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FIXED INCOME
Affordable housing becomes key to getting by for seniors BY HANNAH HERNER
IN THE ISSUE 4
12
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Contributor Board
Tom Wills, Chair Cathy Jennings, Bruce Doeg, Demetria Kalodimos, Ann Bourland, Kerry Graham, Peter Macdonald, Amber DuVentre, Jerome Moore, Annette McDermott, Drew Morris
17
Vendor Spotlight
Women's March
Moving Pictures
Vendor Writing
"I learned how to deal with rejections a whole lot and keep a smile on my face and a positive attitude. ."
On Saturday, Oct. 2, people gathered for Rally for Abortion Justice marches across Tennessee.
Film critic Joe Nolan has the info on where you can find the best screams on streams and screens this Halloween.
In this issue, vendor discuss visible homelessness, smiles, storms in life, and one writes a poem about worry.
Contributors This Issue
Hannah Herner • Linda Bailey • Amanda Haggard • Ridley Wills II • David Pineros • Mr. Mysterio • Joe Nolan • Tyrone M. • Fred S. • John B. • June P. • Paul A.
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Cathy Jennings Executive Director Tom Wills Director of Vendor Operations Hannah Herner Staff Writer Carli Tharp Social Services Intake Specialist
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Dymin R Cannon Section 8 and E&T Specialist Ree Cheers SOAR Manager Rachel Ternes Housing Navigator Catherine Hardy Housing Navigator Jesse Call Operations Consultant Raven Nye Director of Housing Initiatives Barbara Womack Advertising Manager Amanda Haggard & Linda Bailey Co-Editors Andrew Krinks Editor Emeritus
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October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 3
VENDOR SPOTLIGHT
PHOTO BY HANNAH HERNER
Harold A. puts sales skills to work BY HANNAH HERNER Harold A. has been selling The Contributor for six years, and is most well known for his spot on West End and 30th Ave North, near BrickTop’s. With the help of area nonprofit Open Table Nashville, he got to move into the area he works nearly two years ago. The Contributor caught up with him to learn what’s brought him to this point. Have you gotten to know people over the years selling here? Yes ma'am, over the years, I've got to know just about all the regulars and it's been like a round table of customers. Do you feel like they get to know you too? They ask me what's going on with me, and I explain to them how I got homeless and how the paper helps us pay our medical bills, rent, food, hygiene, stuff like that. And not long ago you got to move in nearby, is that right? Yes ma’am I’m living in Parthenon Towers. It's been like about two years now. And it's only a walk away from work. It's just a blessing, you know? I don't have to pay any transportation costs to get back and forth to work. Where are you originally from? North Nashville and west Nashville. I went
to school and graduated, East High. Tennessee State University, I went to Howard University in D.C. and I went to Ben Franklin [University]. Did you finish out a degree with any of them? I was going part time for each one. I was kind of undecided of what I wanted to do. My mother was a school teacher. She was staying in Missouri, so when I dropped out of Howard I went to Missouri, and I started going to school there. I started out in Biochemistry. I didn't have a very good background in chemistry or physics, analytical and quantitative and all of that, so I changed it over to Communication. And then I changed it again from Communication to, I think, Accounting. That's when I went to Seymour and tried to be a CPA. What jobs did you do before you came to us at The Contributor? I was working with a roofing company, construction. And that was my last job before I started working with The Contributor. I used to criticize [Contributor vendors]. I was like, ‘they need to get them a job,’ because I had a job. And sooner or later what I criticized about I ended up doing. I've been in sales most all of my life. Each summer after college they had this company in Franklin and I will go out each summer with
them. They will send us to some city, different state and we would have to go like door to door, like eight o'clock in the morning to 8 o'clock at night. We had a specific territory and we didn't have a place to stay so they taught us how to go into the church and tell them that you know, we were college students and that we were looking for a place to stay and we just needed a place just to keep out of things and and lay our head and we would be gone. I had to go out and it was all commission so if you didn't sell, you didn't eat. So I had to sell some books.
just outdoing myself. When I got up the next morning I couldn't walk. It was like a slight case of arthritis in my hip. It's taken about almost three weeks for it to heal. I should have stretched before I start exercising, but I was feeling so good.
Do you feel like that work prepared you for this work? I know it did. It taught me how to take rejections. I found out in sales it's the law of averages. You might have to go through 20 people to get five, so I learned how to deal with rejections a whole lot and keep a smile on my face and a positive attitude. And just have faith, you know, keep my determination.
You said you share your story of how you became homeless with customers, do you want to share now? After I got my divorce, me and my wife separated, I was in Kansas City, Missouri. I didn't have any family up there. So I just basically lost everything. I just came back here to stay with my mom. She passed away and she was like my backbone. But once she passed away I couldn't depend on nobody else but myself, so that's kind of how I got homeless. I never had had a home, a stable rental place. I didn't have any credit history or nothing like that because I was always in school so it was hard to find a place.
When you’re not working, what are some things you like to do for fun? Probably exercise — running, sit ups, push ups. Just anything physical, just to keep my body active. That's how I got in the wheelchair. I thought I was 17. On my birthday I said, ‘man I feel so good.’ So I was throwing my leg up over the meter and running in place, and
Do you have a goal for the future? I just pray to God. Whatever he has planned out for me but I had to put him first in my life. Whichever way that he leads me is the way. Hopefully, everything will work out but so far everything has. Just when I thought I'm gonna fall on my face he's blessed me. I just keep striving to have faith.
