We all know what's been going on. I have been a teacher for over 30 years. I have valuable experience, I have a Master's Degree, I have continued my training and learning all these years - I have stuck with it. I have a retirement plan based on all those years I have worked and I think I've earned it.
But, in the mind of Ohio's new governor, it can be taken away now. Young teachers who planned on supporting a family on a teacher's salary may have to kiss that idea good-bye. I wonder, in 10 years, who is going to be teaching our children, when it becomes a low class, disrespected, low paying job. Is anyone interested in the impact on children?? Do they really expect us to believe that this will balance the budget when all public workers in Ohio amounts to 9% ??
The sad thing is that teachers (I can't speak for police and firefighters) have always been willing to compromise and negotiate for the good of their students. But do we have the chance to compromise and negotiate now? No. When you take away the right to collectively bargain you take away everything.
I think teachers would have been quite willing to rethink and negotiate new agreements on tenure, retirement contributions, maybe even benefits - but we were not given the chance. We have been disrespected and somehow been labeled the enemy.
A small example would be last year when we were asked to give up some planning time during each day and an early dismissal day meant for parent conferences during the school day so the students had more instructional time. I did not hear any complaints (although we miss our early days) what I heard was - this is good for the students. We need more time to TEACH.
Labor unions were created to keep children from working adult hours, to provide workers with clean, safe workplaces, to assure break times and fair wages. Schools that run smoothly and efficiently do so, in part, because of conditions that unions have negotiated. Class sizes are not set for the convenience of teachers, but so that students have a fair and equal opportunity for a real education.
Forty-three years ago Martin Luther King was killed. In his last public speech he said, "You are doing many things here in this struggle. You are demanding that this city will respect the dignity of labor. . . all labor has dignity.
To question the dedication of public workers, to assume that we are all out for ourselves, when, in fact, the jobs we do are jobs of service to our communities, to blame us for the unbalanced budget, to take what we have worked for, does not give us dignity.
Will we hear about the governor and the legislators taking a pay cut? How about losing their benefits, or expense accounts? (Does anyone really believe that they actually work a 40 hour work week?) Or will they vote themselves another pay raise?
COEXIST: Poetry, Books, and Essays by Diane Vogel Ferri
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Where Have All the Protest Songs Gone?
I've been thinking about this long before I read a review in yesterday's Plain Dealer about a book called "33 Revolutions." The author Dorian Lynskey wrote, " I began this book intending to write a history of a still vital form of music. I finished it wondering if I had instead compsed a eulogy."
I am word person, a lyric listener. The sole reason I love certain songs are for their meaningful lyrics. My daughter gave me satellite radio for Christmas. I figured I would hear all kinds of new music and new brilliant lyrics - but, not so much. I started wondering why twentysomething artists are not commenting on the state of our country or the world anymore. Certainly there are enough reasons to protest!
I grew up in the 60's and 70's when, yes, we had our share of bubble-gum pop, but also evocative, mind-changing lyrics that impacted who I became in some ways. We had Neil Young singing four dead in Ohio, songs like "He Ain't Heavy, He's my Brother", Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'" Come senators, congressmen, please heed the call. Don't stand in the doorway, Don't block the hall. For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled. There's a battle outside and it's ragin'. It'll soon shake your walls for the times, they are a-changin."
Other songs like "Eve of Destruction" and "For What It's Worth." I could go on and on.
Now I hear one of the recent top songs is "Just the Way You Are." Didn't Billy Joel write that a few decades ago?
When I see your face there's not a thing that I would change, 'cause you're amazing just the way you are." Brilliant, huh?
Another popular one says, "You're so delicious, you're so soft, sweet on the tip of my tongue. You taste like sunlight and strawberry bubble gum."
Even the music is boring. I call them silly little ditties. There's even one called "The Giant Turd Song" but I'll let you imagine the lyrics.
The "Just the Way You Are" rip-off is an artist named Bruno Mars. In the PD review a critic from The New Yorker named Sasha Jones said in her critique of Bruno, that most current pop stars seem oblivious to the times in which they live.
So I did a web search for more recent protest songs. Guess who was doing them in the 2000's? Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Tom Waits... sound familiar?
I looked for some younger artists and there were a few: Pink and her "Dear Mr. President" - What do you feel when you see all the homeless on the street? Who do you pray for at night before you sleep? What do you feel when you look in the mirror?
Greenday's "American Idiot" - Don't want to be an American idiot, one nation controlled by the media, information age of hysteria.
John Mayer's "Waiting for the World to Change" apparently his protest against the apathy of his contemporaries in song writing. Now if we had the power to bring neighbors home from war, they would have never missed a Christmas, no more ribbons on the door."
There were a few more - Pearl Jam, Lenny Kravitz, Eminem, Arcade Fire, but can you think of a current song that is going to stand the test of time like the ones written in the passionate time of the 60's and 70's? We are in two on-going wars, we have lived through a disastrous economy, we have poverty and hunger, celebrity worship and disease - doesn't anyone have anything to say? I am around a considerable amount of twentysomethings and I don't hear anything.
Where have all the protest songs gone?
I am word person, a lyric listener. The sole reason I love certain songs are for their meaningful lyrics. My daughter gave me satellite radio for Christmas. I figured I would hear all kinds of new music and new brilliant lyrics - but, not so much. I started wondering why twentysomething artists are not commenting on the state of our country or the world anymore. Certainly there are enough reasons to protest!
I grew up in the 60's and 70's when, yes, we had our share of bubble-gum pop, but also evocative, mind-changing lyrics that impacted who I became in some ways. We had Neil Young singing four dead in Ohio, songs like "He Ain't Heavy, He's my Brother", Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'" Come senators, congressmen, please heed the call. Don't stand in the doorway, Don't block the hall. For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled. There's a battle outside and it's ragin'. It'll soon shake your walls for the times, they are a-changin."
Other songs like "Eve of Destruction" and "For What It's Worth." I could go on and on.
Now I hear one of the recent top songs is "Just the Way You Are." Didn't Billy Joel write that a few decades ago?
When I see your face there's not a thing that I would change, 'cause you're amazing just the way you are." Brilliant, huh?
Another popular one says, "You're so delicious, you're so soft, sweet on the tip of my tongue. You taste like sunlight and strawberry bubble gum."
Even the music is boring. I call them silly little ditties. There's even one called "The Giant Turd Song" but I'll let you imagine the lyrics.
The "Just the Way You Are" rip-off is an artist named Bruno Mars. In the PD review a critic from The New Yorker named Sasha Jones said in her critique of Bruno, that most current pop stars seem oblivious to the times in which they live.
So I did a web search for more recent protest songs. Guess who was doing them in the 2000's? Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Tom Waits... sound familiar?
I looked for some younger artists and there were a few: Pink and her "Dear Mr. President" - What do you feel when you see all the homeless on the street? Who do you pray for at night before you sleep? What do you feel when you look in the mirror?
Greenday's "American Idiot" - Don't want to be an American idiot, one nation controlled by the media, information age of hysteria.
John Mayer's "Waiting for the World to Change" apparently his protest against the apathy of his contemporaries in song writing. Now if we had the power to bring neighbors home from war, they would have never missed a Christmas, no more ribbons on the door."
There were a few more - Pearl Jam, Lenny Kravitz, Eminem, Arcade Fire, but can you think of a current song that is going to stand the test of time like the ones written in the passionate time of the 60's and 70's? We are in two on-going wars, we have lived through a disastrous economy, we have poverty and hunger, celebrity worship and disease - doesn't anyone have anything to say? I am around a considerable amount of twentysomethings and I don't hear anything.
Where have all the protest songs gone?
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Kyrie Eleison
In an unfathomable universe
moving in free will on the path to heaven.
The iniquity we're drawn to
fades to prisms of merciful light.
We are loved and forgiven.
Awash in complacency, mired in errors
of omission, then waking up with wings,
pure love is revealed, and
we are existing in the divine truth
that we dwell in the midst of grace.
