On Meeting An Old Friend After Long Absence

We all have friends from our past, but with whom we have lost contact. If we suddenly meet them again after many years, we may be disappointed--perhaps we've both moved on in new directions and haven't the common interest to renew the friendship, or the friend doesn't recognize us, or any of several other explanations. On the other hand, sometimes the connection is still there; as we begin to talk, we realize how we've missed each other and how much we share.

Today, as I was grocery shopping, I ran into an old friend whom I have not seen, or at least not noticed, for many years. Some twenty years ago, a man named Eric Utne started a magazine which he unashamedly called The Utne Reader. As soon as I read a friend's copy, I knew this was for me. I bought a few issues on the newstand, then subscribed. This new friend came to my house regularly and we enjoyed each other's company. We shared a lot; not that we always agreed--no, no--but we had a robust dialog.

Then, as so often happens, we lost contact. I moved to Oregon, a little town called Talent--perhaps because it had so little--then to Ashland, back to the San Francisco Bay area, Mexico, San Diego, back to Marin county (Just north of the Golden Gate Bridge--about 10 miles from SF) and three moves even here. Well, along the way we lost track of each other. My subscription went astray and then ended, I was busy, didn't get the renewal notice and had no time; well, you know how you can lose track of a friend.

So today, I noticed The Utne Reader on the grocery store shelf. Glancing at the front cover, I knew I had to have a conversation with my friend. So I bought a copy and immediately went over to Peet's Coffee and started a dialog. Wow, my friend has gotten even better with age. Of course The Utne Reader is older and a bit more "main-stream", but he is still engaged.

There was a great series on some of the fifteen magazines the Utne staff considers tops in importance. That list included The NACLA Report (NACLA is The North American Congress on Latin America). NACLA has, for years, produced the best data on the effects of US policies on the people and nations of Latin America. They have shined the spotlight of research and publicity on The School of the Americas, where our government teaches the Latin American military better ways to torture and suppress the citizens of their countries, and on the effects of our support of the right wing in Guatemala and El Salvador. Others on the list are Tikkun, published by Rabbi Michael Lerner, the Wilson Quarterly and another ten that I had never known.

But not every article was so momentous. My friend had time to discuss the "Social Significance of [Tea]", Why Clouds are Worth Watching, the Meaning of Mindfulness, before getting back to political/economic subjects like the Fair Trade movement in tea.

I won't bore you anymore. Just wanted to let you know about my friend, The Utne Reader. As soon as I finish writing this blog, I'm going directly to their site and re-subscribe. Then I'm going to settle down for a discussion about Democracy in action. Oh, if anyone else would like to meet my friend, the web address is http://www.utne.com (This is not an advertisement. I'm just excited about my friend.)