PAGE 4 | October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
NASHVILLE HISTORY CORNER
CARL AND OTTO GIERS BY RIDLEY WILLS II Carl Giers was a German-American who had a photograph studio in Nashville. He was born April 28, 1828 in Bonn, Germany, came to the United States in 1845 and made Nashville his home in 1852. Three years later, Carl began his career as a photographer. During the Civil War, he photographed soldiers around Nashville, first Confederate and, after February 1862 when Nashville fell to the Union army, Union soldiers. In 1876, Carl put together Tennessee's exhibition at the United States Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. In 1870, Carl and his wife Pauline, who were childless, adopted two children of deceased friends, Peter and Barbara Burkhardt-Otto Burkhardt, then 12, and his little sister, Katie, then 6. When Otto was older, he and Carl were both members of the Knights Templar. Otto was 19 when his step-father died. In 1883, at age 25, Otto decided to try his hand as a photographer. He and some other German-American friends living in Nashville formed Thuss, Koellein, and Giers, Photographers and late the next year Otto began a remarkable series of documentary photographs of Nashville’s streets, schools, churches, homes and government buildings. In 1999 and 2000, Jim Hoobler published two volumes of paperbacks entitled Nashville from the Collection of Carl and Otto Giers, which are available today at Randy Elder’s Bookstore on White Bridge Road. Otto Giers lived at 1619 Eighteenth Avenue South, next door to Nashville author and educator, Alfred Leland Crabb, who served as one of his pallbearers.Today, my wife, Irene, and I live in a penthouse condominium earlier owned by Sarah Hunter Hicks Green Marks, Otto’s granddaughter, who made available to Hoobler the photographs in his two-volume paperback.
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 5
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NEWS
NEWS BRIEFS
Twenty-five of these pods will provide shelter to those experiencing homelessness who tested positive for COVID-19. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.
Emergency COVID-19 isolation pods to be installed in Mission parking lot Twenty-five pods meant to provide shelter to those experiencing homelessness who tested positive for COVID-19 will be installed in the parking lot of Nashville Rescue Mission. This temporary setup is a result of a collaboration between The Office of Emergency Management and Metro Public Health, along with Nashville Rescue Mission. On July 1, the longstanding temporary shelter located at the Fairgrounds Nashville was closed. Spots for those experiencing homelessness who tested positive for COVID-19 were moved to a former detention facility for a time — and met with pushback from homeless advocates. Each pod will have electricity, heating and air, and access to medical care onsite. The funding for the pods comes from the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity for Prevention and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases Funds. Around the clock Certified Nursing Assistants and 24-Hour Security is also paid for through this fund. Guests of these emergency shelter pods will have access to meals, restrooms, showers and recreation areas, a press release reads. “We sincerely appreciate OEM and Metro Public Health working with us to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by installing these temporary shelter pods,” said Glenn Cranfield, president
and CEO of Nashville Rescue Mission. “These pods will allow us to isolate those testing positive for COVID while they need to quarantine. It’s a great blessing to us, our guests, staff, and volunteers.” More information about Metro Nashv ille Dav idson Count y’s COVID-19 Response can be found at Covid19.Nashville.Gov. Operation Stand Down receives $2.1M to help with transitional housing Operation Stand Down Tennessee will receive a $2.1 million federal grant to aid in programs for transitional housing. Rep. Jim Cooper and the veteran service organization announced the grant, which is administered under the Veterans Administration Grant and Per Diem program, in late September. “Operation Stand Down Tennessee has provided Veterans with Transitional Housing for 28 years. This grant is a game changer as it will help us improve the safety and quality of the experience we can provide to Veterans in our program,” said Operation Stand Down CEO Eden Murrie. The GPD program was built to “prevent and end homelessness among veterans,” according to a release, and Operation Stand Down was one of 60 award recipients. The money will be used for 42 beds for transitional hous-
ing, which include the only beds for female veterans in the state of Tennessee. “Operation Stand Down provides vital services to veterans in Middle Tennessee, especially with their efforts to end homelessness,” Cooper said. “It was truly my honor to help deliver these funds to help support the men and women who sacrificed so much for our freedom.”
Federal suit challenges laws against people living in vehicles Legal organizations in California and Washington are campaigning to protect the constitutional rights of people living in vehicles. A federal lawsuit filed by the National Homelessness Law Center, Disability Rights California, Disability Rights Advocates, ACLU-Washington, ACLU-California, and Columbia Legal Services, challenges a law in Lacey, Washington, that prohibits parking recreational vehicles for more than four hours each day and authorizing the immediate tow and impoundment of the vehicle homes as punishment. The Law Center cites data from its Housing Not Handcuffs 2019 report, which found that half of U.S. cities have at least one law prohibiting living in vehicles, “even when vehicles are a person’s best or only option for shelter.” “Exclusion of individuals and discrimination are not valid government interests,” the suit reads. “There exists a long, inglorious history of governments, both federal and local, pursuing policies of exclusion, and nearly all such attempts have been shut down by the courts.” The report also found that these types of laws were the fastest growing category of anti-homeless laws in the country at that time. “Enforcement of these laws leave people living in vehicles at constant risk of losing their best, or only, available option for shelter,” said Tristia Bauman, senior attorney at the Law Center. “Without their vehicles, people experiencing homelessness will end up unsheltered on the streets, adding to an already dire encampment crisis.”
Sean Parker, District 5 Council Member, wears a Contributor mask before a recent council meeting discussing the evictions set for residents of Dickerson Road. PHOTO BY ALVINE.