Kyrie eleison, christe eleison
moving in free will on the path to heaven.
The iniquity we're drawn to
fades to prisms of merciful light.
We are loved and forgiven.
Awash in complacency, mired in errors
of omission, then waking up with wings,
pure love is revealed, and
we are existing in the divine truth
that we dwell in the midst of grace.
Kyrie eleison, christe eleison
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Ode to the Wondrous Pencil
I am very fond of pencils. I still think they are cool - along with the fascinating crayon (but that's another post). The following was today's offering from "The Writer's Almanac".
On this day in 1858, Hymen Lipman of Philadelphia patented the first pencil to have an attached eraser. The eraser-tipped pencil is still something of an American phenomenon; most European pencils are still eraserless. The humble pencil has a long and storied history, going back to the Roman stylus, which was sometimes made of lead, and why we still call the business end of the pencil the "lead," even though it's been made of nontoxic graphite since 1564.
Pencils were first mass-produced in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1662, and the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century really allowed the manufacture to flourish. Before he became known for Walden and "Civil Disobedience," Henry David Thoreau and his father were famous for manufacturing the hardest, blackest pencils in the United States. Edison was fond of short pencils that fit neatly into a vest pocket, readily accessible for the jotting down of ideas. John Steinbeck loved the pencil and started every day with 24 freshly sharpened ones; it's said that he went through 300 pencils in writing East of Eden (1952), and used 60 a day on The Grapes of Wrath (1939) and Cannery Row (1945).
Our common pencils are hexagonal to keep them from rolling off the table, and they're yellow because the best graphite came from China, and yellow is traditionally associated with Chinese royalty. A single pencil can draw a line 35 miles long, or write around 45,000 words. And if you make a mistake, thanks to Hymen Lipman, you've probably got an eraser handy.
On this day in 1858, Hymen Lipman of Philadelphia patented the first pencil to have an attached eraser. The eraser-tipped pencil is still something of an American phenomenon; most European pencils are still eraserless. The humble pencil has a long and storied history, going back to the Roman stylus, which was sometimes made of lead, and why we still call the business end of the pencil the "lead," even though it's been made of nontoxic graphite since 1564.
Pencils were first mass-produced in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1662, and the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century really allowed the manufacture to flourish. Before he became known for Walden and "Civil Disobedience," Henry David Thoreau and his father were famous for manufacturing the hardest, blackest pencils in the United States. Edison was fond of short pencils that fit neatly into a vest pocket, readily accessible for the jotting down of ideas. John Steinbeck loved the pencil and started every day with 24 freshly sharpened ones; it's said that he went through 300 pencils in writing East of Eden (1952), and used 60 a day on The Grapes of Wrath (1939) and Cannery Row (1945).
Our common pencils are hexagonal to keep them from rolling off the table, and they're yellow because the best graphite came from China, and yellow is traditionally associated with Chinese royalty. A single pencil can draw a line 35 miles long, or write around 45,000 words. And if you make a mistake, thanks to Hymen Lipman, you've probably got an eraser handy.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Aquainted With the Night
by Robert Frost
I have been acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in the rain - and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light.
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not call me back or say good-bye;
And further still an unearthly height,
A luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been acquainted with the night.
(I like this one because it's very much like something I would write, I think.)
I have been acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in the rain - and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light.
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not call me back or say good-bye;
And further still an unearthly height,
A luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been acquainted with the night.
(I like this one because it's very much like something I would write, I think.)
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Do You Pray? - Revisited
My last post stated that I had nothing to say - but surprise - I do! I scrolled down on my own blog and saw that I had written about prayer. Little did I know when I wrote that post that I would experience the subject in a whole new way a mere two weeks later when my life turned upside down.
My stepson unexpectedly died and everyone I ever knew sent their "love and PRAYERS" through calls, cards, emails,visits and Facebook messages. In my previous post I asked whether people were really praying or was that just a way of saying "I'm sending you good thoughts." So God answered my question in a most amazing way.
I FELT, with every cell of my body, the prayers that were being prayed for my husband and me. Can I explain what that means? Not really. No one's prayer took our pain away. No one's prayer stopped the flow of our tears. No one's prayer changed the shock and sadness. But this is what I experienced: A true sense of being lifted up, somehow held up, an undergirding of faith and hope. I cannot describe it better than that. There was hope and the promise of peace.
Going through the agony of a funeral home visitation and funeral is emotionally exhausting and confusing. In a moment your life has changed forever. But we made it. We were held up by all the beautiful things people said, by the stories of their own beliefs about heaven, by every hug and shared tear. This, to me, is the tangible expression of those prayers - and how it comforted us.
I also learned that during the weeks and months following a loss, prayers are needed as much as ever. Keep calling the grieving family, keep visiting, keep telling them beautiful things about their loved one - and especially keep praying for them.
My stepson unexpectedly died and everyone I ever knew sent their "love and PRAYERS" through calls, cards, emails,visits and Facebook messages. In my previous post I asked whether people were really praying or was that just a way of saying "I'm sending you good thoughts." So God answered my question in a most amazing way.
I FELT, with every cell of my body, the prayers that were being prayed for my husband and me. Can I explain what that means? Not really. No one's prayer took our pain away. No one's prayer stopped the flow of our tears. No one's prayer changed the shock and sadness. But this is what I experienced: A true sense of being lifted up, somehow held up, an undergirding of faith and hope. I cannot describe it better than that. There was hope and the promise of peace.
Going through the agony of a funeral home visitation and funeral is emotionally exhausting and confusing. In a moment your life has changed forever. But we made it. We were held up by all the beautiful things people said, by the stories of their own beliefs about heaven, by every hug and shared tear. This, to me, is the tangible expression of those prayers - and how it comforted us.
I also learned that during the weeks and months following a loss, prayers are needed as much as ever. Keep calling the grieving family, keep visiting, keep telling them beautiful things about their loved one - and especially keep praying for them.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Random Photos
I have nothing to say so here are some random photos:
Today is sunny and the snow is almost gone here in northeast Ohio, but just 9 days ago I had my fifth snow day this year! This is Stella taking it all in. Barbeque anyone?
A few weeks ago the area was suspended in crystallized beauty as the ice clung to each tiny twig. The sunlight caused a surreal beauty we'd never seen before. It lasted for two days. Click on this one to enlarge and you'll see what I mean.
This is my sweet Stella on a lazy summer afternoon. Well, everyday is lazy for spoiled dogs.
More ice beauty.
Today is sunny and the snow is almost gone here in northeast Ohio, but just 9 days ago I had my fifth snow day this year! This is Stella taking it all in. Barbeque anyone?
A few weeks ago the area was suspended in crystallized beauty as the ice clung to each tiny twig. The sunlight caused a surreal beauty we'd never seen before. It lasted for two days. Click on this one to enlarge and you'll see what I mean.
This is my sweet Stella on a lazy summer afternoon. Well, everyday is lazy for spoiled dogs.
More ice beauty.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Requiem
Introit
This is just a time between losses
and now we've lost the future,
but there is rest, eternal rest ahead.
Doves are in the trees mourning,
an angel rides her winged horse
escorting us to the peace.
In the perpetual light of morning
there is no end,
no end, no end
to the shining on them, on us,
requiem aeternam, dona eis, domine
In Paradisum
Would you walk the same path again?
When the angels poured out their bowls
would you open your mouth wider?
Would you sing heavenly songs louder?
Gently lay your burdens down now,
don't wonder how it happens,
don't speak - just look up.
We have all been under the same sky,
the same loving eye, now we will be
in eternity, in paradise together.
In paradisum deductant te Angeli
Pie Jesu
Oh sweet Lord
untwist the harsh days of this world
and usher us to pure joy.
We are on our way to sleep,
wrapped in your infinite
blanket of love.
Now let the sky close
on all pain, and gift us
with our unearned requiem.
Grant us everlasting rest.
Pie Jesu Domine, dona eis requiem
This is just a time between losses
and now we've lost the future,
but there is rest, eternal rest ahead.
