I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with love
and prayers for world peace. Perhaps you
even tried some of the recipes I suggested in my post last week.
PAUSE.
I’m not sure how much longer I can go on with my avowed “say
only positive things” Saturday posts. The restraint it calls for is taxing my
soul—perhaps the only thing left for the Greek government to tax of its people.
STOP.
Okay, well, I’m not completely shut down. This coming Thursday
at 6:30PM I’ve been invited to speak at the Hellenic National Museum in Chicago,
in Greektown to be specific (it's centered in the photo headlining this post). It’s quite an honor, and I hope to do it
justice by speaking the truth.
But I won’t be speaking it in Greek. No, not because Greek
isn’t suitable for such tasks, but because I’m most comfortable expressing the
nuances of truth in English. Yes, you read me right and you shouldn’t be
surprised; that’s the way the world’s always run. In fact, these days 24/7 Cable TV has
virtually institutionalized the concept of nuanced truth.
Okay, so I’m teasing, I always tell the truth, the whole
truth, and nothing but the truth. BUT, I’ll never forget being once told by a
wizened lawyer, “Always tell the truth, but there are many ways to tell it so
choose wisely.”
It’s not always as bad a concept as it sounds. Think about
the many ways to truthfully answer your spouse’s question, “Am I fat?” Or even the more direct, “Have I gained
weight?”
If you can’t think of the multiple ways to answer that, I
suggest you check out “Dale Carnegie” in Wikipedia (my source of choice for
this article) for info on his most famous work.
But I digress. I’m here to talk about the National Hellenic
Museum, Hellenic of course meaning Greek.
The museum is the second oldest American institution
dedicated to displaying and celebrating the cultural contributions of Greeks
and Greek Americans. The oldest, by two
weeks, is the Hellenic Cultural Museum in Salt Lake City…yes, SLC.
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| Antiquities in the Museum's collection |
There is a Kismet aspect to the invitation. I read that part of the Museum’s stated
purpose is “to promote understanding of the rich cultural traditions of ancient
and contemporary Greece,” an objective I share in my writing. But, wait, there’s more.
Founded in 1983, the Museum rebranded itself in 2009,
changing its name from Hellenic Museum and Cultural Center to its current one. In 1983, I first set foot in Greece, and in
2009 rebranded myself from NYC lawyer to Mykonos writer when my first
Greece-based novel came out in the US!
Sort of spooky when you think about it.
The Museum has another purpose: to preserve the Greek-American immigrant
experience. Approximately 450,000 Greeks
came to America between 1890 and 1920, and the Museum’s “Homer Oral History
Project” seeks to save those memories as part of its goal of “connecting
generations through Greek history, art and culture.”
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| An Exhibition |
Two years ago the Museum moved into a spanking new
40,000-square-foot facility for housing its collection of items from 1200 BCE
through today; maintaining its library and archive of books, manuscripts,
letters, and periodicals; hosting exhibitions of Greek art, history, culture,
and thought; and holding classes and events.
Bottom line: I’m really looking forward to next Wednesday,
especially the major Christmas party scheduled to follow my event. That’s the sort of Greek tradition I
personally try to follow every chance I get—party hearty and have a good time. :)
Opa!
And Happy Hanukah.
Jeff—Saturday