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 7
PAGE 8 | October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
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COVER STORY
FIXED INCOME
Affordable housing becomes key to getting by for seniors BY HANNAH HERNER
FIXED INCOME
Affordable housing becomes key to getting by for seniors
T
he vision of retirement may include a retirement fund, and a place to live that’s paid off, but that’s not the reality for many seniors. One in four seniors rely on Social Security for 90 percent or more of their income, and for about half of seniors, it supplies about half of their income. The 2020 Community Needs Evaluation let us know that one in 10 seniors in Nashville live below the poverty line. When seniors like Contributor vendors Vicky and Doyle become firmly out of the workforce, they rely on a monthly fixed income, and must stretch their dollars to support themselves. Vicky says her experience with homelessness got her used to pinching pennies. Getting into affordable housing after seven months on a waitlist was a game-changer for her. It meant that her rent was on a sliding scale based on her income. With $749 in Social Security
BY HANNAH HERNER income, plus $65 in child support she was owed for her now-grown sons, she pays $234 per month, always 30 percent of her income. While she was waiting for her SSI to come in, she was paying the lowest amount possible, $25 per month. Getting that income was a process that took about two years, she says. Income from The Contributor, and the unemployment income during the pandemic, was keeping her afloat. “You start writing everything down as far as everything that your money goes for. And, it just whittles away so quickly, and, and let's face it, I'm at an advantage right now because I got into affordable housing before SSI hit. I wasn't trying to find an apartment that I could afford. I was already in one that I could afford,” she says. Gretchen Funk, executive director of FiftyForward, which provides services for older adults in Nashville, including
financial counseling, sees affordable housing as a major key to financial stability for seniors. “A key to that is accessing either the Section 8 vouchers or the facility-based programs where you pay 30 percent of your income,” she says. “Really without that, people just cannot manage on the amount of income that they have. Because otherwise, if you're having a $700 income, in Nashville, more and more, there are few options left.” The federal government recently announced that baseline SNAP benefits would go up a bit overall (about 21 percent) — the biggest increase in the program’s 45 years. At the same time, extra benefits as a result of the pandemic are set to come to an end. For Vicky, that means a cut down to $58 from the inflated pandemic amount of $294 per month. Those extra SNAP dollars during the pandemic gave her a chance to stock up
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on some essentials and eat healthier. For example, she stocked up on Glucerna shakes that help control her diabetes. “I really wish that they would increase [SNAP] benefits for those on SSI, and Social Security and such. Because we can eat so much healthier, and we can improve our health,” Vicky says. But lots of seniors don’t bother with enrolling in SNAP at all. Outside of the pandemic boost, SSI and SSDI income can slide those benefits down to the lowest threshold of $14 a month. The program is moreso designed for families, which represent 71 percent of those enrolled in Tennessee. Bigger households get more money from SNAP. But having a bigger household disqualifies a senior from utilizing the public senior housing, like the spot where Vicky lives. Having one of her sons live with her there would be enough to get her evicted. Contributor vendor Doyle’s monthly
COVER STORY
Vicky’s Estimated Budget INCOME: $749 - SSI $65 back child support $58 SNAP EXPENSES: Rent: $234 Medicine: $18 a month Cigarettes: $180 Grocery delivery: $24 Laundry: $30 Internet service: $10 Music streaming service: $10 Cell Phone: $35 Access Ride: $37/month Care for emotional support dog, Faith: ~20 month Groceries: Variable
Doyle’s Estimated Budget INCOME: $1450 - SSI EXPENSES: Rent: $399 Car payment : $300 Insurance: $105 Renter’s insurance: $12 Loan payment: $260 Light Bill: $80 Gas, food, and car repairs: Variable
COSTS: At least $600 per month COSTS: At least $1,150 per month
expenses play out much differently. With the help of his son offsetting initial costs, he found an apartment in Lebanon where he can afford the rent each month, but it’s not on a sliding scale. Like Vicky, he prefers wide open spaces outside of the urban core, but without the choice of public housing, it’s harder to afford. Having public housing seems like a no-brainer for someone like Doyle, 60, but he’s been on a waitlist for months, and his name is yet to come up to the top. He’s also not quite old enough to qualify for specific senior housing, which happens at 62. It would still be a tough decision, moving closer to downtown, and away from his son. “After him putting up so much, I’d hate to leave,” he says. Being out of the workforce is an adjustment for Doyle, as he’s used to making $60,000 to $70,000 a year in the auto electric field while delivering pizzas on the side. Beginning eight years ago, health issues sidelined him. The amount Doyle receives from Social Security per month is about normal at $1,450 per month. As of December 2020, the average amount a Social Security recipient was getting per month was $1,544. “That’s why I have to sell papers. The car, car insurance, and all that adds up.” “I couldn’t make it without it,” he says. Including rent, insurance, electric, a car payment and a loan payment, Doyle’s
Nashville nonprofit FiftyForward works with people on fixed incomes to create a budget that works for them. IMAGE COURTESY OF FIFTYFORWARD.
static monthly costs add up to $1,150 per month, and that’s before he buys food or gas, or any car repairs that come up. It costs, with how much driving he does — 50 miles each way to his selling spot in McMinnville from The Contributor’s downtown office. In the past, he was denied SNAP for being over the income threshold, and never applied again. An informal SNAP benefit calculator shows that, based on his income and costs, he would be eligible for just $20 per month. Vicky had the chance to get a car with the stimulus check, but opted to
save some money and buy some items in bulk — she saves by buying a monthly bus pass instead. She’d like to live outside the city too, in Hermitage preferably, but there aren’t sliding scale options or anywhere she can afford the ticket price there. She’s hooked up with the Nashville Financial Empowerment Center to set up her budget. “It's definitely a learning process, but you can make it. You just have to watch your bills,” she says. Even still, FiftyForward sees a lot of seniors without the necessary resources to make ends meet. The organization
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 11
tries to fill in the gaps with their food box program, helping seniors find affordable housing, and offering scholarships for other enrichment programs they offer. It really gets dangerous when people start to ration their medications, Funk says. “Something that we often face with folks is that choice between things like rent, food, your medications,” she says. “I think people think this is uncommon and people just, you know, want to pull on your heartstrings about this, but we often encounter seniors who don't take their medication as prescribed because they are trying to make it last longer.” These decisions affect health outcomes, as does buying cheaper and less nutritious foods with a limited grocery budget. “All those kinds of things result in costs to society that you just wish people had a calculus for that. Because providing someone with better income so that they can take their medications as prescribed and have a healthy diet is going to prevent earlier hospitalization and a need for institutional care sooner,” Funk says. When it comes to advising seniors on where to most effectively spend their money, it can feel unfair. “It’s so hard to even have those conversations, because people should have some luxury or something that brings that quality of life, not just that sustenance,” Funk says.