Doves are in the trees mourning,
an angel rides her winged horse
escorting us to the peace.
In the perpetual light of morning
there is no end,
no end, no end
to the shining on them, on us,
requiem aeternam, dona eis, domine
In Paradisum
Would you walk the same path again?
When the angels poured out their bowls
would you open your mouth wider?
Would you sing heavenly songs louder?
Gently lay your burdens down now,
don't wonder how it happens,
don't speak - just look up.
We have all been under the same sky,
the same loving eye, now we will be
in eternity, in paradise together.
In paradisum deductant te Angeli
Pie Jesu
Oh sweet Lord
untwist the harsh days of this world
and usher us to pure joy.
We are on our way to sleep,
wrapped in your infinite
blanket of love.
Now let the sky close
on all pain, and gift us
with our unearned requiem.
Grant us everlasting rest.
Pie Jesu Domine, dona eis requiem
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
My Grief Observed
I may not be able to write of anything but the grief process for awhile. I hope you don't mind and will bear with me. I hope you may be enlightened in some way. It turns out that grief is an all-consuming experience. One may return to work and smile, go to the grocery store and turn on the television again - but nothing much seems to matter. Life has been put in a stark and revealing perspective.
It has been a profound learning experience. I now know that when a friend loses a parent or sibling they are not all right just because they seem all right. After the funeral home visitation, the cards, the hugs, the funeral itself - there is a whole new life to consider. Something that may have been a singular part of you for all your life or for decades is a void now. You still need to talk, to relive the experience in order to accept it. You still need hugs.
I will now pay more attention to friends in the midst of this experience. I will not stop calling or visiting or bringing food when the funeral is over. I will continue to lift them up in sincere prayer because I have experienced the incomprehensible and indescribable sensation of being prayed for. It does not dry the tears. It does not take away the pain. But it gives an undergirding of hope and strength when you thought you were weak.
Those are my thoughts today. The only other thing on my mind seems to be all the people I would like to thank for their kindness. I will get to that soon. Otherwise, as I said, nothing else seems to matter much right now except loving my husband, who has lost more than anyone ever should.
It has been a profound learning experience. I now know that when a friend loses a parent or sibling they are not all right just because they seem all right. After the funeral home visitation, the cards, the hugs, the funeral itself - there is a whole new life to consider. Something that may have been a singular part of you for all your life or for decades is a void now. You still need to talk, to relive the experience in order to accept it. You still need hugs.
I will now pay more attention to friends in the midst of this experience. I will not stop calling or visiting or bringing food when the funeral is over. I will continue to lift them up in sincere prayer because I have experienced the incomprehensible and indescribable sensation of being prayed for. It does not dry the tears. It does not take away the pain. But it gives an undergirding of hope and strength when you thought you were weak.
Those are my thoughts today. The only other thing on my mind seems to be all the people I would like to thank for their kindness. I will get to that soon. Otherwise, as I said, nothing else seems to matter much right now except loving my husband, who has lost more than anyone ever should.
Friday, March 4, 2011
A Grief Observed
No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear. I am not afraid, but the sensation is like being afraid. The same fluttering in the stomach, the same restlessness, the yawning. I keep on swallowing.
At other times it feels like being mildly drunk, or concussed. There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet, I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me.
From A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
At other times it feels like being mildly drunk, or concussed. There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet, I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me.
From A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis
Friday, February 25, 2011
Grief
Grief is like a nightmare you can't wake up from. On Wednesday my step-son, Louie, died at the age of 27 of complications from the muscular dystrophy he struggled with all his life. Nevertheless, it was unexpected. My dear husband has been his devoted and sole caretaker all of his life. I lived with him for almost 15 years. If you ever want to donate to a cause help the Muscular Dystrophy Association help find a cure for this horrible disease. And please stop back here in a week or two when I am able to write again.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Coexist XXXI - Coexisting in Political Viewpoints
Absolute justice is achieved by the suppression of all contradiction;therefore it destroys freedom.
Albert Camus
writer, philospher, Nobel laureate
1913-1960
My previous post and all the furor that is surrounding the states that are proposing eliminating collective bargaining for public employees has made me think a lot about the divisiveness of differing viewpoints. I am disturbed that I cannot express my point of view on this or many subjects to some people because of volitile reactions. In the past I have believed I could calmly discuss anything, but on this particular issue I am unsure whether I could be reasonable and open-minded. Why? Because it effects me in multiple areas of my life and my future - or what I had planned for my future.
I found some comfort in the Camus quote. If I understand him correctly, his brief statement tells me that justice can never be achieved in everyone's eyes. Everyone has a differing life experiences and reasons for their beliefs and viewpoints based on those experiences. If one group achieves their justice, another group loses theirs.
My own convictions have slowly changed over the past 20 years, not due to someone's influence, but due to the particular circumstances I live in every day and the people I have dealt with. Technically I work in a suburban school, but it is an "inner ring" school, which means it is more urban, with a low socio-economic population. Children growing up in poverty and often neglect, but American children deserving of a good life and education nonetheless. These twenty years have opened my eyes to much more than the middle class upbringing I enjoyed.
Maybe I have not paid enough attention in the past, but it seems to me the divisiveness of our country is growing stronger - and as a result will make us weaker. Another quote:
The more we let each voice sing out with its own true tone, the richer the diversity of the chant in unison.
Angelus Silesius
How can we, as human beings, see things so differently? How can what's fair, good and right seem so wrong and injust to someone else? Why can we not accept that someone else has a different life experience and allow for that - even accept it as the other person's truth? When will we stop and LISTEN to the other side instead of using sarcasm and name-calling? We are all Americans and we have enjoyed a good life as Americans. We each have the freedom to make our lives successful or not.
On this currect issue I feel like what I worked for, what has made my life successful, what supported my children and gave me a certain amount of security will now be taken from me and those who desire to be teachers, (or other public employees) in the future. Does anyone hear that - or do you just hear the loud shouting of a political party?
A house divided against itself will fall.
Luke 11:17
Come now, let us reason together.
Isaiah 1:18
Albert Camus
writer, philospher, Nobel laureate
1913-1960
My previous post and all the furor that is surrounding the states that are proposing eliminating collective bargaining for public employees has made me think a lot about the divisiveness of differing viewpoints. I am disturbed that I cannot express my point of view on this or many subjects to some people because of volitile reactions. In the past I have believed I could calmly discuss anything, but on this particular issue I am unsure whether I could be reasonable and open-minded. Why? Because it effects me in multiple areas of my life and my future - or what I had planned for my future.
I found some comfort in the Camus quote. If I understand him correctly, his brief statement tells me that justice can never be achieved in everyone's eyes. Everyone has a differing life experiences and reasons for their beliefs and viewpoints based on those experiences. If one group achieves their justice, another group loses theirs.
My own convictions have slowly changed over the past 20 years, not due to someone's influence, but due to the particular circumstances I live in every day and the people I have dealt with. Technically I work in a suburban school, but it is an "inner ring" school, which means it is more urban, with a low socio-economic population. Children growing up in poverty and often neglect, but American children deserving of a good life and education nonetheless. These twenty years have opened my eyes to much more than the middle class upbringing I enjoyed.
Maybe I have not paid enough attention in the past, but it seems to me the divisiveness of our country is growing stronger - and as a result will make us weaker. Another quote:
The more we let each voice sing out with its own true tone, the richer the diversity of the chant in unison.
Angelus Silesius
How can we, as human beings, see things so differently? How can what's fair, good and right seem so wrong and injust to someone else? Why can we not accept that someone else has a different life experience and allow for that - even accept it as the other person's truth? When will we stop and LISTEN to the other side instead of using sarcasm and name-calling? We are all Americans and we have enjoyed a good life as Americans. We each have the freedom to make our lives successful or not.
On this currect issue I feel like what I worked for, what has made my life successful, what supported my children and gave me a certain amount of security will now be taken from me and those who desire to be teachers, (or other public employees) in the future. Does anyone hear that - or do you just hear the loud shouting of a political party?
