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Tommy Hensel

Sparkling Isolation – Day 127

July 23, 2020 //  by Tommy Hensel//  2 Comments

2shares

Pendulum swings.

Yesterday I focused on gratitude – the need to stop and pay attention to things that are going well in my life. I continue to do that. At the same time, today has been a typical example of my swings during this pandemic.

Yesterday, my pendulum swung into a more positive and thoughtful place. Today, it moved all the way back into the other direction into a place of despair. I know that word – despair – sounds dramatic but it’s the best word I could find to reflect my current state of being.

“Despair” is defined as the complete absence of hope.

So I guess perhaps it is a bit dramatic as I am not completely devoid of hope – but today, my sense of hope is very dim. What’s weird is that nothing specifically bad happened to me today. On the contrary, many positive things occurred. Chief among them was getting an email asking me to come review the opening of a new restaurant!

Yes! Even in the midst of this pandemic, there are new openings and I was invited to attend one of them. That’s a HUGE positive in my world.

Despite that, I find myself today feeling a sense of “What’s the point?” I went to my office today for the first time in a couple of weeks, and for only the fourth time since March 17. I got plenty of work done. I went shopping at my favorite liquor store to buy supplies for the wine certification class I am taking. I took myself out to one of my favorite restaurants and had a great meal with wine and cocktails. 

Life should feel great right now.

But, sadly, I am feeling anything but great right now.

I suppose this quarantine – isolation – dealing with the unknown – seeing the horrid narcissism and stupidity of people – watching the world fall apart – all of that has contributed to my existential angst. Still, it feels so personal to me today.

As I was driving home from dinner, my thoughts spiraled into a dark and dangerous place. I suddenly thought to myself, “If I disappeared tonight, who would really care? In six months, would anyone even remember that I existed? Have I created anything that would live beyond me? Is the world any better because of me? Would my death/disappearance make even a minor ripple in the fabric of the Universe? Why do I even try to keep on doing anything at all? What’s the point?”

Yes – that sounds horridly dramatic and like I need an intervention. Don’t worry, I am fine. But I have to acknowledge that those thoughts exist, and they are all valid for me at the moment. Every day, I wake up and labor trying to keep on doing my job, but frankly I feel most of the time like I’m just taking someone’s money for doing nothing of importance.

And to be honest, I find myself thinking more and more that my life has no meaning at all. Nada. Here I am at 55 ½ years of age with no savings, no retirement fund, living alone, little prospect of a better job in my increasingly “youth-centric” and “anti-establishment” industry, feeling utterly hopeless about the future and wondering if I am even relevant.

Tonight, quarantine feels less like “sparkling” and more like a muddy, murky swamp of existential angst.

It’s only Quarantine if it comes from the Quarante province of France. Otherwise, it’s just Sparkling Isolation.

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Category: ThoughtsTag: Sparkling Isolation

About Tommy Hensel

Tommy Hensel is the Director of the Fine and Performing Arts Center at Moraine Valley Community College (www.morainevalley.edu/fpac), a position he has held since January 2008. A native of Columbia, South Carolina, he has worked for more than 35 years as a professional actor, singer, stage manager, director, and arts presenter. He holds a B.A. in music and a B.A. in communication from Florida State University and an M.A. in theater from the University of South Carolina. He currently serves as Chair of the Illinois Presenters Network and is a board member of NAPAMA. He served as co-chair of the 2018 Arts Midwest Conference and currently sits on the professional development committees of both NAPAMA and Arts Midwest.

Prior to his move to Chicago, Tommy was an 11-year resident of the Seacoast region of New Hampshire where he served as Executive Director of the Rochester Opera House and sat on several non-profit arts boards. He has served on grant review panels for the New England Foundation for the Arts, New Hampshire Arts Council, Vermont Arts Council, and Illinois Arts Council. During his years as an arts presenter, he has also served on the juried showcase panels for the Arts Midwest Conference and Performing Arts Exchange.

Among his many theater credits, Hensel was the founding artistic director of the Harrisburg Shakespeare Festival (now part of the Gamut Theatre Group in PA). He has over 50 professional directing credits to his name and an extensive resumé as a theatrical performer and cabaret singer. In Chicago, he has a side "gig" as a restaurant reviewer for The Local Tourist website (http://chicago.thelocaltourist.com) and blogs about travel and food at https://www.tableforoneplease.com.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jean Wronski

    July 24, 2020 at 10:38 am

    Tommy———-WOW!!!! Please try to remember you are loved by many people. You are a great guy and I know these times are depressing when we can’t really “live” they way we would like too. We all need to hope for the best for the coming months that will enable us to be “living normally” again. The programs you have going now are great and it was your fantastic idea to keep us entertained with the great shows that happen on Tuesday nights! Me, at 83 years, can’t wait for things to turn around before I still can enjoy going to MVCC shows for years to come. Thank you for all you do!!!!!!

    Reply
    • Tommy Hensel

      July 24, 2020 at 10:47 am

      Thank you so much, Jean! I am sure I will be fine. I promised Theresa, the owner of this website, that I would be open and honest in my quarantine postings so I feel like I have to just ‘tell it like it is.’ Today I am feeling better. Just some days it’s like a tidal wave of ‘bad’ and I get overwhelmed. I so appreciate all of your support!

      Reply

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