Monday, December 19, 2022

Out and About – Autumn 2022





With the winter solstice just around the corner, it feels like a good time to look back on the autumn just past with the latest installment of The Wild Reed’s “Out and About” series.

So without further ado, here’s a review of the people, places, and experiences that were most meaningful to me in the autumn of 2022.


Above: With my dear friend Joan – Saturday, October 1, 2023. We’re at a party celebrating our mutual friend John’s birthday.

Back in 2015, Joan accompanied me on a visit back to Australia. For photos and commentary on the wonderful time we shared, click here.


Above: Some of my fellow members of Mercy Hospital’s Palliative Care team – October 4, 2022. We're celebrating our colleague Steph’s birthday. From left: Maddie, Kate, Steph, and Jenna.

Mercy’s Palliative Care team is comprised of incredibly competent and caring health care professionals, and I’m honored to be the interfaith spiritual care provider (or chaplain) on this team. It’s a position I've had since the autumn of 2018.


Above: At La Casita Mexican Restaurant in Coon Rapids with my work colleagues and friends – Wednesday, October 25, 2022.

From left: Kari, Amy, Jenna, Steph, me, Nikki, Maddie, and Kate. . . . Yes, we’re a great team!


Above: I’ve become friends with many wonderful people at Mercy Hospital, including Allan and Aaron who work in the coffee shop.

Sadly, both guys left Mercy at the end of autumn. Shortly after, Aaron texted me the following message.

We really did appreciate your company and compassion, Michael. You are such a true soul, among so much negativity that was surrounding us. I’m not lying when I say Allan and I enjoyed every second we had with you and relished every conversation and interaction with you. . . . You, Michael, were the closest and realest individual we talked to. . . . Allan and I both loved you and your presence. Every time you showed up in the coffee shop and we got excited to see you, that wasn’t a facade. We genuinely were excited to see you. We both had very little to be excited about in that place, but people like you kept us afloat.


Above and below: Alan and Aaron perform in an alt-rock band, and I was one lucky guy to get to see them perform on the evening of Thursday, November 12, 2022.


Above: Autumn in Minnesota. For more images of autumn beauty, click here and here.


Above: My best mate Deandre – October 1, 2022.


Above: The celebrations for my 57th birthday got off to an early start with a wonderful breakfast with my friend Abdulrahman at Heal Mpls (Minneapolis) on October 12, 2023.


Above: A visit to the Prayer Tree on my 57th birthday – Sunday, October 23, 2022.

For my special birthday post featuring more photos of the various get-togethers I had with friends, along with a beautiful song by Kiki Dee and Carmelo Luggeri, click here.


Above: Dinner with friends Calvin, Kathleen, and Joseph – November 20, 2022.


Above: My friends Dee and Phil, celebrating Phil’s birthday – December 2, 2022.


Above: A lovely portrait of darling Amelia – November 28, 2022.



Above and below: The arrival of wintry weather – November 29, 2022.



NEXT: Out and About – Winter 2022-2023


Autumn 2022 Wild Reed posts of note:
Summer’s Parting Gift
Ruth Ben-Ghiat on the Return of Fascism in Italy
Becoming Miracle Workers
Norman Solomon’s “Objective Look at U.S. Foreign Policy”
Buffy Sainte-Marie on Indigenous Peoples’ Day: “There’s an Awful Lot of Work Yet to Be Done”
The State of the COVID Pandemic: “We’re Collectively Walking An Immunity Tightrope”
Vaccines and GMOs: Two Very Different Debates
The Autumn Garden
The Revolution Will Be Televised
A Great Honor
An Essential Read Ahead of the Midterms
Deeper Understandings
The End Is Not the End
Marianne Williamson on the Current Condition of the U.S.
Phyllis Bennis On the Need For a Ceasefire in Ukraine
Autumnal Thoughts and Visions
Progressive Perspectives on the U.S. Midterm Election Results
Brigit Anna McNeill on Hearing the Wild and Natural Call to Go Inwards
Photo of the Day – November 14, 2022
Petula Clark: Luminescent at 90
Jen Perelman: Quote of the Day – November 17, 2022
Urbanscapes
Andor: The Star Wars Franchise’s “First Piece of Universally Excellent Television”
A New Beginning
Remembering Chadwick
Christine McVie, 1943–2022
Chauncey Devega on the Ongoing Danger of the Trump Cult
Happy Birthday, Mum!
Rob Sheffield Pays Tribute to the “Peaceful and Stormy at the Same Time” Songs of Christine McVie
Jeff Foster on the Healing Power of “Holding Space”
Together Again – Elton John and Kiki Dee
Dwelling in Peace
Trust and Surrender
Judith Butler on the Reactionary Movement and Fascist Trend Opposed to Diverse Ideas About Gender
Cuetlaxóchitl
Honoring the Darkness While Remembering the Light

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
Out and About – Summer 2022
Out and About – Spring 2022
Spring . . . Within and Beyond (2022)
Out and About – Autumn 2021
Out and About – Summer 2021
Out and About – Spring 2021
Out and About – Winter 2020-2021
Out and About – Autumn 2020

For previous Out and About series, see: 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022

Images: Michael J. Bayly.


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