A house divided against itself will fall.
Luke 11:17
Come now, let us reason together.
Isaiah 1:18
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
A Bad First Impression
If I was a newly elected public official I think I would try to impart a good first impression to the people who gave me the job. As you know I believe in coexisting, and when it comes to politics I am willing to give anyone a chance, regardless of the political party he or she aligns with. My idealistic hope is that our elected officials truly have the best interests of the people in mind, and are acutely aware that they work for us. Sadly, some appear to be giddy with power and control the moment they are sworn in.
John Kasich is Ohio's new governor, and it seems to me in his first two months he has managed to offend and alienate many of his constituents. His agenda appears to be one of taking away rather than helping. The first thing he did was try to ban the public and media from his inauguration. What??? The public that gave him the job in the first place? Next, he managed to appoint an all white cabinet. This is the first time in over 50 years that anyone has done that. After public outcry he managed to find one qualified African-American to appoint. Did this seem like a clueless move to you?
Now he is trying to oust a highly qualified member of the State Board of Education in favor of someone he prefers. The woman happens to be African-American. Smooth move, John.
But all of those are trivial compared to his support of Senate Bill 5 which will eliminate the rights to collective bargaining and seniority for all public union workers. This includes public school teachers, police officers, firefighters,prison guards and some nurses, among others. This would include changes to teacher contracts, benefits, bargaining timelines, layoff procedures and binding arbitration rules for police and firefighters. All issues that have been negotiated, worked for and sacrificed for over many years.
Senate Bill 5 would likely lower wages and benefits of all public employees who risk their lives for us daily. State workers' salaries schedules and step increases would be eliminated and based on merit(something no one has found an equitable way to do).
SB5 may weaken Ohio's entire middle class rather than creating the jobs we need. This legislation will hurt local communities by holding back job growth.
If this leaves you with a bad impression and you live in Ohio please contact your representatives and senators. It may be voted on as soon as next week. Personally, as a veteran teacher I have a retirement plan based on my present negotiated contract and with the belief that it will remain that way. I have worked hard for over 30 years to attain that plan. Taking away what people have worked for is not the solution to improving the lives of Ohioans - or anyone. I thought that's what our public officials are sworn to do - maybe not.
John Kasich is Ohio's new governor, and it seems to me in his first two months he has managed to offend and alienate many of his constituents. His agenda appears to be one of taking away rather than helping. The first thing he did was try to ban the public and media from his inauguration. What??? The public that gave him the job in the first place? Next, he managed to appoint an all white cabinet. This is the first time in over 50 years that anyone has done that. After public outcry he managed to find one qualified African-American to appoint. Did this seem like a clueless move to you?
Now he is trying to oust a highly qualified member of the State Board of Education in favor of someone he prefers. The woman happens to be African-American. Smooth move, John.
But all of those are trivial compared to his support of Senate Bill 5 which will eliminate the rights to collective bargaining and seniority for all public union workers. This includes public school teachers, police officers, firefighters,prison guards and some nurses, among others. This would include changes to teacher contracts, benefits, bargaining timelines, layoff procedures and binding arbitration rules for police and firefighters. All issues that have been negotiated, worked for and sacrificed for over many years.
Senate Bill 5 would likely lower wages and benefits of all public employees who risk their lives for us daily. State workers' salaries schedules and step increases would be eliminated and based on merit(something no one has found an equitable way to do).
SB5 may weaken Ohio's entire middle class rather than creating the jobs we need. This legislation will hurt local communities by holding back job growth.
If this leaves you with a bad impression and you live in Ohio please contact your representatives and senators. It may be voted on as soon as next week. Personally, as a veteran teacher I have a retirement plan based on my present negotiated contract and with the belief that it will remain that way. I have worked hard for over 30 years to attain that plan. Taking away what people have worked for is not the solution to improving the lives of Ohioans - or anyone. I thought that's what our public officials are sworn to do - maybe not.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Do You Pray?
When troubled times and tragedy come everyone says they are praying for you, for your family, for relief. A recent event in our family brought about many messages of prayers being said for us. It made me think.
Are they really praying, I wondered? What are they praying for? Is a prayer to them a passing good wish or real connection with God? (One person who claims to be an atheist offered a prayer - but to whom?)
After 40+ year of sincere praying for myself and many hundreds of others, this is what I have come to understand.
I believe prayer is true communication with our Creator and it enhances our relationship with Him - helps keep us in touch, if you will. I do not, however, believe that prayer alters the laws of science, or the random nature of the world. There seems to be occasional miracles but maybe they are miracles because we want them to be.
If an abundance of prayer cured cancer, then several of my close women friends would not have died in their 40's, 50's, 60's. Prayer did not heal the cancer that the earth gave them. This is what I believe prayer DID do for them. Gave them comfort, brought a sense of peace, took away fear and brought them close to the God they were moving out of this world to be closer to.
I think prayer works internally in the human spirit. It doesn't change circumstances, but it can change people. It doesn't erase heartache, but helps us through it. It gently guides us through life if we allow it to. It heals broken hearts if not broken bodies - the laws of nature God has already put in place will do that or not.
Prayer speaks to our souls and brings peace no matter what situation the planet has randomly placed us. It doesn't control us - it frees us.
Are they really praying, I wondered? What are they praying for? Is a prayer to them a passing good wish or real connection with God? (One person who claims to be an atheist offered a prayer - but to whom?)
After 40+ year of sincere praying for myself and many hundreds of others, this is what I have come to understand.
I believe prayer is true communication with our Creator and it enhances our relationship with Him - helps keep us in touch, if you will. I do not, however, believe that prayer alters the laws of science, or the random nature of the world. There seems to be occasional miracles but maybe they are miracles because we want them to be.
If an abundance of prayer cured cancer, then several of my close women friends would not have died in their 40's, 50's, 60's. Prayer did not heal the cancer that the earth gave them. This is what I believe prayer DID do for them. Gave them comfort, brought a sense of peace, took away fear and brought them close to the God they were moving out of this world to be closer to.
I think prayer works internally in the human spirit. It doesn't change circumstances, but it can change people. It doesn't erase heartache, but helps us through it. It gently guides us through life if we allow it to. It heals broken hearts if not broken bodies - the laws of nature God has already put in place will do that or not.
Prayer speaks to our souls and brings peace no matter what situation the planet has randomly placed us. It doesn't control us - it frees us.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Beautiful Words
I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant; and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful for these teachers.
Khalil Gibran
mystic, poet artist
1883-1931
When your words came I ate them, they were my joy and my heart's delight.
Jeremiah 15:16
What you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you.
Gospel of Thomas
Khalil Gibran
mystic, poet artist
1883-1931
When your words came I ate them, they were my joy and my heart's delight.
Jeremiah 15:16
What you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you.
Gospel of Thomas
Monday, January 31, 2011
Scars (cicatrices)
There are scars where blood once bloomed
on bodies born pure, their stories live on.
A dog engraved his teeth marks on
Laurel, a girl I knew long ago,
leaving a concave spider web
splayed on her cheek.
As a child in a hospital ward
I saw a little boy's charred skin,
his outer layer like pieces of
red crumpled paper.
Metal forceps created
a crooked mark on my husband's
sweet newborn face,
still visible decades later.
My son's six year-old leg
collided with a bicycle pedal
that left a forever grin
stamped on his shin.
Dad's leg carries
a long scar from childhood
bone infection that took
a year of his boyhood away.
There is a diagonal slash
across Helen's chest,
a betrayal of a breast
and its landmines of cancer.
My visible scars are of parts uneeded,
an ovary full of potential disease,
breast tissue that burdened my body and spirit.
Some unseen scars have
their own stories,
little demons of iniquity,
embedded with tears.
on bodies born pure, their stories live on.
A dog engraved his teeth marks on
Laurel, a girl I knew long ago,
leaving a concave spider web
splayed on her cheek.
