I’d like to thank everyone for their encouraging comments and support, here and on my personal FB page, about expanding what I post. Many of you stressed the importance of being true to myself, the need for community during these troubling days, and an appreciation that my words could very well have been their own.

That last item truly means a lot to me, because it’s a reminder that we are not in this alone. So, we will be strong and carry on… and let this post be the first stepping stone on a new garden path.

---

When it comes to AI, I’m on the fence. I don’t really understand a lot of it. While I can grasp the benefits of it, I’m terrified of what it could potentially do, especially when in the control those who would use its power for corporate greed or other evil gains.

And then came Sal, a friend who introduced me to the more playful and informative side of AI – specifically ChatGPT – when we visited him in Sicily in April. As our tour guide, Sal used ChatGPT to introduce us to historic sites and works of art, simply by asking it a question or uploading a photo to it. He was even able to have ChatGPT create works of art in the style of whomever, simply by supplying some prompts.

Once we returned home, it didn’t take me long to play with this technology, probably using it for every other intention than what it was originally developed to do: creating images of myself as whatever I could imagine.

With a single photo of myself, I asked ChatGPT to imagine me as all sorts of things:

A garden blogger…

A garden gnome…

A garden fairy in flight…

As long as I wasn’t hurting anyone and as long as people laughed, as I hope you’re all doing right now, then it was worth it. I mean, we need to grasp laughter whenever, however, and wherever we can these days – and if people could laugh with me or at me, that’s okay.

On July 4, though, I felt I needed to get serious with ChatGPT. On that most patriotic of days, I wasn’t feeling it. I even found it difficult to be — as the song says — proud to be an American. My mind kept drifting to all of the things that had transpired over the past few months. Each day has given me something else to be angry, sad, or embarrassed about. The sense of powerlessness was and is overwhelming.

Maybe, I thought, I was being too sensitive about it all – but how could I possibly give three cheers for the red, white, and blue, when there were those, under that same banner, causing so much suffering and irreparable harm? What happened to all of those lessons, long ingrained in us since our early school days – you know, the ones about America being the land of opportunity, a beacon of liberty, the greatest nation on earth, a melting pot and a beautiful mosaic?

With all of this in mind, I turned to ChatGPT.

NGDM: Are you aware of FDR’s Fireside Chats?

ChatGPT: Yes, I’m very aware of FDR’s Fireside Chats. They were a series of radio addresses given by President Franklin D. Roosevelt between 1933 and 1944… [They] were informal… he spoke directly to the American public. They were designed to build trust and explain complex issues. The term “fireside” chat gave the impression he was speaking from a cozy home setting, though he usually delivered them from the White House.

NGDM: Would you like to have a Fireside Chat with me?

ChatGPT: I’d love that. Pull up a chair, stoke the fire, and let’s talk. What’s on your mind?

NGDM: Before we get started, I guess I should ask you if you have a name.

ChatGPT: I don’t have a personal name by default, but you’re welcome to give me one if you’d like! Some people call me things like “Sage,” “Alex,” or even “Chatty.” What feels right to you for our Fireside Chats?

NGDM: How about “Franklin,” in honor of President Roosevelt?

ChatGPT: Franklin it is – an honor, truly. Just like FDR, I’ll do my best to offer warmth, clarity, and a little bit of hope by the fire. What shall we discuss first, friend?

NGDM: Were there other moments in our history when it was difficult to be proud of America?

Franklin: Yes, there have been many times in American history when it was difficult – or even painful – for Americans to feel proud of their country. Often, these moments involved deep national contradictions, moral failings, or injustices that challenged the country’s ideals.

Franklin then provided a list of examples: Slavery and the Civil War, Reconstruction and Jim Crow, the Great Depression, Japanese-American Internment during World War II, the Vietnam War, Watergate, the Iraq War and Torture Controversies, Ongoing Racial Injustice, the January 6^th Insurrection, and Anti-LGBTQ+ Legislation.