LOCAL ADVOCACY
In December, a Mississippi case that could potentially overturn Roe is headed to court as well. The Tennessee State Legislature has already written a “trigger law” that if that happens, all abortions in Tennessee will be banned.
On Saturday, Oct. 2, people gathered for Rally for Abortion Justice marches across Tennesee in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in September allowed a Texas abortion ban to take effect.
In Nashville, community members gathered both in front of the federal courthouse and AT&T headquarters, and called on AT&T to stop giving money to anti-abortion groups and politicians.
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LOCAL ADVOCACY
One in four people who give birth in Tennessee have needed an abortion at one point in their lives. The rallies across the state were calling for elected officials in the state legislature to not attempt any anti-abortion legislation during the 2022 legislative session and that Gov. Bill Lee not “draft or support any anti-abortion policy or legislation in 2022,” in order to support those people.
Francie Hunt, the executive director of Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood, said: “The political attacks have escalated for decades, and we could be at the precipice of an unraveling in the courts. If you’re a Tennessean who has needed an abortion, we love you, we are here for you and we will not cede one inch if it means saving your life.”
PHOTOS BY DAVID PIÑEROS
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 13
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The New Christian Year Selected by Charles Williams
Charles Walter Stansby Williams (1886–1945), the editor of the following selections, is today probably the third most famous of the famous Inklings literary group of Oxford, England, which existed in the middle of the 20th century, and which included among its ranks the better-known and longer-lived Oxford Dons J.R.R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. First published in 1941, this series of profound quotations, encompassing all walks of life, follows the sequence of the themes and Bible readings anciently appointed for contemplation throughout the church's year. It is hoped that the readings reproduced here will prove beneficial for any who read them, whatever their place in life's journey. — Matthew Carver
20th Wednesday after Trinity
The Feast of St Luke the Evangelist
LOVE does the work of all other graces without any instrument but its own immediate virtue. For as the love to sin makes a man sin against all his own reason, and all the discourses of wisdom, and all the advices of his friends, and without temptation, and without opportunity, so does the love of God; it makes a man chaste without the laborious arts of fasting and exterior disciplines, temperate in the midst of feasts, and is active enough to choose it without any intermedial appetites, and reaches at glory through the very heart of grace, without any other arms but those of love. Jeremy Taylor: Holy Living.
I WAS at a stand in my mind whether I should practise physic for the good of mankind, seeing the nature and virtues of the the creatures were so opened to me by the Lord. But I was immediately taken up in spirit, to see into another or more steadfast state than Adam's in innocency, even into a state in Christ Jesus that should never fall. And the Lord showed me that such as were faithful to Him, in the power and light of Christ, should come up into that state in which Adam was before he fell; in which the admirable works of the creation, and the virtues thereof, may be known through the openings of that divine Word of wisdom and power by which they were made. Great things did the Lord lead me into, and wonderful depths were opened unto me beyond what can by words be declared; but as people came into subjection to the Spirit of God, and grow up in the image and power of the Almighty, they may receive the word of wisdom that opens all things, and come to know the hidden unity in the Eternal Being. George Fox: Journal.
20th Thursday after Trinity THEN first do we attain to the fullness of God's love as His children, when it is no longer happiness or misery, prosperity of adversity, that draws us to Him or keeps us back from Him. What we should then experience none can utter; but it would be something far better than when we were burning with the first flame of love, and had great emotion, but less true submission. Tauler: Sermons. HIS life has been brought into mine, so that I am atoned with Him in His Love. The will of Christ has entered into humanity again in me, and now my will in me enters into His humanity. Boehme: Signatura Rerum.
20th Friday after Trinity NOW this is the ground and original of the Spirit of Love in the creature, it is and must be a will to all goodness; and you have not the Spirit of Love till you have this will to all goodness at all times and on all occasions. You may indeed do many works of love and delight in them, especially at such times as they are not inconvenient to you or contradictory to your state or temper or occurrences in life. But the Spirit of Love is not in you till it is the spirit of your life, till you live freely, willingly, and universally according to it. William Law: The Spirit of Love. "THUS it must be" —The ground of this necessity is in himself, whereas the ground of the created universe is not in itself but in him. Doctrine in the Church of England, Report of the Commission.
20th Saturday after Trinity HE made all things in fulness of goodness, and therefore the blessed Trinity is ever full pleased in all his works. And, all this showed he full blissfully, meaning thus: "See! I am God: see! I am in all things: see! I do all things: see! I lift never mine hands off my works, not ever shall, without end: see! I lead all thing to the end I ordained it to from without beginning, by the same Might, Wisdom, and Love whereby I made it. How should anything be amiss? Juliana of Norwich: Revelations of Divine Love. JESUS Christ is a God whom we approach without pride, and before whom we humble ourselves without despair. Pascal: Pensées.
Twentieth Sunday after Trinity MEEKNESS in itself is nought else but a true knowing and feeling of a man's self as he is. For surely, whoso might verily see and feel himself as he is, he should verily be meeked. Two things there be that be causes of this meekness, the which be these: One is the filth, the wretchedness, and the fraility of man, into the which he must always feel in some degree the whiles he liveth in this life, be he never so holy. Another is the over-abundant love and the worthiness of God in himself; in beholding of which all nature quaketh, all clerks be fools, and all saints and angels be blind. Insomuch, that were it not, through the wisdom of his Godhead, that he measured their beholding according to their ableness in nature and in grace, I cannot say what should befall them. The Cloud of Unknowing.