As a child in a hospital ward
I saw a little boy's charred skin,
his outer layer like pieces of
red crumpled paper.
Metal forceps created
a crooked mark on my husband's
sweet newborn face,
still visible decades later.
My son's six year-old leg
collided with a bicycle pedal
that left a forever grin
stamped on his shin.
Dad's leg carries
a long scar from childhood
bone infection that took
a year of his boyhood away.
There is a diagonal slash
across Helen's chest,
a betrayal of a breast
and its landmines of cancer.
My visible scars are of parts uneeded,
an ovary full of potential disease,
breast tissue that burdened my body and spirit.
Some unseen scars have
their own stories,
little demons of iniquity,
embedded with tears.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Happy Birthday
This evening, I sat by an open window
and read till the light was gone and the book
was no more than a part of the darkness.
I could easily have switched on a lamp,
but I wanted to ride this day down into night,
to sit alone and smooth the unreadable page
with the pale gray ghost of my hand.
Ted Kooser
and read till the light was gone and the book
was no more than a part of the darkness.
I could easily have switched on a lamp,
but I wanted to ride this day down into night,
to sit alone and smooth the unreadable page
with the pale gray ghost of my hand.
Ted Kooser
Monday, January 24, 2011
As Heard in Church . . .
God doesn't throw us out in the trash just because we have empty nets at daybreak.
Pastor Chip Freed
January 23, 2010
Friday, January 21, 2011
Coexist Quotes
I realize patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness toward anyone.
Edith Cavell, nurse and humanitarian 1865-1915
What we think, or what we know, or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only thing of consequence is what we do.
John Ruskin 1819-1900
I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
General and 34th President 1890-1969
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
This is America
"This is America, where a white Catholic male Republican judge was murdered on the way to greet a Democratic Jewish woman member of Congress, who was his friend. Her life was saved initially by a 20 year-old Mexican American gay college student and eventually by a Korean American combat surgeon, all eulogized by an African American President."
Mark Shields, PBS
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Martin Luther King Jr.
"Like life, racial understanding is not something we find, but something we must create."
President Barack Obama received an average of 30 death threats every day his first term in office. This was a 400% increase in the number of threats made against President George W. Bush.
"Poverty is one of the most urgent items on the agenda of modern life."39.8 million Americans were classified as poor in 2009 by the US Census Bureau.
32 million Americans were classified as poor in 1999.
49 million Americans go hungry every night according to the Food Research and Action Center - 22% are children.
"Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.
45 million Americans lack basic health insurance.
President Barack Obama received an average of 30 death threats every day his first term in office. This was a 400% increase in the number of threats made against President George W. Bush.
"Poverty is one of the most urgent items on the agenda of modern life."39.8 million Americans were classified as poor in 2009 by the US Census Bureau.
32 million Americans were classified as poor in 1999.
49 million Americans go hungry every night according to the Food Research and Action Center - 22% are children.
"Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.
45 million Americans lack basic health insurance.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Censoring Mark Twain
A new edition of Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is being released next month. In it, all 219 references to Jim as the N-word will be changed to "runaway slave." Political correctness is the goal, of course. I believe the underlying goal is also comfort. We are tired of being reminded of our country's failings. But we should not be tired of truth.
I understand this word is incendiary and offensive in present day, but it was written in the context of the 1840's, not the 2000's. A book is a work of art, a creation of the writer. Every artist chooses what to write, which words to use carefully, just as a painter chooses what to paint, often without regard to what others will think.
It is well known that rap singers are free to sing whatever lyrics they want in this day and age,(certainly including this word) whether offensive or vulgar to some. Comedians also.
To change the words of a classic book is to change history and change someone's quotes, and I do not believe anyone has the right to do that. You have the right not to read the book or look at the painting, or listen to the CD - but not change it.
And why is it assumed that we (or high school students assigned to read the book) are unable to place these stories and words in their historical context? That in itself should be a valuable lesson in high school classes. The Bible would be another example of many stories in the Old Testament being written in a different time of values and living.
If this is acceptable now, imagine how many things might be changed in the future. What words or phrases are we now using that someday might be offensive? Should we go back and change the lyrics of classic songs written by Oscar Hammerstein or Ira Gershwin because the term "gay" had a different connotation in the early twentieth century? How many other author's works could be changed? Where is the line in altering history and art?
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Subdivision
song lyrics by Ani DiFranco
White people are so scared of black people,
they bulldoze out to the country and put up houses
on little loop-de-loop streets,
while America gets its heart cut right out of its chest,
the Berlin wall still runs down main street
separating east side from west, and nothing
is stirring, not even a mouse, in the boarded up stores
and the broken down houses, so they hang colorful banners
off all the street lamps just to prove they got manners.
No mercy, no sense and
I wonder what it will take for my city to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes.
The ghosts of old buildings are haunting parking lots
in the city of good neighbors that history forgot.
I remember the first time I saw someone lying on the cold street,
I thought "I just can't walk past you, this just can't be true."
But I learned by example to just keep moving my feet.
It's amazing the things that we all learn to do.
So we're led by denial like lambs to the slaughter,
serving empires of style and carbonated sugar water
and the old farmroad's a four-lane that leads to the mall
and my dreams are all guillotines waiting to fall.
And I wonder what it will take for my country to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes
'til nation's last taker succumbs to one last dumb decision
and America the beautiful is just one big subdivision.
White people are so scared of black people,
they bulldoze out to the country and put up houses
on little loop-de-loop streets,
while America gets its heart cut right out of its chest,
the Berlin wall still runs down main street
separating east side from west, and nothing
is stirring, not even a mouse, in the boarded up stores
and the broken down houses, so they hang colorful banners
off all the street lamps just to prove they got manners.
No mercy, no sense and
I wonder what it will take for my city to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes.
The ghosts of old buildings are haunting parking lots
in the city of good neighbors that history forgot.
I remember the first time I saw someone lying on the cold street,
I thought "I just can't walk past you, this just can't be true."
But I learned by example to just keep moving my feet.
It's amazing the things that we all learn to do.
So we're led by denial like lambs to the slaughter,
serving empires of style and carbonated sugar water
and the old farmroad's a four-lane that leads to the mall
and my dreams are all guillotines waiting to fall.
And I wonder what it will take for my country to rise.
First we admit our mistakes and then we open our eyes
'til nation's last taker succumbs to one last dumb decision
and America the beautiful is just one big subdivision.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
The Un-Resolution
It's so tempting on January 1st to tell myself that THIS year I will lose those 5 (or 10) pounds - but, alas, I never do. Exercise more - um, probably not. I'm pretty content with my walking and yoga.
Over my 2 week Christmas vacation this year I realized that I had done several things I'd never done before. I was asked to help lead a worship service at my church. Compared to singing solos I figured it would be relatively easy since I have above average reading skills :) I ended up doing just about everything but the sermon and got to read my Christmas poem as well. It felt good.
I picked up a book I'd bought a couple years ago after realizing that, voracious reader that I am, I'd never read a Charles Dickens novel. I read all 550 pages of"Great Expectations." I enjoyed it once I got used to the language.
Lastly, my hubby and I went tobogganning. I'd never done that before! It was a very short experience due to the fact that it was a sunny, but cold winter day and every kid (and parent, apparently) was on vacation just like me. We waited 30 minutes to buy the tickets and another 30 minutes climbing the steep wooden steps (with hubby carrying the toboggan). We took one exciting 10 second ride down the shoot, screaming and laughing all the way. The line at the bottom was about twice as long as when we'd arrived and it was COLD!! So we decided the second ride would feel the same as the first and we left happy and cold.
I've decided that doing something you've never done before is a better, and potentially more fun "resolution" than trying and failing at the same old thing, year after year. I am still working on my list for 2011. Any ideas???
Over my 2 week Christmas vacation this year I realized that I had done several things I'd never done before. I was asked to help lead a worship service at my church. Compared to singing solos I figured it would be relatively easy since I have above average reading skills :) I ended up doing just about everything but the sermon and got to read my Christmas poem as well. It felt good.
