You will recall – or I hope you will recall – that these are bits that come from my notepad and that there is no connection from one subject to another. So we continue with the spirit of bits and pieces, odds and ends. The first thought has to do with the cicadas. It might be called the cicadas’ lovelife. By this time, if you live anywhere around northern New Jersey, you will know that the cicadas have arrived. They appear only once every 17 years. Why the space from one generation to the next is hard to say. But I must conclude that once in 17 years is plenty for me. Cicadas make a loud noise that goes on from before daylight until after dark. This takes a bit of time in that these are the longest days of the calendar year.
As scholars have contended, the loud noise made by the cicadas has to do with their search for a mate. It is my belief that it is only the cicada who sings the loudest who has his choice of females in the case of male cicadas. From what we are told by the scholars, apparently both the male and the female sing or chirp in the normal pursuit of things; it is the male who is the pursuer and the female who is the pursued.
From what I have observed, both the male and female cicadas sing from dawn to dusk. If it is true that the male cicadas are looking for a mate, the female cicadas either join in the chirping and must wonder what it takes to cause their lovers to be quiet or, to put it rudely, to shut up. From all that I have observed both the male and female cicadas are inclined to brag about they found the ideal lover. It seems to me that while the lovemaking is going on, both the male and female cicadas love to brag about what is taking place.
I am not a scholar of the efforts of cicadas, but this year has raised a question in my mind as to why the cicadas keep on chirping even while the lovemaking is going on. I realize that lovemaking among the cicadas has to last for 17 years. This is no reason for the male and female cicadas to make their noises while they are pursuing their amorous adventures.
As you can see or read, I am not a scholar of the cicadas or of their lovelife. It seems to me that once the cicadas have found each other, they chirp in excessive tones. Is it the bragging of the cicadas by the male? Or is it the fact that the female cicada has landed the best lover? I do not know the answer to all of these questions but I will say that love among the cicadas is a subject that is of some interest to me. If things break right, I will have the next 17 years to ponder this question. If things proceed normally, I will give you an interim report as to how the cicadas make love without disturbing their chirping. Very obviously, the cicadas, male and female, keep up the chirping while the lovemaking process takes place. From time to time, scholars may reveal to me what the chirping means. I will be the first to let you know how cicadas pursue amorous intentions without disturbing their chirping. I believe that this is a public service which is of great benefit to my readers.
A LONG LIFE
Now that we have dealt with cicadas, on to a second subject about which I know a bit more. The subject in this case has to do with the Russian expression wishing long life on companions. If I understand correctly, when Russians take leave of each other, they often use the phrase, “May you have a long life” or the equivalent thereof.
A long life is an admirable trait. However, in actual practice, a long life will assure that the long lifer will contract all sorts of diseases and broken bones. In the end, one of the diseases will kill him. Those of us who have passed our 90th year may have something to say about the Russian expression wishing each other a long life. I understand the sentiment wishing well to companions. Hoping that one has a long life carries debits that make a long life not so desirable. The Bible in Ecclesiastes seems to suggest that 60 years is the appropriate length of time for a man to exist. They make an exception in these days in that Ecclesiastes says that in some cases life may last until the seventh decade. In certain cases, which are rare, life may go on into the eighth decade. From my own experience, I am a fan of Ecclesiastes. I am also not a fan necessarily of long life. For a long lifer, as he progresses in years, the number of ailments becomes formidable. In the end, of course, one of those ailments will kill the long lifer.
I know very little about the first essay on this tape, which has to do with the love life of cicadas. Unfortunately, as my life proceeds into the tenth decade, I find that life becomes less endurable. One of the problems has to do with determining which disease or which ailment will kill me and other long lifers.
In any event, the Russian expression about wishing one another long life is a commendable one. In many cases, such as my own, it is carried beyond what Ecclesiastes said should be the end. But the long lifer can do nothing about it. So I suppose the only recourse is to make the best of it while waiting for the end. That is not always an easy prescription to follow but there really is no choice.
E. E. CARR
June 27, 2013
Essay 751
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Kevin’s commentary:
This is a very special essay to me for a two reasons.
First, I got to be part of the editing process. I was given this set of essays while staying at Pop’s house this past weekend (this is being published on 7/1/13 — I am very behind, I know. We read them aloud once, then read through them again sentence by sentence, making subtle changes so that the essay read just the way he intended it to. It felt great to be able to take this role because clearly these essays mean a lot to me and it was nice to share the editing experience with their author.
Second, it gave me a first-hand look at just how much effort goes in to each and every one of these essays. It is a multi-person process involving Judy, the transcriber, and of course Pop who devotes a serious amount of time to each one. These essays aren’t just recorded off the cuff and then distributed willy-nilly, though Pop’s writing style is so consistently strong that one might be inclined to think he just records as he talks and then moves on. The essays are brainstormed, drafted, outlined, recorded, transcribed, played back, edited and edited until satisfactory, and only then are they ready for distribution. Pop has the ability and is rightly proud of it to speak well with no notes and still create compelling material, as he did in his speeches while he was working with the labor union, but those skills are not alone responsible for the production of these thousands of words that you read here. Not even close. Here’s to many more!
P.S. It was hard to know how he wanted these to be published on the site because it wasn’t totally clear whether they should have been one or two essays, so this is the format I chose and of course it is subject to change upon review.