21st Monday after Trinity WE would fain be humble; but not despised. To be despised and rejected is the heritage of virtue. We would be poor too, but without privation. And doubtless we are patient, except with hardships and with disagreeables. And so with all the virtues.
zeal than in others that make no pretences to it. History also furnishes us with instances of persons with great piety and devotion who have fallen into great delusions and deceived both themselves and others. The occasion of their fall was this; it was because they made a saint of the natural man. My meaning is, they considered their whole nature as the subject of religion and divine graces; and therefore their religion was according to the workings of their whole nature, and the old man was as busy and as much delighted in it as the new. William Law: Christian Regeneration.
21st Saturday after Trinity JESUS Christ, without riches, and without any external exhibition of knowledge, is in His own order of holiness. He did not invent; He did not reign. But He was humble, patient, holy, holy to God, terrible to devils, without any sin. Oh! in what great pomp, and in what wonderful splendour, He is come to the eyes of the heart, which perceive wisdom! Pascal: Pensées. HERE is the root then, the love of the Father, and the tree, the merit of the Son; except there be fruit too, love in us, to them again, both root and tree will wither in us, howsoever they grew in God. Donne: Sermons.
Twenty-First Sunday after Trinity
Eckhart: Sermons and Collations.
HUMILITY is deep enough when God has mortified a man with the man himself, then and not till then is a man satisfied, and the claims of virtue. Eckhart: In Colllationibus.
21st Tuesday after Trinity IF thou hast not the prayer of the spirit, strive for the prayer of the body, and then shall be added unto thee the prayer in the spirit. If thou hast not humility in the spirit, strive for the humility which is in the body, and then shall be added unto thee the humility which is in the spirit. The Paradise of the Fathers. BE not humble in thy words only, but also in thy deeds. The Paradise of the Fathers.
THE seeking is common—that every soul may have with his grace—and ought to have that discretion and teaching of the Holy Church. It is God's will that we have three things in our seeking:—The first is that we seek wilfully and busily, without sloth, as it may be through his grace, gladly and merrily without unskilful heaviness and vain sorrow. The seconds is, that we abide him steadfastly for his love, without grudging and striving against him, to our life's end: for it shall last but a while. The third is that we trust in him mightily of full sure faith, for it is his will. We know he shall appear suddenly and blissfully to all that be his lovers. For his working is privy, and he willeth to be perceived; and his appearing shall be sweet and sudden; and he will be trusted. For he is full kind and homely: blessed may he be! Juliana of Norwich: Revelations of Divine Love.
21st Wednesday after Trinity
22nd Monday after Trinity
LET humility be always at work, like the bee at the honey-comb, or all will be lost. But, remember, the bee leaves its hive to fly in search of flowers and the soul should sometimes cease thinking of itself to rise in meditation on the grandeur and majesty of its God. St Teresa of Avila: The Interior Castle.
SUDDENLY, I saw before my inward eyes these words—God only . . . they were at the same time a Light, an Attraction and a Power. A Light which showed me how I could belong completely to God alone in this world, and I saw that hitherto I had not well understood this; an Attraction by which my heart was subdued and delighted; a Power which inspired me with a generous resolution and somehow placed in my hands the means of carrying it out.
HUMILITY is not insipidity, but it is seasoned, as it were, with salt. The Paradise of the Fathers.
21st Thursday after Trinity A BROTHER asked an old man, saying, "What is humility?" And the old man answered and said unto him, "That thou payest not back evil for evil." That brother said unto him, "And supposing that a man cannot attain to this measure what must we do?" The old man said unto him, "Let us flee and follow after silence."
The Paradise of the Fathers.
HE who owes everything to grace in such a degree that he understands he is superfluous must be all the more obedient. True, all that exists is nothing in the hands of the Almighty who created it out of nothing; but that which by coming into existence attains nothing more than to be superfluous must understand most profoundly that is is nothing. Kierkegaard: Christian Discourses.
21st Friday after Trinity WHEN religion is in the hands of the mere natural man, he is always the worse for it; it adds a bad heat to his own dark fire and helps to inflame his four elements of selfishness, envy, pride, and wrath. And hence it is that worse passions or a worse degree of them, are to be found in persons of great religious
Sister Lucie-Christine: Spiritual Journal.
IN the Son of Man I see the Son of God, because Thou art so the Son of Man that Thou art the Son of God and in the finite attracted nature I see the Infinite Attracting Nature. Nicholas de Susa: The Vision of God.
22nd Tuesday after Trinity IT is nature which teacheth a wise man in fear to hide himself, but grace and faith doth teach him where. Fools care not where they hide their heads . . . But because we are in danger like chased birds, like doves that seek and cannot see the resting holes that are right before them, therefore our Saviour giveth his disciples these encouragements beforehand, that fear might never so amaze them, but that always they might remember, that whatsoever evils at any time did beset them, to him they should still repair, for comfort, counsel, and succor. Hooker: Sermons. I AM not come to this meaning, or to this work and knowledge through my own reason of through my own will and purpose; neither have I sought this knowledge, nor so much as to know anything concerning it. I sought only for the heart of God, therein to hide myself. Boehme: Aurora..
Sponsored by Matthew Carver, publisher
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 15
FUN
HOBOSCOPES LIBRA
So, if you’re bitten by a werewolf, but not eaten by the werewolf, you become a werewolf. And if you’re bitten by a vampire, but not eaten by the vampire, you become a vampire. It’s a simple formula, Libra. Works for zombies, too. But it doesn’t have to play out like that in real life. What doesn’t kill you might make you stronger, but it doesn’t have to make you cruel. You’ve been bitten, Libra, but instead of going out fierce with your teeth-blazing, you can choose to stop the cycle.