I picked up a book I'd bought a couple years ago after realizing that, voracious reader that I am, I'd never read a Charles Dickens novel. I read all 550 pages of"Great Expectations." I enjoyed it once I got used to the language.
Lastly, my hubby and I went tobogganning. I'd never done that before! It was a very short experience due to the fact that it was a sunny, but cold winter day and every kid (and parent, apparently) was on vacation just like me. We waited 30 minutes to buy the tickets and another 30 minutes climbing the steep wooden steps (with hubby carrying the toboggan). We took one exciting 10 second ride down the shoot, screaming and laughing all the way. The line at the bottom was about twice as long as when we'd arrived and it was COLD!! So we decided the second ride would feel the same as the first and we left happy and cold.
I've decided that doing something you've never done before is a better, and potentially more fun "resolution" than trying and failing at the same old thing, year after year. I am still working on my list for 2011. Any ideas???
Friday, December 31, 2010
December Lament
It's the funeral march towards the end of the year,
just a number, just a month, with joy to the world
and a slithering trail of regrets gaining on me
like a holiday rattlesnake about to strike, sending poison
to the veiny, icy backs of my hands. Visions relentlessly
knock at the frosted windowpane in my mind,
not of fairies and plums, but that first wet snowflake
on the windshield, that sudden chord of a song,
a broken ornament, children who are no longer children,
what the year was not, and someone who is not here.
Silent snow falls on my winter sorrows, until I look up
from my lament and see God in your eyes.
just a number, just a month, with joy to the world
and a slithering trail of regrets gaining on me
like a holiday rattlesnake about to strike, sending poison
to the veiny, icy backs of my hands. Visions relentlessly
knock at the frosted windowpane in my mind,
not of fairies and plums, but that first wet snowflake
on the windshield, that sudden chord of a song,
a broken ornament, children who are no longer children,
what the year was not, and someone who is not here.
Silent snow falls on my winter sorrows, until I look up
from my lament and see God in your eyes.
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Christmas Art
Sunday I had the opportunity to go on a personal guided tour at the Cleveland Museum of Art of Nativity paintings. The tour was led by a member of my choir who is also an art docent at the museum. (I also learned from the room with the large and magnificent paintings of five of the muses is that MUSE is where the word MUSEUM comes from! Also MUSIC! Somehow that never occured to me - but I digress.)
The painting at the top is The Holy Family on the Steps by Nicholas Poussin, a French painter (1594-1665). The other one is The Holy family with Mary Magdala by El Greco (1541-1614)These, and most of religious paintings we know today were required by the Catholic church of that time.
In both paintings Mary is shown wearing red and blue. The red signifies her humanness (blood) and the blue was to show that she belonged to heaven. The light shining down and brightening the baby and Mary's images is of course heavenly.Both paintings also contain fruit which tells us that God already tried to make a perfect human in Adam and Eve but the fruit brought the downfall of humans.
Having Mary Magdala in a painting with the baby Jesus is erroneous since she would have not been around then and also would have been closer to Jesus's age. It is thought that El Greco was required to put someone's relative in the painting and they called her Mary Magdala. Mary looks innocent, young and virginal next to the woman in scarlet.
In the Poussin painting Joseph is relegated to the shadows. This was the case in many of the paintings - showing his secondary part in the story.The significance of the family blocking the steps is to show that you can only get to the beautiful blue heavens through them. Elizabeth and John (the Baptist) are sitting with them.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Anti-Gay Bullying
This article was posted today on a blog called "The Stranger" or "Slog. It was written by Dan Savage. The fact that this story is true - in America or anywhere- is almost beyond belief to me.
Anti-Gay Bullying Persists at School Where Seth Walsh was Bullied to Death - ACLU Demands.
You would think that a school district at the center of a high-profile, bullying-related LGBT suicide would do something about to stop bullying. But you would be wrong.
The American Civil Liberties union today delivered a letter to the Tehachapi Unified School District in Tehachapi California, demanding that the school take steps to combat the anti-gay bullying that cost one Tehachapi student his life and is still making life hell for other LGBT students in the district.
Seth Walsh, a student who endured years of bullying and assault in Tehachapi schools, hanged himself from a plum tree in his family's backyard on September 19. Seth's mother found him. Seth was on life support for nine days and died on September 28. Seth Walsh was thirteen years old. Wendy Walsh contacted the ACLU after her son's death because she wanted to make sure that no other LBGT students would suffer what her son suffered.
"We went down to Tehachapi and talked with Seth's family, with his friends, and with other students," said Elizabath Gill, Staff Attorney for the ACLU's LGBT and AIDS project, "and we found that even after Seth's death the school district had not taken adequate steps to address anti-gay bullying. Some anti-gay bullying posters were put out and one school administrator was scheduled to attend one anti-harassment training session."
Seth, who came out to his parents in the sixth grade, cited the verbal and physical abuse he experienced at Tehachapi schools in the suicide note he left for his family. Seth's mother reported the harassment to school administrators before her son's death - and not only didn't school officials stop the harassment, the ACLU's investigation found, teachers and administrators encouraged and participated in the harassment:
One teacher called Seth "fruity" in front of an entire class. At one point kids were calling him anti-gay names in the hallway at school. A school administrator was right there and heard it all, and turned and walked away without doing anything.
In the course of the investigation the ACLU spoke to LGBT students who are currently enrolled in Tehachapi schools and found that anti-gay bullying - even in the wake of Seth's suicide - remains a pervasive problem in Tehachapi schools.
The ACLU's letter outlines five steps - five simple steps - that the school district can take:
1. Have strong and clear anti-harassment policies and programs.
2. Take all complaints of harassment seriously and properly address them when they happen.
3. Provide ongoing training for students, teachers, school counselors and administrators.
4. Explain the harmful impact of harassment to students and staff.
5. Support Gay-Straight Alliances on campus.
The ACLU is calling on all schools to take the five steps. The ACLU is also calling for the passage of the federal Student Non-Discrimination Act (SDNA) which would add sexual orientation to existing federal laws that ban discrimination against students based on race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin. The SDNA would also provide LGBT students and their families with legal recourse against schools that promote or tolerate harassment or discriminatory treatment.
This is me now - when will this society wake up to this discrimination? To this violation of civil rights for only one group of our society? Ask yourself - would any 13 year old CHOOSE to live this life, to be harassed, bullied, called names? Would you?
Anti-Gay Bullying Persists at School Where Seth Walsh was Bullied to Death - ACLU Demands.
You would think that a school district at the center of a high-profile, bullying-related LGBT suicide would do something about to stop bullying. But you would be wrong.
The American Civil Liberties union today delivered a letter to the Tehachapi Unified School District in Tehachapi California, demanding that the school take steps to combat the anti-gay bullying that cost one Tehachapi student his life and is still making life hell for other LGBT students in the district.
Seth Walsh, a student who endured years of bullying and assault in Tehachapi schools, hanged himself from a plum tree in his family's backyard on September 19. Seth's mother found him. Seth was on life support for nine days and died on September 28. Seth Walsh was thirteen years old. Wendy Walsh contacted the ACLU after her son's death because she wanted to make sure that no other LBGT students would suffer what her son suffered.
"We went down to Tehachapi and talked with Seth's family, with his friends, and with other students," said Elizabath Gill, Staff Attorney for the ACLU's LGBT and AIDS project, "and we found that even after Seth's death the school district had not taken adequate steps to address anti-gay bullying. Some anti-gay bullying posters were put out and one school administrator was scheduled to attend one anti-harassment training session."
Seth, who came out to his parents in the sixth grade, cited the verbal and physical abuse he experienced at Tehachapi schools in the suicide note he left for his family. Seth's mother reported the harassment to school administrators before her son's death - and not only didn't school officials stop the harassment, the ACLU's investigation found, teachers and administrators encouraged and participated in the harassment:
One teacher called Seth "fruity" in front of an entire class. At one point kids were calling him anti-gay names in the hallway at school. A school administrator was right there and heard it all, and turned and walked away without doing anything.
