Lake Eye, Energy

 I'd run into a pal, Anita, at the lake path. She later sent me a photo of the view from where we stood-- inspiring a God's eye:

It's my first try at asymmetrical arms of color... I'll work more on that. 

Last night I took coworker Abby out for her birthday at our regular happy-hour place. I brought along the twenty eyes I've made this week and said she could choose one as a present. 
She chose four. 

She wasn't being greedy, she just kept exclaiming over them---and I kept  saying, "you can have more than one", and suggesting she might want one for her daughter and her niece, both of whom could use a little extra divine protection.
 (Couldn't we all?)

The server who often helps was was showing us pottery she makes, and I asked her if she'd like an eye too. I had them spread all over the table. 
She took three (also to share).

I was glad to have proof that people want them, and now I must go into PRODUCTION mode to make enough eyes to cover the fence in two weeks. 
bink and I are going on another mini-vacation next week--to see the source of the Mississippi River!!! 
I'll bring along eye-making supplies and hopefully crank a bunch out.

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I'd gone to see Hamilton in the afternoon--a film of the Broadway musical with the original cast.

Two things especially struck me.
First, how important personal energy is. 
Obviously social, and physical, and other factors dominate our lives, but our own energy interacts with them, crucially.

The physical energy! Daveed Diggs as Marquis de Lafayette in Hamilton. 

Physical, mental, emotional, spiritual energy.
I mean, duh. Right?
But I've been thinking about this a lot, recently, after my summer of Doing Nothing. 
My energy is up---how and where to direct it?

Second, how violent American history is. 
Duh, again. All human history is. But this play shows the tapestry of US history shot through with political violence, and how it plays out in one man's life (and death), and it lands differently now than in 2016 when Hamilton opened on Broadway.
The play has a strong Obama-era vibe, and I don't think that message was as prominent then, but it sure stands out now. 
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Clips, below, from an opinion piece in today's Guardian:
"Charlie Kirk’s shocking killing sets the stage for a dangerous federal crackdown", by Moustafa Bayoumi

"The Maga political strategist Steve Bannon told his audience, 'Charlie Kirk is a casualty of war. We are at war in this country. We are.' 

"I disagreed with Charlie Kirk on pretty much everything, but his shocking and morally repugnant assassination is deeply concerning, and not just because it’s another example of the lethality of our politics. 
Kirk’s killing is also sending prominent conservatives on a warpath, 
setting the stage for a dangerous expansion of federal government repression.

"Maga leaders blame a mythically powerful left for political violence. Now, they are bent on destroying anyone who opposes them.

"I find a lot of what Kirk peddled to be reprehensible, but he should still be alive to say it."

theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/12/charlie-kirk-shooting-federal-crackdown 

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I ask you, in these times, 
. . . Where are we directing OUR energy?