This space is called  Murphy’s Log.  And, yes, there is weak pun hidden there—but only for fun, and for the hundreds of thousands of Murphys in the widespread Irish diaspora who endure, through Murphy’s Law, perennial blame for things gone inevitably wrong.

So, a log it is then (the term ‘blog’ derives from the original, ‘weblog’). And that’s what I hope to make of it—a space to register refections and observations, reactions and musings, surprises and unfoldings, perhaps even some adventures of the mind and spirit, if I should be so lucky.  I anticipate meandering a lot, touching on what touches me, the tiny and the large, and perhaps touching others, if I can.

In his long narrative poem, The Victorian House (1951), Canadian novelist and poet, Philip Child, has his narrator say of his father, “He sometimes had a slantwise way of joking/to make us think…”.

Later the narrator of the poem speaks of looking “a little slantwise … ‘not with, but through, the eye’…”.

The phrase in quotes comes from William Blake (The Everlasting Gospel, Section 5, line 101, for those who enjoy tracking such things down—as I do!).  He suggests that this entails seeing what is and what is not, what is “there and not there”.

Murphy’s Log will be my ‘slantwise’ take on the world.

For me this alludes to a quality of perception that is active and critical, engaged and engaging, emerging from the soul, heart and mind at large in the world. I anticipate that some of what I write here may appear perhaps just a little bit quirky, if not entirely contrary. I tend to believe that if something can’t be talked about, it probably should be. I will likely test this instinct from time to time, and see where the chips fall.

At the very least, I hope that these meanderings are open and interesting and provocative­— and at least sometimes joyful and full of wonder. When I can, I will announce beauty encountered, and if I am able, I will do beauty justice.

To the extent the entries here are discursive, the questions posed and explored are far more important than any tentative answers proffered. Overall, as befits a sojourner’s log, the emphasis will be on reflection and observation.