In the course of the investigation the ACLU spoke to LGBT students who are currently enrolled in Tehachapi schools and found that anti-gay bullying - even in the wake of Seth's suicide - remains a pervasive problem in Tehachapi schools.
The ACLU's letter outlines five steps - five simple steps - that the school district can take:
1. Have strong and clear anti-harassment policies and programs.
2. Take all complaints of harassment seriously and properly address them when they happen.
3. Provide ongoing training for students, teachers, school counselors and administrators.
4. Explain the harmful impact of harassment to students and staff.
5. Support Gay-Straight Alliances on campus.
The ACLU is calling on all schools to take the five steps. The ACLU is also calling for the passage of the federal Student Non-Discrimination Act (SDNA) which would add sexual orientation to existing federal laws that ban discrimination against students based on race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin. The SDNA would also provide LGBT students and their families with legal recourse against schools that promote or tolerate harassment or discriminatory treatment.
This is me now - when will this society wake up to this discrimination? To this violation of civil rights for only one group of our society? Ask yourself - would any 13 year old CHOOSE to live this life, to be harassed, bullied, called names? Would you?
Monday, December 13, 2010
Disruption
Conceived in a scandal, born in a barn,
Jesus disrupts and disturbs fallow lives.
He offended his people by breaking their rules,
bringing not peace, but a sword
to vanquish the old ways, to unshackle the laws.
He was a dissident, an insurgent, a dent in the world.
Some who'd awaited God's final word
were disappointed, insulted, outraged.
There was no throne, just a stumbling stone,
no peace before or after that day.
Your waiting is ended this Christmas morn,
a soul choice is His unending gift.
He is here. All is changed.
Now in silence He waits for you.
Jesus disrupts and disturbs fallow lives.
He offended his people by breaking their rules,
bringing not peace, but a sword
to vanquish the old ways, to unshackle the laws.
He was a dissident, an insurgent, a dent in the world.
Some who'd awaited God's final word
were disappointed, insulted, outraged.
There was no throne, just a stumbling stone,
no peace before or after that day.
Your waiting is ended this Christmas morn,
a soul choice is His unending gift.
He is here. All is changed.
Now in silence He waits for you.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
What If There Was A Day
A coexist poem
What If There Was a Day
when nothing happened,
in between wars and elections,
storms, giant waves, quakes and funnel clouds?
Teams had the day off, strikes were averted,
traffic moved like a dream,
thieves and attackers took a break.
Juries were sent home and judges napped,
school children forgot to bully and fight,
theater lights darkened, celebrities tired of their capers.
Reality shows were in rerun, mortgage rates
and the stock exchange remained as the day before.
No one was born, no one died.
Newspapers had nothing to print,
talking heads stopped talking,
all media were muted and stilled.
What if the cadence and rhythms of the planet
spun in harmony and coexistence
for just one day . . .
What If There Was a Day
when nothing happened,
in between wars and elections,
storms, giant waves, quakes and funnel clouds?
Teams had the day off, strikes were averted,
traffic moved like a dream,
thieves and attackers took a break.
Juries were sent home and judges napped,
school children forgot to bully and fight,
theater lights darkened, celebrities tired of their capers.
Reality shows were in rerun, mortgage rates
and the stock exchange remained as the day before.
No one was born, no one died.
Newspapers had nothing to print,
talking heads stopped talking,
all media were muted and stilled.
What if the cadence and rhythms of the planet
spun in harmony and coexistence
for just one day . . .
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
C. S. Lewis
Yesterday was the birthday of C. S. Lewis, (1898) the Christian apologist, professor, author and theologian - best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia. I remember first being impacted by his book "The Screwtape Letters" as a teenager. It is a series of letters from a demon to his nephew, in which he describes living out a Christian life as a typical human being. I wanted to read all the Narnia Chronicles aloud to my kids, but I think we only made it through the first few. I am not a big fantasy fan, but I love the Christian allegory that Narnia respresents (Aslan is Jesus - in case you're unaware). The recent movies are spectacular and I'm glad they have brought Lewis's work back in the spotlight. Here are a few of my favorite C.S.Lewis quotes:
Miracles are a retelling, in small letters, of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see.
Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.
What saves a man is to take a step. then another step.
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
"A Christmas Story" House
Cleveland's Tremont area is home to the house they filmed 1983's "A Christmas Story". Last time I went it was closed and I got exterior shots of the house. This time it was bustling with fans from all over the country. If you have never seen this classic tale of a childhood Christmas, tune in to TBS on Christmas Eve - it runs for 24 hours. You will see Cleveland's Public Square circa 1939 and get a child's viewpoint of Christmas. The house was mostly used to film exteriors and the rest was filmed in Toronto. If you live near Cleveland it is located at 3159 West 11th St.There is also a museum where you can see original clothing worn by the children, the original leg lamp and much more. Here are some photos I took today:
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Coexist Quotes
Yesterday would have been the 85th birthday of Robert Kennedy. I love the spirit of this quote, but it also reminds us that what we've always needed is still what we need today.
What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness, but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice towards those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.
What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness, but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice towards those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Another Reason to Like Betty White
"I don't care who anybody sleeps with. If a couple has been together all that time - and there are gay relationships that are more solid than heterosexual ones - I think it's fine if they want to get married. I don't know how people can get so anti-something. Mind your own business, take care of your affairs, and don't worry about other people so much."
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Coexist XXX
A recent article in our local papers defines coexisting in the best way. St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church members joined the Turkish American Society of Ohio to have dinner together, and at the same time debunk myths about the Muslim and Christian religions, stereotypes that have been built over centuries. It was the first of several planned events, including studies of the Koran and Bible on a regular basis, so they can better understand each other's religions.
The Reverend Joe Kovitch said, "Gathering around a meal is sacred. We've lost the sense of having dinners with our own families because of fast food. Jesus ate with his community. It's very central to Muslim and Christian worlds. When you eat with someone, they cease to be different or to be the enemy. It really worked."
One of the things they already learned is that Christians say a prayer before the meal, while Muslims say a prayer afterwards.
The local paper's editorial stated: It is time to take a cue from the Muslims and Christians who are breaking bread together in Mayfield and rise above the bitterness and hostility that has enveloped our society.. . . Only when people cast aside those blinders of prejudice and bias will this society truly prosper...
Jesus indeed ate even with the most reviled sinners of the community to show his compassion and acceptance, as brothers and sisters, something we often forget when we say - what would Jesus do???
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Northcoast Weather
There is a lot of whining and moaning about the weather in northeast Ohio. True, we do have something called "lake effect" and there is a distinct difference in the weather from the east side to the west side - a distance of only about 20 miles. But I, for one, do no complaining. First, I think the weather keeps life interesting. I love the change of seasons. But, I also don't think it's as bad as its reputation. Case in point: These first two weeks of November have been mostly sunny and in the 50's! It's a fluke you say! Not really. There are a pretty consistent run of "flukes" every year. You never know what you're going to get. It's been 65 on Christmas and it's snowed in the beginning of October on green leaves.
I don't remember, however, so many flowers blooming in November. These photos are from my yard - this week! So there!
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Composed - Rosanne Cash
I am a person grounded in reality. By that I mean I don't enjoy fantasy as much as reality (not as in reality shows however!) Of course, I love "The Wizard of Oz," but not "Lord of the Rings" so much. I don't read fantasy or science fiction, but I do love a good memoir or autobiography. If there is an article about a famous person I skip to the parts about their real life, not their accomplishments. I'm just interested in reading about how people live their lives.
I have read some horribly boring biographies and autobiographies filled with disconnected anecdotes and name-dropping. Some have left out any depth of feeling for their experiences which leaves you cold. Others are beautifully written - usually entirely written by the person, not with the help of another writer.
