Clearing cobwebs

I like that concept... clearing cobwebs! Bright sunshine and cloudless skies contribute greatly to cobweb-clearing. Add in good food and people you love, and it’s hard to ask for more.

Rain too can clear cobwebs (and clean dirty cars). And wind, spring winds that threaten to turn into tornadoes or hurricanes, gale-force winds, those demolish the handiwork of spiders, dislodging gossamer strings, leaving the weaver dangling by a thin thread.

Mental cobweb-clearing often requires getting outdoors and letting bright sunshine, rain, or wind refresh us, inside and out.

It’s finally spring in Gettysburg, and the cobwebs of winter are beginning to be replaced by sunshine and sparkle.

For me personally, the ocean is my favorite refresh-ment. Everything that causes stress or weighs me down, vanishes when my feet feel waves against my skin. On the West Coast, I’d often drive over to Malibu, one of those places where nature and human creativity have carved out a haven for art, simple beauty, and way-too-expensive (but fun) grownup toys. Now back on the East Coast, the Jersey shore isn’t far away. Unlike Malibu, it’s not a playground for the wealthy. The Jersey shore lights up my Being in simple surroundings.

When I add in good food and people I love, it’s even better.

There are, however, parts of this world where hate still reigns, where the Holocaust is denied, and human life is valued less than oil wells and mosques. In those places, gasoline may be cheap, but I wouldn’t trade places with them. The abuse of women, racism, antisemitism, the constant fear, the corruption!, it matters not if the cost of living is great. Where there is no freedom, life itself is precious.

Those White Rose students also enjoyed days much like today, spring days when cobwebs were cleared. Ammersee and Chiemsee may have substituted for Malibu and the Jersey shore, but the ‘concept’ is the same. In the middle of their resistance efforts, they found time to let the great outdoors do its work.

Occasionally, we simply must allow Nature to breathe new life into our Being. The darker our days, the more we need cobwebs cleared.

PS: This goes double for real scholars who dig deep into Holocaust-related topics. Make sure you clear your cobwebs. We need you. You'll burn out if you do nothing but spend time in archives.

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Image credits: Top photograph--Shopify, public domain for platform users. Bottom photograph--Shore at Fenwick Island, Delaware, my happy place! © 2024 Denise Elaine Heap. Please contact us for permission to use.

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