The Ojai Post

Comments take FOREVER to post on this site - I'd comment more if it were quicker.

We have some changes to the site coming in a few weeks. Comments are being addressed - you'll find it to be much easier to do so. Thanks!

I don't get that comment about Comments taking too long to post...I thought it was instant...

It can take 30-60 seconds or more to post a comment, and they also get double posted. It's going to work much more smoothly.

Thanks for explaining...

That's fast enough for us old folks!

As always, my biggest complaint is with comments - rogue comments. One of my favorite blogs doesn't even accept comments!

I think comments are essential to engaging the Ojai community. As of now, anonymous comments will still be allowed, but there perhaps might be extra visibility for comments from registered users.

I'm not sure what "rogue" means in this context. I'm not interested in moderating point-of-view or some sort of litmus test for commenting.

In general, the discourse here is at a very high level compared to the vast majority of blogs, and it is almost entirely community-moderated. I'm very comfortable with that, and don't intend to make any radical departure from how that works currently.

I have to agree with Tyler. The level of intelligence, passion and wit of OP readers as evidenced in the comment section surpasses so many blogs / forums out there, it's astonishing (and makes visiting those others quite painful!!!) I must say that, as brilliant as the authors here are, I often learn more from the give and take of the ensuing dialogue than that of just a stand-alone piece of writing. I say - Keep it all coming!

Well, LTOR - you are certainly more interesting than MOST! And I especially love it when you get a little hot under the collar...I wish you would percolate more often, so i'd stop in more often!, love Dvorah

Really, Dvorah??? Ha Ha! Thanks for that! And I was thinking I'd better "behave" when I returned (I swear I honestly always arrive with the intent to do just that - Seems I can't help myself sometimes!) I look forward to rejoining the discussions - the Good, the Bad and most definitely the Ugly! :)

Redwoods

Now when we are cut down and lie still,
sky fallen out of us,
birds forever flown,
we remember when they came among us,
their grain like ours joining earth and sky,
water and sun their life . . .

But they walked the earth and never were at rest,
as if this sun were not enough,
this sky not blue,
this earth not rich or water cold enough --
and, walking, fell,
and when they fell, dark sap red as clay did cover earth and stone,
yet some who fell did rise again.
Truly the Titans of the earth were they,
and we trembled at their passing.

Now when Time is real and we lie among our fathers,
we remember a story
of a time when men and women came to us
in the green-gold light
and stood among us, still, in our green groves
and from their limbs put roots into the ground
to know what beings we were
and feel the ice-cold waters run,
this blue sky's sun, this earth.
Birds' nests in their hair they knew us.

We knew them too
before the gold light dimmed,
for through the soil we felt the steady beating of their hearts
where red sap ran, thin as rain.

So lovely was the song,
we did not wish the light to fade.
We did not wish that they should ever leave the earth.