gangs were born – designated as Terrorists by the British Colonists at the time – who then fled to Palestine and took out their Rage on Innocent – Innocent! – Palestinians whom they Terrorized, Expelled from their Homes and Villages, Murdered, Raped and who had Nothing – Nothing! – to do with causing the Holocaust! Yes, Fury can engender Radicalization in many Humans be they Israelis, or Palestinians!

Moreover, let us be Clear and Honest about the Facts that I am sure you already know: Netanyahu was Warned by the Egyptian Authorities that there was an Attack in the making by Hamas on his borders. He Chose to disregard the warnings. Did he really? Or, that by allowing things to happen it was an opportune moment in which to distract from his legal issues, from his judicial reforms and the ensuing protests by making Gaza and its Civilian Population a Scapegoat once again for his conundrum? And, if Hizbollah enters the fray it might give the evil, corrupt and conniving Netanyahu the chance to realize his Dream of going after Iran! This is an article by Marwan Bishara. His opinion is echoed by reporters and journalists in the Middle East. Should that Terribly Grim Scenario occur it will be an Overwhelming  Disaster for All of us!

As to the Ground War, and aside from the savage bombing of Gaza, Israel has made sure to target and kill Palestinian Journalists, to cut off electricity, no internet, no phones and, therefore, No Witnesses to the bloody revenge that Israel is surely exacting, while all the Colonists unite in support of Netanyahu and the most Indulged Country on the Planet in an atrocious display of Hypocrisy, Inhumanity and Racism that lays to waste the Geneva Conventions and the UN Declaration of Human Rights! That Blinken can stand next to Bibi and evoke his Holocaust experiences is absolutely allowed! However, for Palestinians to evoke the Nakba and all the ensuing horrific events perpetrated upon them is “About-ism!” Where, oh Where is Justice?

As for the US bought and paid for Corporate Media? Forget the Racist, Hypocritical Schmucks! They are Disgusting! Freedom of the Press and Integrity my ass!

I realize, as do many of my friends, that our whole world is in a distressed state of affairs. It is Overwhelmed with worldwide Lawlessness by many Governments – including our own, unless we choose to conveniently forget Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya etc. – Political and Economic Instability, Climate Challenges, Immigration and Migration Issues, abundance of Arms and Drugs, widespread Injustice and Inequality and on and on and on. This is causing stressful feelings on young and old alike. It is quite disconcerting and dangerous for all of us, and there are no Wise, Responsible Political Leaders that I can see who can navigate these treacherous waters and evade the Many Catastrophes that I see coming our way! Yes, it is Very, Very Overwhelming and Alas not at all the subject that I was anticipating to write about today by shocking events that overtook my initial fun idea!

Let me end by declaring that I will Never, Ever Cast My Vote for the Pathetic Hypocrisy and Warmongering of Joe Biden! Never! Ever! He is Done! Finito! Khalas!