The media are touting Leo as “the first American Pope,” but what they really mean is “the first U. S. Pope.”

His predecessor, Francis, was from Argentina, that’s Latin America, and so he was American.

Not that that matters, except for the ability to claim pride of ownership by origin.

But I’m not that provincial, and my ego is not that needy.

Now all the world rhetoric selects the appropriate words. “Known for his humility, gentle spirit, prudence, and warmth,” “an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to our educational mission,” emphasizing that “God loves everyone unconditionally,” “preaching Catholic social thought” in “the synodal church,” “dignity, solidarity, subsidiarity, common good, bridge builder,” “I don’t think that [he] ever suspected that God would ask him to do this.”

I’m allowing myself to become excited. I choose to view the prospects selectively. My sad tired heart has seen so much come and go, but I’m not too old to try again.

More and more I see people older than I am who are still going strong, and that appropriately humbles and energizes me.

So here I am again, trying to figure out where I stand. Trying to make the best of whatever it is.

I remember when Pope Francis first came on the scene. He said all the right things and believed them. He was there when we needed him. We called him The People’s Pope.

Even Francis went astray at the last, wandered new ground, lost his balance. Nobody is perfect. But he ended with a high average and was virtually universally beloved by everyone including me.

Every Establishment moves more slowly than a snail and retraces its slimy steps. “One step forward, two steps back,” became a mantra and the world is still not yet.

We fight to keep our progress, but now, especially now, the world is in the grip of retrogression.

We, I, need to fight harder, to hold on tighter, and, if I dare say it in hope, move forward.

I’m even willing to compromise, to forgive: The faithful who have the need to be told, the Establishment who need to establish.

Early man, learning language and the ideas that need words, went from “God created man,” to “man created God,” but now we struggle with what comes next.

The need for answers can be filled by ourselves, which is why I keep saying that every town should have a college. People need to learn.

I saw it in my own teaching, when students learned to ask and answer, and no longer needed me.

I see teachers of like mind, lights scattered in a wilderness of darkness. I see the city centers of brightness, and, in the barren lands beyond the suburbs, flickering.

I see the rolling darkness snuff out the light.

I hear the voices of a chorus fade, the chorus loses the melody, then silence.

But I know from experience that thinking, once you start, is hard to stop.

That reducing to the basics lets us know and agree what those basics are, we can change what needs changing, adjust what needs adjusting, and live together in basic peace and harmony.

That happiness is its own reward.

That love, like thinking, is easy once you start and learn how.

So I welcome the Catholic church and its new Pope back into my life. We don’t have to agree on everything, but Catholics have the reputation of being good people, and they can live up to their reputation.

All that’s needed is a little push, a nudge, an impetus.

I’m here to help.