It’s important to increase your vocabulary. That’s a lesson I learned in elementary school, and one that is important even today.  The word I learned today is “tengai”, also (and this is a hint) known as “tengai hat”.

I learned that word because my cousin in Denmark, Kiku Day, wore a tengai when she played the shakuhachi at the Danish commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima. I saw the video of the ceremony, but do not have a still shot. But I do have a still of Kiku (I think) in a practice session.

As I understand it, the hat is worn to separate the music from the musician, eliminating both distraction and ego. What a great idea.

And now, you too have a new word in your vocabulary.

I watched a video yesterday about Franco and Spain. It had a few things I hadn’t focused on before, like Franco’s youth and early army years, and how his military career was boosted by his cruelty and fearlessness.  And how, after the Spanish Civil War was won, Franco went after his enemies and perceived enemies in the country. If I recall correctly, he had once said that he was going to save Spain, even if he had to kill half of the Spaniards. That was Franco.

This last item was of interest to me because, even if it isn’t accurate, Donald Trump sometimes (and on purpose) gives that same impression with all of his comments, his threats, his forced resignations and firings, his political mischief, his purported investigations, and his law suits. You have to watch the video to see how familiar it seemed.

I saw an interview with an individual who has been targeted by Trump. Put aside whether this individual will ever be found to have behaved improperly either civally or criminally. The stress of what he and his family members are going through, the monetary cost of defending himself, the effect on current income, and more, show that, come what may, Trump is working hard to punish those he deems not on his side.

Nicole Wallace, on her show the other day, talked about, while our democratic principles have been torn to pieces, life basically proceeds normally for most Americans.

It reminds me of my first trip to Spain in 1972. Franco was still in control 35 years after the Civil War ended, and had long silenced most of his opposition. You couldn’t see the pain that so many had suffered, and yes, life looked normal. In some ways, better than normal.

But the country’s national police, the Guardia Civil, was ever present. And more than once I was warned, even though as a tourist I was pretty safe, to take those guys very, very seriously. The country was still governed by fear.

Today, Trump is giving a speech about DC. What will he do? Bring out the National Guard to patrol the streets. Round up the homeless and transport them to the Everglades? Rename the Commanders? Take over the schools? Move into our guestroom? So many possibilities?

As to his remarks about eliminating the homeless from DC, remember Martin Niemöller: “First they came for the Communists…”

First they came for the aliens, then they came for the homeless….