SCORPIO
It takes courage to ask, Scorpio. Sure, everybody loves putting on the costume and heading out into the neighborhood with an empty pillowcase. That’s the easy part. But to actually walk up to that strange door, ring the bell and ask the big question, that takes a lot of courage. You might get a trick, Scorpio, or you might get a treat. But the only way to find out is to get yourself onto that front porch and ask for what you want.
SAGITTA R IUS
The left hand of a tailor. The right hand of a marksman. Legs from a runner and feet from a dancer. One eye came from a painter and the other from an oracle. When you’re building a monster, Sagittarius, you only want the best. Every part chosen and assembled on your laboratory table. Given care and given life. You build the same monster everyday and everyday you’re surprised when it wakes up and chases you around the room. Today, try making something new. Build something that gives you life instead.
CAPRICORN
This is your pumpkin, Capricorn. There are many like it, but this one is yours. Your pumpkin is your friend. You must master it, as you master your own life. Whether you choose to carve evil eyes, or a onetoothed smile, or some nervous eyebrows, you are in charge of the character of this pumpkin. It will not become a jack-o’-lantern on its own. Change doesn’t begin until you make a decision and start carving. So be it. Your pumpkin is yours to transform.
AQUA RIUS
Someone is knocking at your door, Aquarius. A tall and ominous silhouette, arms invisible beneath a shapeless cape. They knock again and you feel that you
must answer. It’s the polite thing to do, after all. You draw close and see the teeth. Smell the blood. And you’re afraid but you lift your hand to turn the latch. Wait, Aquarius. Take a breath. Yes, something frightening wants inside. But you still have control. Some things have to be invited in. They can’t cross the threshold on their own. And they won’t stay on the porch forever. Maybe leave this one out in the dark.
GEMINI
I’ve heard that if you say “Gemini” three times into a mirror, your best self will appear. I’m scared to try it, but maybe you should give it a go. Say it with your eyes closed and when you open them you should see a version of you that can accomplish absolutely anything. Actually, I’m pretty sure it even works without the mirror. You’ve got everything you need to get to where you need to be, Gemini.
PISCES
By now you’ve heard the story about the two wolves who live inside you, Pisces. You’ve heard about the great battle between good and evil that constantly rages within every heart. You’ve heard that you must feed the wolf you want to win. But there’s something else inside you that could use a snack. It’s a giraffe wearing a beret and holding a paintbrush. His name is Arnold. It’s the part of you that wants to make something weird and he could really go for a banana and marshmallow burrito. Of course you have to feed your better wolf, Pisces. But don’t ignore that part of you that just wants to create something for its own sake. Arnold is hungry.
CANCER
If you’ll take your seat at the table, Cancer, we can begin the seance. First you’ll need to join hands with the person on either side and then recite the phrase on the paper in front of you. It’s OK if you don’t understand the words. Now close your eyes and focus your mind on the center of the table. Do you feel it? It’s the ghost of you the way you used to be. That version of you from before when you believed different things and hid from your grief. You’ve changed, Cancer, and that person won’t ever come back. But you can talk with them tonight. Let them know that things can get better. Let them know you’ll take care of them. Tell them how they helped you become who you are now. Forgive them. Love them. Let them go.
ARIES
The abandoned cell-phone store on 8th. The old empty stereo shop on Cedarcrest. The Pizza Hut-shaped building that’s been vacant since you were in 7th grade. Nobody goes in those anymore. At least, until a few weeks ago. First there were black and orange balloons. Then giant cardboard spiders and moons in the windows. Then a sign out front that said “Spirit Halloween.” Your calendar’s been pretty vacant lately, too, Aries. But all empty spaces will eventually be filled. If you need some time to think, or walk, or be alone, don’t leave it to chance. Put it on your schedule before the empty gets filled by something you didn’t choose.
LEO
Scientists say that the moon is getting further away. It drifts just an inch or two every year, but eventually, after thousands of millenia, it will get far enough away that it will no longer be bound by Earth’s gravity. Then the moon will just float away altogether. It’s sad to think about, but it’s great news for werewolves. Once the moon spins off into the solar system, werewolves won’t have to worry anymore about whether or not they’re going to bust-out of their shirts and devour their loved ones. You see, Leo, most changes are good for somebody and bad for somebody else. Who benefits most from the changes around you?
TAURUS
Bloodsuckers are all around us, Taurus. Every night they ravenously feed off that precious liquid of life. Nearly invisible, they approach even now. But there is hope. A single bat can eat as many as a thousand mosquitoes in an hour. Mosquitoes are like the Cheez-Its of the bat world. Yet, somehow, we’ve come to tolerate mosquitoes and feel suspicion — even fear — about the bats. Sometimes the cure looks scary, Taurus, but you’ve got to learn to trust it more than the disease.
VIRGO
It’s generally accepted that “trick” and “treat” are two sides of a coin. What this horoscope presupposes is, maybe they aren’t? It’s a false dichotomy, Virgo. You’ve got more than two choices. You always did. Sure, there’s trick. Sure, there’s treat. But there are so many options available to you that you can’t see because you’re trapped in a societally constructed binary. Before you go out on your next hunt for candy, unlock your mind. Free yourself from the tyranny of the coin flip.
