In our diversity, can we, at least, agree to listen to one another? In doing so, we may come to accept that views different from our own hold merit and value. Walking a mile in another's shoes, we may grow in awareness, appreciation and empathy of others, possibly losing what we once believed we could not live without, bringing us closer together and closer to our Creator. Could this be our purpose en route to our destination?
Monday, November 16, 2009
On again, off again
Monday, September 7, 2009
I must be a socialist and "horror of horrors" my parents must be socialists too (though undeclared, of course)
Friday, September 4, 2009
Troops battle not only the Taliban, but the opium trade
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Have you heard??
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Freedom?
freedom-available to some and an enigma to many...
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Itching to get back to writing...
It's like forgetting the words to your favorite song
You can't believe it
You were always singing along
It was so easy and the words so sweet
You can't remember
You try to feel the beat
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet, eet, eet, eet
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeteeet, eet, eet, eet
However, that's not to say she doesn't want people to look for deeper meaning behind her songs. "It's not like I have all the answers," she says.
You can listen to the NPR interview and/or check out this video...Laughing With is one of my favorites on the Far cd...though each song has its own unique message and makes me smile. =D I was unable to download the videos for whatever reason (maybe I'm out of practice).
In case you have difficulty understanding the chorus lyrics to "Laughing With" as I did...here are the words...but check out the video because the entirety of the song is extremely thought provoking.
*Chorus*
But God can be funny
At a cocktail party when listening to a good God-themed joke, or
Or when the crazies say He hates us
And they get so red in the head you think they’re ‘bout to choke
God can be funny,
When told he’ll give you money if you just pray the right way
And when presented like a genie who does magic like Houdini
Or grants wishes like Jiminy Cricket and Santa Claus
God can be so hilarious
Ha ha
Ha ha
If you think belief in God is a joke...then you've never really faced hard times in your life. Listening to the lyrics of Laughing With gives me chills. It is pretty amazing to think that she is singing these lyrics on mainstream stations.
Ok at this point in the post you may be thinking...shorter posts?!? Well...I've never been really good at saying what I want to say in as few words as possible so...all in due time...lol.
This post is dedicated to music lovers everywhere who can't remember the words to their favorite songs & the subsequent AWE felt of those who can :)
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Hope in renewal?
My focus in this post is on that part of him that is "real" (known mainly to his family and closest friends)...most likely that he is a man with strengths and weaknesses, a man who laughs and cries and farts and burps just like anyone else, a man who has faced losses and triumphs, who makes mistakes and blunders on occasion, and also a man who has made, and we pray, will continue to make intelligent, determined, passionate decisions to challenge the world around him, as he challenges himself (and us), to strive for more than status quo.
I do not know Barack Obama personally, and most likely never will, but I am curious and interested in him, not just as our president, but as a man. My curiousity about him springs from his roots and his aspirations. I hope to follow his days, as our President, as closely as my time will allow. I know I will have to sort through all types of rhetoric and propaganda and media spin to determine for myself what lies beneath Barack Obama's polished and poised exterior, to determine how he has accomplished and may hopefully continue to (and inspire others to) accomplish "the unexpected and seemingly impossible".
What he is like as a human being...the human side (or possibly spiritual side) of him, his compassion for others, and his vision of "life as service to others", making a difference in the world around us, is what attracts me to his persona and ideals as I'm continually drawn to life "outside the box", despite my own failures and personal struggles with cynicism, unbelief, regrets, unforgiveness, and fears. When I consider the direction my life has taken...I ask "is this it?" Am I always only to do what I think is the right thing to do at the time, only to discover later, that there was so much more to the experience that what I realized or recognized? How much of a risk am I willing to take to see the fullfillment of what I believe are my dreams/longings? How much does my thought life hamper my willingness to live the life I desire?
this verse comes to mind...I urge you, therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2)
On Tuesday, the day of President Obama's inauguration, I spent the day working around the house and taping as much of the events and celebration as I possibly could. Over time I will sit back and take a look at all that occurred that day. This is the first time in my adult life I have been interested in a Presidential Inauguration. I heard various people either attending the inauguration itself or an inaugural celebration make this same comment "first time to pay attention to an inauguration" throughout the day.
I did take time to watch the live broadcast of the inauguration, and along with Obama's speech, my favorite part was the benediction given by Reverend Joseph Lowery, especially his final words..."in the joy of a new beginning we ask you to help us work for that day when the black will not be asked to get back, when the brown can stick around, when the yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead man, and when the white will embrace what is right..."
