Mortal under judgment, guilty--spare this one, O God.
Well, something like that. I am not reaching for my dictionaries or eloquent translations here, just sharing a line from the famous Sequence hymn of the traditional Requiem Mass, the Dies Irae. I had to head this in Latin, because that is the form in which I am familiar with its lines. It was the two words "homo reus" (guilty mortal) that leapt to my mind a few minutes ago.
Out the window I could see a tanker leaving a California port, with refineries in the background. Earlier today I had noted a faint brownish tinge to the sky from air pollution (so familiar to me from years in the Los Angeles basin). In a very short time I will be getting into my car to commute home. Not a long commute, but still driving my own car by myself.
Being a native Californian does not excuse me, though my commute would take much longer if I tried to pull it off with public transportation, and I suspect it would involve lots of walking too. The walking would be good for me, but with the demands on my time I do not even try to rationalize driving. I just do it.
One more willing cog in the vast machinery of U.S. oil consumption, our favorite addiction.
Mortal
Under judgment
Guilty
the BB
Homo reus.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting frame of ur life you have described here :) Just one scene, but through perhaps some of the subtle deducable meanings we see how everything is intrinsically connected.
Homo reus.
:)