Mr. Mysterio is not a licensed astrologer, a trained vampire hunter, or a 12 foot yard skeleton. Mr. Mysterio is, however, a budding intermediate podcaster! Check out The Mr. Mysterio Podcast. Season 2 is now playing at mrmysterio.com. Got a question, just give Mr. M a call at 707-VHS-TAN1
PAGE 16 | October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
MOVING PICTURES
for movies like Paranormal Activity (2007), The Purge (2013) and the recent remake of The Invisible Man (2020) — which is good and streaming on HBO MAX. Welcome to the Blumhouse returns to Amazon Prime in October with its second season of standalone horror releases just in time for Halloween viewing. Bingo Hell is a horror-comedy wrapped around a vigilante film that pictures a band of fed up senior citizens joining forces to stop a sinister outsider who threatens their idyllic low income community. Black as Night’s teens-against-vampires premise reminds me of The Lost Boys (1987), but this story is focused on a teenage girl, and it abandons sunny California for the historical spookiness of New Orleans. The Old European vibes of NOLA always make a great setting for bloodsucking, and the presence of genre film icons like Keith David makes Black as Night one of our favorites of this bunch. Madres begins with a young Mexican couple starting a new life in California in the 1970s. The couple is expecting a child and their future is as bright as those Pacific sunsets. But the mother’s pregnancy and her isolation while dad’s away at work begin to affect her. When she discovers dark secrets about their new house the little family’s dreams — and their very lives — are at stake. Manor pictures an assisted-living facility where the residents are suddenly, mysteriously dying – it’s the most Gothic flick of the bunch. One resident starts to have nightmares, but the more she discovers about the malevolent forces that are affecting the house, the less the medical staff believe her. This one stars the great Barbara Hershey in a welcome return to genre film. All these new Blumhouse flicks are directed by women and the variety – from dark comedy to supernatural drama – makes these Prime selections a great place to start the scariest movie month of the year.
Full Moon SCREAMS ON STREAMS AND SCREENS THIS HALLOWEEN BY JOE NOLAN Film Critic The fall is one of my favorite times for writing about movies because Halloween is practically synonymous with the horror genre. Any movie with a monster or two, a supernatural twist, or even just a splat of gore might be considered for a list of spooky October favorites. Belcourt Theatre’s 12 Hours of Terror comes to our favorite art house theater on Oct. 16 at 10 p.m.., but due to Belcourt’s COVID-19 capacity limits the event is already sold out. Don’t panic! This week we’ve highlighted alternative local screenings along with the Welcome to the Blumhouse: Season 2 schedule on Amazon Prime to keep you creeped-out for at least a few weeks before we celebrate the scariest night of the year. The Full Moon Cineplex is a unique local movie house operating out of the former Courtyard Cinema 8, which closed in 2001. The Hermitage space is now home to Full Moon, the Slaughterhouse — Nashville’s longest-lived (dead?) haunted house attraction — and Lone Wolf Tattoo. Full Moon’s dinner-and-movie special is unique,
and its dedication to genre films makes this space a can’t-miss destination for Halloween horror programming. Full Moon has curated a full slate of frightful favorites for this month including masterpieces like the original Halloween (1978) and Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) films, alongside cult classics like Fright Night (1985) and
Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (1982). Go to fullmooncineplex.com to purchase tickets/meals in advance. Full Moon is currently at 50 percent capacity, your temperature will be taken at the door and masks are required inside. Blumhouse is Jason Blum’s horror-centric film and television studio, responsible
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 17
All four of the Welcome to The Blumhouse movies are now streaming on Amazon Prime
Joe Nolan is a critic, columnist and performing singer/ songwriter based in East Nashville. Find out more about his projects at www.joenolan.com.
VENDOR WRITING
SMILE DON’T WORRY — TYRONE M.
Worry is like a rocking chair you’re moving but not going anywhere Don’t worry Worry is like, a child constantly spinning ‘round sooner or later the child falls
down
Don’t worry Worry is like when you have all of
BY JOHN B. I’ve had customers say, John, everytime I see you as I come by you’re smiling. How is that. I answered, “I guess I’m just grateful. Even though my world can be up-side-down but I just put it in God’s hand. And you know what, He’s always on time.” Then you have those who make a fake smile. I’ve always felt those are the ones it’s very hard to trust, undependable, ones you never turn your back too, but pray for them. Tell you a story, one day shortly after New Years Day, a guy pass and turn around and passed again. Very cold out, he asked, what in the world could you be smiling about. I explained, First of all, I’m glad to still be living and also I’m glad you stopped. I have a article I wrote and next time you see me, tell me what you think. He left and five minutes later, he returned and gave me
all the money in his wallet. He had tears of joy in his eyes because I’d brighten his day, just because of something I said. When he left, I counted the money he’d gave me and I’d never gotten such a huge amount. He said, John, whatever you do, don’t ever stop writing. Now everytime I see him he has a big smile, even though he has dark tented window, he roll down the window and smile. Believe it or not a smile tell a lot about you. A fake smile also speaks for itself too. Remembering back when dad was alive, he’d sat on the porch and many time I’d sneak upon him and he’s smiling so hard he’s practically laughing. I guess it’s a gift God gave to his children who depend on him and put your life in his hands. I guess if that’s the fact, why frown.
these past due bills — but worrying about them only makes you ill
STORMS IN MY LIFE
Don’t worry
B Y J U N E P.
Worry is like giving up and telling satan he won, don’t do that
Life is a very precious gift (I) we receive every morning. That I know myself I am very grateful for. And thank God, Jesus, Lord, all day and every night for this blessing I received today, and every day, I do. I’ve had a lot of storms these last few months, well, year. One big storm last year was when my momma passed in March. She is a great momma, miss her so much. Then a couple weeks ago my oldest sister passed of COVID, on a ventilator almost two weeks. Laying here at Sarah Cannon Cancer Center I’m feeling like God is trying to prepare me for death. I try real hard to let my God be in con-
because here Jesus comes
I’M STILL HERE FRED S.
