mourn

And, as soon as the mourning ends, the work erecting the bridge from one win to 16 of them can begin.

And while life soldiers on in the community, with people tending to gardens outside their still-standing homes while others filter through debris, it’s as if the entire community has gone into quiet mourning.

Commercialized saint-making is dehumanizing, and bypasses genuine mourning by reducing people to idols.

And then, flash forward 30 or so years later, I’m like, “Oh wow, listen to those mourning doves!”

Exhaustively researched, gorgeously crafted and presciently timed, “The Lilac People” exhumes a buried history that could leave us mourning our lost democracy if we don’t learn from, and act on, its tragic lessons.