Link to the above video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Il9r-VSu9g
In 2006, following a discussion we had about past relationships, a co-worker (from Kenya) recommended I read a book written by Barack Obama. I had never heard of Barack Obama, who in 2006 was an Illinois senator, and also happened to be bi-racial with an African father. The book my co-worker wanted me to read was Dreams from My Father. She told me I would find this man's experience with his African roots informative and helpful in answering some of my own personal questions about a certain friend of mine. I once cared deeply for a fellow student, a Kenyan, I met at Oral Roberts University in 1984. Much of who I am today and how I look at the world was influenced by this friend, a man of great intelligence and compassion, whom I admired and loved over a span of ten years or so. I was amazed to discover that Barack's father and my friend were from basically the same area of Kenya. This discovery peaked my curiousity about the father's life in Kenya and, also, what Barack's perspective and experience was when he met his family and the people living in Nairobi and the area around Lake Victoria. So I soon purchased a copy and began my own emotional journey with this memoir.
It took me "forever" (or so it seemed) to read it. Many times I had to lay the book down, when what I read struck a nerve of pain, extreme discomfort, or regret. Why would I experience this kind of reaction to what I was reading? I am a caucasian woman who gave birth to a bi-racial child seventeen years ago, and for various reasons I chose not to parent my child, but instead relinquished my parental rights, allowing my daughter to be adopted (fyi: my friend spoken of above was not the father of my child). Through an open adoption I have an ongoing relationship with my daughter who has been raised in a caucasian home. My daughter is amazingly resilient and enthusiastic about her future, yet aware of some of the realities/ prejudices she may face as a bi-racial, "black women" in our society. Watching Barack Obama's journey gives me hope for her, though she has yet to fully grasp the significance of what has occurred. I think reading this memoir dug up again and again the losses and failures in my life...what my life could have been like raising my daughter compared to the life I now live simply as "the birthmother"...each day, month, year that passes I know that I have missed out on so many of the details of my daughter's life. Barack's accounts of his relationship with his mother and how it differed with his father, the closeness and the separation, and of his struggles in coming to terms with his bi-racial, African and American heritages in the context of "life as a black man in America", tapped a deep well of pain in me and often left me with an overwhelming sadness. When I reached these points in his story I would take a break and turn to more light-hearted reading.Time and again I picked up Dreams from My Father and started reading only to discover another account that would strike an uncomfortable discontent in me causing me once again put the book back on my bookshelf. As the final months of the 2008 election drew near, I finally pushed my way through to the end of Barack's memoir. I was surprised by how hard this book was for me to digest emotionally. I'm not sure Barack's story provided the answers to the questions I was originally seeking in regards to my Kenyan friend, but it did provide interesting insight into the thoughts and experiences of this one man. Maybe I will have to someday visit Kenya and the Lake Victoria region myself in order to find the answers I am seeking and come to a deeper understanding of my old friend. Barack did not write a flowery account of his life, and at times the inner turmoil/struggle he describes is intense. Somehow, though, he was able to rise above his many losses and struggles and "challenge/change the world within himself and around him". I feel that if somehow I can learn from the man, Barack Obama (who happens to now be our President)...how to live my life this way-not settle for status-quo, but determine what changes I can most effectively pursue in my own life and the world around me, and understand the plan and purpose of my life-I will be eternally grateful to him and to God.
If you have not read Barack Obama's book Dreams from My Father, I encourage you to pick up a copy (there are probably lots available for little $ at http://www.amazon.com/).
The parts of Dreams from My Father that spoke to me the loudest?
*Barack's accounts of his mother and her second husband, Lolo Soetoro, and their life in Indonesia
*Barack's work as a community organizer in Chicago
*Barack's visit to Kenya and his inner struggles between "feeling at home" and learning about all the "family drama"-trying to piece it all together and determine how/where he fits into his father's family and legacy
(In days ahead I will spend a bit of time commenting about the three areas from Barack's memoir that spoke to me the most. )
Today on the Diane Rehm show on the second hour (11:00), she and several professionals from various backgrounds discussed Barack Obama's memoir Dreams from My Father. Their discussion is interesting and if you don't see yourself reading the book, you can pick up a sense of Barack Obama...the man, from this show.
Check it out at http://wamu.org/programs/dr/09/01/22.php#24505
While typing up this post, another bible verse also keeps coming to mind...Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. (Ephesians 4:20-21)
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Who are we?????