Born Jan. 5, 1978 in Memphis, TN.
trol and he is. But he put people, things, sent all to us, put in our lives to give us wisdom and gut feelings, people in our lives that help us. Well I call them Earth Angels. That have been put in my life to help me. I am so grateful and thank them all for this year. I’ve had 10 weeks of chemo, six weeks of radiation. with lung cancer. The 19th I find out if it helped. Well most of these Earth Angels are my customers. I AM GRATEFUL. My car caught on fire the first week I started chemo, so with no car, my customers have taken turns taking be back and forward to treatment every day for six weeks. Thank you God and Earth Angels.
With only one ear to here out of; (guess what?)
I’m Still Here Joining a killer gang, and getting shot at (guess what?)
I’m Still Here Having a lifetime illness that’s going to stay within my body
VISIBLE HOMELESSNESS BY PAUL A.
till the end of my time, but (guess what?)
I’m Still Here Praying to God each and everyday of my life
He’s the reason why: I’m Still Here
There's a big rumor going around that they're going to take some of the homeless and put them out by the airport. They're going to open a camp out there by the airport. And they're gonna have two choices. They either go to the Mission, or they go to that camp. It's supposed to be another Tent City, from what I understand. It's a temporary fix. But it ain't a total fix. Right, what we need to do is some
PAGE 18 | October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
of them Tiny Homes, more of them. Business owners are getting tired of the homeless sleeping in a doorway and so on and so forth. And I can't blame the business owners for that. With this town being a tourist town. It does not make the city look good with all the homeless laying in doorways and all that. I understand that people so let's all get together and try to figure it out and do something about it. That's the way I think.
FUN THEME: H A LLOW EEN ACROSS 1. *Hitchcock's 1963 movie, with The 6. Bad-mouth 9. H or O in H2O, e.g. 13. France's longest river 14. Bauxite, e.g. 15. Opposite of adore 16. Proprietor 17. Quaker Man's cereal 18. Oozes 19. *Corpse 21. *Bobbing for what?, pl. 23. One time around 24. BÈbÈ's mother 25. General Post Office 28. Actuary's concern 30. Named, in bygone era 35. Not easy 37. Accepted behavior 39. Kitchen floor layer? 40. Northern European capital 41. *Overly consumed on Halloween? 43. Actress Spelling 44. Nature's rage 46. Bangladeshi currency 47. Colossal 48. Bowling prop 50. Famous Himalayan 52. Bugling ungulate
53. Valedictorian's spot 55. Possessive of "it" 57. *Pennywise and Joker, e.g. 60. *Traditional Halloween garb 64. Honolulu greeting 65. Costa del ____ 67. Plant fungus 68. Mild and pleasant, weather-wise 69. E.T. transporter 70. Popular spring flower 71. Hole-making tools 72. Young newt 73. Country singer ____ Hill DOWN 1. Coalition 2. Corn Belt state 3. Drink garnish 4. Cheerlessness 5. Offered on a platter 6. *Door-to-____ 7. George Gershwin's brother 8. Plural of seta 9. Cain's biblical brother 10. You, in bygone era 11. Uh-oh 12. Wife's title 15. Facet 20. Actress Linda of "Dynasty" fame
22. Be nosy 24. South American wild cats 25. *Bedsheet with holes? 26. Command that follows "cut" 27. Acrylic fiber 29. Show off 31. Low-cal 32. Skip the wedding hoopla 33. State of danger 34. *As opposed to treat 36. Small town or hamlet 38. Manufacture 42. 2:3, e.g.
Create The Future or Suffer From It... By Major Ethan Frizzell, The Salvation Army
First, you see what you see and hear. Second, you see what you hope for and fear. Third, you see what is real and near. Fourth, you create the future. The question when it comes to homeless encampments is: Will we design the future or suffer from it? Recently we had the privilege of designing the future of the Jefferson Street encampment. An encampment of over twenty-five (25) years. An encampment of over 150 persons.
45. Carnie's domain 49. Grandmother, for short 51. Reflexive of "it" 54. Question in dispute 56. Parallel grooves 57. *Raven's grabber 58. Take it easy 59. Electrical resistance units 60. Blood-related problem 61. Tangerine grapefruit hybrid 62. Castle protector 63. Carve, as in stone 64. Lawyers' league 66. "____ with their head!"
H
First, you see what you see and hear. The Salvation Army served the encampment for more than a decade. We brought good folks down to do good deeds to our “homeless folks.” We served. Others served. The encampment grew. Second, you see what you hope for and fear. After the March 3rd tornadoes ,and with the cascading disaster of Covid, we saw the encampment swell. We experienced daily a growing strangling fear as the ecosystem of service providers quickly changed. Third, you see what is real and near. Serving in partnership with our Metro Police LIFNAV team, we strengthened our relationships with those living under the bridge. Problems became people. Help became shared hope. Hope became housing. Fourth, you create the future. Metro Davidson County, Nashville, has completely realigned the service provision to a proven approach to housing. With CARES Act funding, the Homeless Impact Division has successfully extended the strength of system-level experts to maximize resources. The Jefferson Street encampment was reduced to less than ten (10) persons. So how can that happen in North Nashville, South Nashville, East Nashville, and West Nashville? We get calls for support in each region. The answer is, the best future is by design. What is known is how to shelter and house roughly 80% of those in greatest need. Our improvement space is to soften the shelter system to welcome another 10% of those experiencing homelessness. What is our known unknown, the challenge of every community, is how do we best handle those who have lost hope, housing, and now health. My recommendation? Start with a relationship. “Hello. How are you experiencing life today? Might we share a cup of coffee?” 615.933.9305
Social Philosopher
October 13 - 27, 2021 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 19
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Learn More: SalvationArmyNashville.org