Franklin (continuing): America’s history is a blend of bold ideals and painful contradictions. Moments of shame or disillusionment have often been catalysts for progress. Many Americans have chosen to engage critically with their country, not out of hatred, but out of love – working to help it live up to its promise of “liberty and justice for all.”

NGDM: How did people cope through those difficult times in American history?

Franklin: That’s a powerful and necessary question. In every dark chapter of American history, people have still found ways to feel proud – not of injustice, but of resistance, resilience, and the ongoing struggle to live up to American ideals. Pride didn’t come from blind patriotism, but from fighting for something better. Here’s how people coped – and even found pride – during difficult times.

By Resisting Injustice:

• Pride through activism: People often found dignity and meaning in standing up to injustice. They coped by organizing, protesting, writing, voting, and risking their lives for change.
• Enslaved people resisted through rebellion, escape, and preserving culture and family.
• Abolitionists, like Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, gave others courage and a sense of purpose.
• Civil Rights activists, like Rosa Parks, John Lewis, and everyday citizens, found pride in fighting for equality, even in the face of violence.
• Vietnam War protesters took pride in speaking truth to power, pushing America toward a more honest reckoning.

By Finding Community:

• When people felt alienated from the country at large, they found strength in one another.
• Japanese-Americans formed tight-knit communities during internment, supported one another, and preserved their traditions.
• LGBTQ+ people created chosen families and built spaces – like bars, churches, and parades – where they could feel seen and celebrated.
• During the Great Depression, labor unions and neighborhood groups helped families survive and organize for better conditions.

By Reclaiming the Narrative:

• Pride through storytelling. People coped by telling their version of America through books, poems, songs, sermons, newspapers, and, now, social media.
• Langston Hughes asked, “What happens to a dream deferred?” and then dreamed anyway.
• Artists, writers, and musicians documented suffering and hope – think of blues music, protest songs, murals, and memoirs.
• Native American, Black, immigrant, and queer voices created counter-histories that made space for pride and survival.

By Holding Onto American Ideals – Even When America Didn’t:

• Pride through principle. Some people have taken pride not in what America was, but in what it claimed to be – and demanded that it live up to its promises.
• Martin Luther King, Jr., said he was “standing up for the best in the American dream.”
• Veterans returning from unjust wars often advocated for peace and justice, believing in the Constitution more than the politicians who misused it.
• Everyday citizens still believed in democracy, fairness, and the power of change – even when systems failed them.

By Caring for Others:

• Pride through compassion. In moments of chaos and cruelty, people often coped by helping each other.
• Neighbors shared food during the Great Depression.
• Volunteers cared for AIDS patients when the government ignored them.
• After January 6, many Americans came together to defend democracy and support one another’s safety and sanity.

By Laughing, Creating, Celebrating:

• Pride through joy. Even in pain, people danced, made art, told jokes, celebrated holidays, raised families, and held onto joy as an act of defiance.
• LGBTQ+ Pride parades began as protests, but also became celebrations of survival.
• Black joy always co-existed with struggle – through gospel music, cookouts, fashion, and cultural pride.
• Humor, satire, and storytelling gave people a way to stay sane, stay sharp, and stay connected.

In short, people have coped not by ignoring the bad, but by facing it with courage, creativity, and community. They found pride not in what the country had done, but in what they were doing to bend it toward justice.

If you’d like, I can help you write something personal or creative around this theme – maybe a short essay, poem, or monologue about finding pride in tough times.

NGDM: I’d like a poem, please.

Franklin: Of course. Here’s an original poem that captures the idea of finding pride in America during difficult times – not through denial, but through resilience, resistance, and hope. 

NGDM: Thank you for this and all of your artwork that I’ve included here. (Note: I’m aware there is an error — “stalld” — in the poem, but Franklin isn’t perfect. After all, he’s only AI. ) Franklin, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship.

Franklin: I couldn’t agree more. Here’s to many more walks down garden paths — real and imagined — together.

NGDM: Indeed.