Monday, January 19, 2009
Keep moving forward America
At the time of his assassination in April 1968, he with the the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and various other organizations were embarking upon the 2nd phase of their mission...addressing POVERTY IN AMERICA. Many people may believe that the Civil Rights Movement accomplished it's final goal with the passage of the Civil Right's Act in 1964, but truly that was only a beginning. Other areas of injustice in America needed to be addressed and changed.
The following information from Wikipedia sheds some light on what else Martin Luther King, Jr. felt and believed in his heart and mind for the "often invisible people" of our nation.
(the link is: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King,_Jr)
In 1968, King and the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) organized the "Poor People's Campaign" to address issues of economic justice. The campaign culminated in a march on Washington, D.C. demanding economic aid to the poorest communities of the United States. King traveled the country to assemble "a multiracial army of the poor" that would march on Washington to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience at the Capitol until Congress created a bill of rights for poor Americans.
King and the SCLC called on the government to invest in rebuilding America's cities. He felt that Congress had shown "hostility to the poor" by spending "military funds with alacrity and generosity". He contrasted this with the situation faced by poor Americans, claiming that Congress had merely provided "poverty funds with miserliness". His vision was for change that was more revolutionary than mere reform: he cited systematic flaws of "racism, poverty, militarism and materialism", and argued that "reconstruction of society itself is the real issue to be faced".
From the Emancipation Proclamation ...
Though the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued on September 22, 1862, with an effective date of January 1, 1863, it had minimal immediate effect on most slaves’ day-to-day lives, particularly in Texas, which was almost entirely under Confederate control.
Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day Union General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take possession of the state and enforce the emancipation of its slaves. Legend has it while standing on the balcony of Galveston’s Ashton Villa, Granger read the contents of “General Order No. 3”:
“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.”
That day has since become known as Juneteenth, a name derived from a portmanteau of the words June and nineteenth. Former slaves in Galveston rejoiced in the streets with jubilant celebrations. Juneteenth celebrations began in Texas the following year. Across many parts of Texas, freed people pooled their funds to purchase land specifically for their communities’ increasingly large Juneteenth gatherings — including Houston's Emancipation Park,Mexia's Booker T. Washington Park, and Emancipation Park in Austin. Juneteenth celebrations include a wide range of festivities, such as parades, street fairs, cookouts, or park parties and include such things as music and dancing or even contests of physical strength and intellect.
to the accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement under Martin Luther King's leadership...
to the election of Barack Obama (African American, biracial, man of color, black man) as President of the United States of America...
... we continue on our journey towards one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thinking of this statement from our Declaration of Independence... We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. I think if Martin Luther King, Jr. were still alive today, he would say we have much yet to accomplish. Yes! We have made progress, but if we simply compare our current state to our past failures, we will become complacent. Instead let us continue to look inward at the state of our hearts, and outward at our attitudes and actions towards those struggling around us. Let us not turn a deaf ear and a hardened heart to what overwhelms us, but continue to come together as diverse peoples, seeking to understand one another and work together, as a neighborhood, a community, a nation, to achieve fulfillment of dreams for all.
I believe much of what Barack Obama envisions for "change in America" speaks to the 2nd phase of the Civil Right's Movement...addressing the issue of poverty and reducing the disparity felt by many citizens living in our nation.
To read about/hear what people across America are saying about the state of our nation and their ideas for change, check out the following link: http://citizensbriefingbook.change.gov/home
I often struggle inwardly with what our Declaration of Independence states about freedom, equality, and human rights, and how this truly plays out in everyday life. Slogans clearly heard are: "The United States of America, where anyone can be whatever they want to be!" "America-where one has only to succeed by hard work and "pulling oneself up by the bootstraps!" I believe that achieving personal success or accomplishing one's dreams is much more complicated than simply finding the "inner motivation" and focusing on "individual achievement".
Our forefathers fought to throw off the tyranny of the British government, only to turn around and, on many levels, ignore the rights of many people who did not have the resources and wealth to protect themselves and/or their land. And though we have "officially abolished slavery", enslavement in one subtle form or another still exists today in America, through our prison system, welfare system, drug addictions/War on Drugs, etc. Working in various capacities of social work over the last eighteen years, I have witnessed first hand the disparity people face. In race relations, economic status, our healthcare system, our approach to education and other areas, we have much yet to accomplish.
