Mary Ann Treger wrote this heartfelt elegy to the now-defunct Baltimore Opera.

“If we want our arts organizations to survive,” she writes, “we must take action.” She’s personally vowed to be a better friend to her local art museum, art galleries and symphony.

I think it’s a great lesson to learn. If we don’t love our local arts institutions (The High, MOCA-GA, Youngblood, VSA Arts, Fernbank, etc.), the scrappy theater companies (7 Stages, New Street Arts/Push Push, Synchronicity, Dad’s Garage, etc.), even the “established” ones (The Alliance, Atlanta Ballet, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Opera, Fox Theatre, et. al.), they may start to disappear — casualties of this economic environment.

True, we’re all tightening our belts. But many theaters, museums and dance companies are offering their own “stimulus” packages of discounts, two-for-ones or special previews. And art offers a welcome distraction from economic turmoil and trepidation about the future. Plus, it brings us together in a way that television and the Internet cannot.

Pablo Picasso once said, “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” If you’re feeling overwhelmed by all the dust settling with each stock market plunge, try liberating your soul with exposure to something sublime at the nearest gallery or theater.

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