A small practice

 I subscribe to American newspapers. I believe we should keep informed, especially given the threat to the democracy.

But reading American newspapers comes with a risk: You could get the impression that the entire world is about the Current Occupant of the White House.

As an antidote, I’ve made it a practice to spend a few minutes a day with a Mexican newspaper. My Spanish is laughable or tragic, perhaps both, so this practice is laborious. I plod along with a dictionary.

Does this practice do any good?

I’ve learned that archeologists think they’ve found The Land of the White Jaguar, the home of a Mayan group that held out against the Spanish for more than a century. (It’s in Chiapas, on the border with Guatemala.)

I’ve also learned about Juan Pablo Contreras, a young composer whose music I like. (His “Mariachitlán,” performed by the National Youth Orchestra, is a delight, and his “Pirámide del Sol” is thorny but intriguing.)

This small practice helps me connect to parts of the world that have nothing to do with the Current Occupant of the White House. Maybe it will help me to keep a sense of proportion.