While attempting to help a young couple in 2005 break off generational chains of "homelessness, poverty, abuse, and drug addiction", I witnessed a huge chasm between desire, ability, opportunity, and achievement. On July 4th, 2005, thinking about this couple's heart wrenching struggle to survive and to change, and the struggles of so many through the years who have not seen the fulfillment of their hopes and dreams, I voiced my frustration about "freedom in our nation" through this piece...Empty promises
It’s what you represent
Oppression
The system
carrying on
the virus
of oppression
slavery…
modern day
Infected
raw, sore
and bleeding
Offering up
the broken
the wounded
Spirits collapse
under it’s weight
A mindset of oppression
It’s what you represent.
Empty promises
Land of opportunity
Broken bottles
Littered sidewalks
The American dream
Hungry mouths
Homeless shelters
What about the empty promises?
A hand up
A hand out
Catch 22
Breeding dependence?
Generational curses
Land of the free
Jails overflowing
Drug infested neighborhoods
Home of the brave
Gun wars
Drive by shootings
Birthday parties
Death, blood, violence
Soldier fighting in Iraq
For more
Empty promises
Death, blood, violence
Twisted logic
Kill or be killed
Poisoned souls
Tortured minds
Heaven or hell
America the beautiful
Boarded up shacks
Cockroach hotel
Amber waves of grain
Freely blowing
Freedom, my ass
America God bless
Oh shed your grace on me
Death, blood, violence
People swinging from trees
Stolen land
Crushed spirits
Sidewalk sleeper
Whisky bottle in hand
Empty promises
Tkaeu
2005
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation
where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
My favorite mural in Cottonwood, Arizona taken 2007
When we let freedom ring,
when we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet,
from every state and every city,
we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children,
black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics,
will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual,
"Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Storytelling of the old west...
Artists and community businesses contributed talents and resources to nurture Cottonwood’s first public mural. Artists spent 4 weeks designing the mural. Ideas and images came from thoughts of community member’s strong connections to their environment, their history and their diverse cultures.
"In 1874 soldiers from Camp Verde were stationed at an adobe house, but at that time there was no name for the present Cottonwood (where the house existed). As settlers moved in and the community developed, it took its name from a circle of sixteen large cottonwoods growing about one-quarter of a miles away from the Verde River. The place was unhealthful. Malaria and dysentry were severe problems as mosquitos rose in thick clouds from stagnant pools left by receding floods. Such quinine as was available sold at $4.00 an ounce and could be bought only when it was in surplus at Camp Verde. Nevertheless, by 1879, several families had settled there, including the Nichols, Van Deerens, Hawkins, and Strahans. It is a curious fact that eact family had nine children. The adobe building formerly used by soldiers became a school house. Today Cottonwood is a thriving community. P.O. est March 6, 1879, William H. Michael pm.
(info from following link: http://jeff.scott.tripod.com/cottonwood.html)
Tuzigoot National Monument was created to preserve the Indian culture of the area. The name Tuzigoot is an Apache word for “crooked water”. The site covers 42 acres and has so many things to offer its visitors. The Sinaguan Indians built Tuzigoot in 1000 A.D. The Sinagua Indians worked the land and traded with other cultures. Then in 1400 the Indians just vanished. Tuzigoot is the remains of their village or pueblo. The pueblo includes 110 rooms with second and third story structures. (This information and much more on the Tuzigoot National Monument is found at this site: http://www.arizonan.com/parks/tuzigoot-national-monument/)
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Bourque and Gibran
Check out the details of this mural in my close up shots shown below.
I found this mural on the side of the Goodwill building in downtown Cottonwood.
The mural artist is Joan Bourque and these websites:
http://www.artfuloceans.org/html/murals.html
http://www.artconnections.org/html/joan_bourque.html
provide more examples of her works and explains the focus and intent of her art projects.
And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, "Speak to us of Children." And he said:Your children are not your children.They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.They come through you, but not from you, and though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.
-Kahlil Gibran
Life can be full of one great discovery after another!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Change or bust?
Looking for "classic information" about the White House and the presidential team? Here it is: http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/
Following the inauguration though, things will definitely heat up for Barack Obama and his Cabinet members. Is "change" really about to happen? How much "change" can truly occur during Barack Obama's current four year term? Will we, as individuals, be challenged, also, by our new president, to participate in bringing about "change" we desire? I think we all wonder just what "change" will look like under Barack Obama's leadership.
An informative website of the area: http://www.gatewaytosedona.com/department/category/VerdeValley