DIANA KRALL

OPINION
Letter From The Editor -
November 2015
Hello November, you thanks- and praise-filled month revered for bringing
family and friends together in celebratory fashion. And hello to you,
reader; you are now in possession of the key to unlocking great adventures
in the arts, cuisine, live music and more throughout Northwest
Arkansas.
While a chaotic, somewhat incomplete festival season has come to a
screeching halt, November is still a shiny penny in terms of its entertainment
offerings.
The lovely Diana Krall, who graces the cover of our fourth issue, is
one of the premiere jazz vocalists of our time and will have the Walton
Arts Center reinstated as the premiere fine arts facility in Fayetteville.
We also have the scoop on shows filling venues, from Fayetteville to
Fort Smith, and Alma to Bentonville. We even take a peek at what’s happening
at the state capital, including must-see performances by the likes
of Stevie Wonder and The Plain White T’s.
If all else fails, check out NWA Mag’s suggested winter weather treks
and camping tips, and head to the great outdoors to enjoy the conclusion
of fall foliage (and those pesky insects).
Of course, if you’re more adjusted for indoor activities there’s no shortage
of fantastic art installations and dining opportunities in waiting.
We want to hear from you! Send your comments, questions and suggestions
to editor@nwamag.com, and follow us on your favorite social
media platforms.
And from all of us here at NWA Mag, safest travels and cheers in
advance!
JOE MACK | EDITOR IN CHIEF | EDITOR@NWAMAG.COM
COMING SOON:
WWW.NWAMAG.COM
“In the end, the love you take is equal
to the love you make” – Paul McCartney
by Dr. Tom Barlow
I am going to try and do something
difficult for me this month – change
my routine. I usually have one central
thought percolating in my mind for
weeks before writing something. Then I
gather my thoughts and write them out
at the last minute. Yet, over the last few
days new ideas have been bombarding
me and I’ve been unable to ignore them,
so I am going to serpentine a course
across my thoughts and feelings, and see
what emerges.
Setting aside for a moment my original
theme, I have to admit I was delighted
(and even a little proud) of how much
the piece I wrote several months back
(you know, the one using the opening
scene from the television series “News
Room” as my topic) mirrored much of
the subject matter covered during the
first Democratic debate in Las Vegas.
Of course, they might have watched the
show also.
I was surprised when Bernie Sanders
pointed out that there are more people
in U.S. prisons than there are in China
or Russia, steering the discussion
toward the problem of our privatized
corrections industry. He was right on
when he laid the root of our disgraceful
exploding prison population at the feet
of our market-based, for-profit corrections
industry. It’s basic college Econ
101 supply side economics at work, only
the supply and demand commodity is
us, our children and fellow citizens.
Actually, it was a perfect storm waiting
to happen; put profit-driven corporate
prisons together with an equally
disastrous second foray into prohibition.
We know how well that worked out
the first time, don’t we? Then mix in the
crash of Wall Street and Main Street,
leaving millions and millions of Americans
without homes, jobs and hope, and
a whole new industry grew while people
suffered (‘Jails-R-Us’ kind of has a ring
to it, don’t you think?) The whole ugly
affair would be a good story line for a
sequel to “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”
where public transportation in America
was all but lost because of corporate
greed and corruption. I sincerely believe
every college student seeking a degree in
public policy should be required to write
a major paper on that movie before they
are allowed to graduate, lest we forget.
I could bounce around these ancillary
thoughts for pages, but instead I’m
going to jump right in to what’s been on
my mind from the start. It all began late
last month while cleaning my office. I
came across a painting I purchased at a
Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival
a few years back. It’s the most beautiful
interpretation of a celestial being with
the words “Blessed are the merciful for
they shall obtain mercy” written at the
top, which you might recall is a Biblical
phrase from the Sermon on the Mount.
As I talked to the young artist, it was
clear he had no religious attachment to
the phrase; he simply thought it went
well with his angelic vison of love.
Ever since I saw that painting again,
I have not been able to get that phrase
out of my mind, even as it morphed into
“Happy are the merciful,” becoming
more personal. Soon it was simply the
word “mercy” I was thinking of and it
became easy to frame it as one would
the word “love.” We all know well
enough the word love is meaningless if
it’s not acted upon or expressed in some
way. I thought, “So, what would mercy
look like in my daily life, in action, and
why would it make me happy?”
Mercy acted out is simply one of
those attributes we don’t think of incorporating
into our lifestyle anymore.
When I say lifestyle, I mean showing
or expressing mercy towards others in
a Karmic you-get-what-you-give way.
Since this is an entertainment magazine,
it would be appropriate to quote
the very famous Charlie Chaplin, who
said, “We think too much and feel too
little. More than machinery, we need
humanity. More than cleverness, we
need kindness and gentleness.”
There are various practical ways
to show mercy in everyday life. For
example, one way is to be kind to people
that annoy us, mistreat us, or complain
about us (to our face or behind our
backs), Another is accepting people who
are just plain different from us; we need
to get a lot better at living in our diverse,
multicultural America. I know these
ideas are not the rough, tough, macho
ones put forth by the media, but they
are essential to our growth and well-being.
If we continue in our merciless,
selfish ways, we will find it harder to
survive. We’re in this together. Or here’s
a thought: the philosopher Plato once
said, “Be kind, for everyone you meet is
fighting a harder battle.”
Actually, I started thinking of showing
loving kindness when thinking of my
grandfather and even my father. Their
generations were good at it. Mercy
expressed would be showing sympathy
toward others, even to those who have
been unkind to us. It would be easy to
be mean to them if they were to make
a mistake, blunder or great error, but
rather than spreading gossip or taking
advantage of the situation the better
road would be to show mercy. Mercy
is making sure that those around you,
whether they are like you or not, feel
accepted. When people feel accepted
and encouraged, things just go better
for everyone. Now remember, the most
challenging situation is when the people
we are trying to show mercy to are those
that don’t actually deserve it. Like love,
mercy has to be deaf, dumb, blind and
stupid, as the saying goes, if it’s going
to be genuine. You do reap what you
sow; maybe if we give the other guy a
break then karma-wise we might get
one when we need one, right? Besides,
bottom line, it would make the world a
nicer place to live in.
4 | NOVEMBER 2015 | WWW.NWAMAG.COM