My two favorites so far have been Julie Andrews' "Home" and Jane Fonda's "My Life So Far." But this week I read another favorite - "Composed" by Rosanne Cash. I knew nothing about her, was not a fan, never heard her sing - but I'd heard OF her. I knew she was Johnny Cash's daughter.
I heard her being interviewed on NPR a couple months ago and found her eloquent and intelligent. She made me want to read her writing and I was not disappointed. She had wanted to be a writer early in life and she definitely is a writer - an excellent one. The memoir flowed with such beauty and grace, even if she was describing mistakes or painful emotions it was never pitiful or difficult to read. The beginning of the book has little about her famous father as she tells of her youthful urgency to forge her own life. Only later, when she writes of her parents does all of it fit together. What she writes about her father is truthful and touching, and she even includes the beautiful eulogies she composed for him, her mother and stepmother June Carter. But the memoir is most definitely hers.
Now I am listening to her songs and her passionate lyrics. We are only 6 months apart in age and the years of her marriages and children were happening at much the same time as mine, but beyond that it is just a beautifully written memoir I would recommend to any reality-loving, memoir-loving readers.
Here's a excerpt - I couldn't agree more:
We all need art and music like we need blood and oxygen. The more exploitative, numbing and assaulting popular culture becomes, the more we need the truth of a beautifully phrased song, dredged from a real person's depth of experience, delivered in an honest voice;the more we need the simplicity of paint on canvas, or the arc of a lonely body in the air, or the photographers's unflinching eye. Art, in the larger sense, is the lifeline to which I cling in a confusing, unfair, sometimes dehumanizing world.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
Since I posted their faces I guess I should have a follow-up. I watched most of the rally. It was silly, light-hearted and I think every one of the estimated 250,000 people on the mall in Washington DC had smiles plastered on their faces the entire time. No one looked scared.
I was excited when Stewart introduced the former Cat Stevens (now a Muslim named Yusef) and he began singing "Peace Train", after a verse or so he was interrupted by Ozzy Osbourne singing "Crazy Train" and finally he was interrupted by The O'Jays singing "Love Train". The mere diversity of music and people was enough to make the point that this is what America is.
Stewart became somewhat serious at the end of the rally, singling out the media for magnifying minor differences instead of what binds people together.
"If we amplify everything ,we hear nothing."
He went on to say:
"We hear every damn day how fragile this country is. It's a shame we can't work together to get things done. The truth is, we do. We work together to get things done every damn day. The only place we don't is here (meaning Washington DC) or on cable TV. But Americans don't live here or on cable TV. Where we live, our values, our principals form the foundation that sustains us while we get things done, not the barriers that prevent us from getting things done."
I was excited when Stewart introduced the former Cat Stevens (now a Muslim named Yusef) and he began singing "Peace Train", after a verse or so he was interrupted by Ozzy Osbourne singing "Crazy Train" and finally he was interrupted by The O'Jays singing "Love Train". The mere diversity of music and people was enough to make the point that this is what America is.
Stewart became somewhat serious at the end of the rally, singling out the media for magnifying minor differences instead of what binds people together.
"If we amplify everything ,we hear nothing."
He went on to say:
"We hear every damn day how fragile this country is. It's a shame we can't work together to get things done. The truth is, we do. We work together to get things done every damn day. The only place we don't is here (meaning Washington DC) or on cable TV. But Americans don't live here or on cable TV. Where we live, our values, our principals form the foundation that sustains us while we get things done, not the barriers that prevent us from getting things done."
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Quotes for Election Time
The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much. It is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
32nd Us President
In reality, conservatives and liberals need each other: Conservatives maintain many lines that should never be crossed, while liberals destroy many lines that never should have existed.
Let history show that conservatives have held the line against those who would allow pornography and sexually destructive forms of behavior to pervade the nation. They have been the countervailing influence that has preserved the best of our free enterprise system against dangerous socialist tendencies, and they are the ones who have worked hard to ensure that non-sectarian religion remains a significant ingredient in public discourse.
But before conservatives get too proud about being the flying buttresses that have kept the great American traditions from collapsing, they should consider that liberals led the campaign to give women the right to vote, and were also the primary advocates for civil rights legislation. Liberals were the ones who challenged long-established racial and gender lines that had made many Americans into second-class citizens . . . neither end of the political spectrum has a corner on the will of God.
Tony Campolo
from the book "Red Letter Christians"
If a house is divided among itself, that house cannot stand.
Jesus
Mark 3:25
Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all others because you were born in it.
George Bernard Shaw
1856-1950
Franklin D. Roosevelt
32nd Us President
In reality, conservatives and liberals need each other: Conservatives maintain many lines that should never be crossed, while liberals destroy many lines that never should have existed.
Let history show that conservatives have held the line against those who would allow pornography and sexually destructive forms of behavior to pervade the nation. They have been the countervailing influence that has preserved the best of our free enterprise system against dangerous socialist tendencies, and they are the ones who have worked hard to ensure that non-sectarian religion remains a significant ingredient in public discourse.
But before conservatives get too proud about being the flying buttresses that have kept the great American traditions from collapsing, they should consider that liberals led the campaign to give women the right to vote, and were also the primary advocates for civil rights legislation. Liberals were the ones who challenged long-established racial and gender lines that had made many Americans into second-class citizens . . . neither end of the political spectrum has a corner on the will of God.
Tony Campolo
from the book "Red Letter Christians"
If a house is divided among itself, that house cannot stand.
Jesus
Mark 3:25
Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all others because you were born in it.
George Bernard Shaw
1856-1950
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wine
I am a teacher. He is a research scientist. He likes to make wine. I like to drink it. Here's the 2010 batch in process.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Walking Away From Church
"Walking away from church" is the title of an article in yesterday's L.A. Times by Robert D. Putnam and David E. Campbell. Here are some quotes from the article:
The most rapidly growing religious category today is composed of those Americans who say they have no religious affiliation. While middle-aged and older Americans continue to embrace organized religion, rapidly increasing numbers of young people are rejecting it.
Between 25% and 30% of twentysomethings today say they have no religious affiliation - roughly four times higher than in any previous generation.
So why this sudden jump in youthful disaffection from organized religion? The surprising answer, according to a mounting body of evidence, is politics. Very few of these "nones" actually call themselves atheists, and many have rather conventional beliefs about God and theology. But they have been alienated from organized religion by its increasingly conservative politics.
Just as this generation moved left on most social issues - above all homosexuality - many prominent religious leaders moved to the right, using the issue of same-sex marriage to mobilize electoral support for conservative Republicans. In the short run this tactic worked to increase GOP turnout, but the subsequent backlash undermined sympathy for religion among many young moderates and progressives. Increasingly young people saw religion as intolerant, hypocritical, judgmental and homophobic. If being religious entailed political conservatism, they concluded, religion was not for them.
I have seen this first hand. Something to think about.
To read the whole article click here:
www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-1017-putnam-religion-20101017,0,6283320.story
The most rapidly growing religious category today is composed of those Americans who say they have no religious affiliation. While middle-aged and older Americans continue to embrace organized religion, rapidly increasing numbers of young people are rejecting it.
Between 25% and 30% of twentysomethings today say they have no religious affiliation - roughly four times higher than in any previous generation.
So why this sudden jump in youthful disaffection from organized religion? The surprising answer, according to a mounting body of evidence, is politics. Very few of these "nones" actually call themselves atheists, and many have rather conventional beliefs about God and theology. But they have been alienated from organized religion by its increasingly conservative politics.
Just as this generation moved left on most social issues - above all homosexuality - many prominent religious leaders moved to the right, using the issue of same-sex marriage to mobilize electoral support for conservative Republicans. In the short run this tactic worked to increase GOP turnout, but the subsequent backlash undermined sympathy for religion among many young moderates and progressives. Increasingly young people saw religion as intolerant, hypocritical, judgmental and homophobic. If being religious entailed political conservatism, they concluded, religion was not for them.
I have seen this first hand. Something to think about.
To read the whole article click here:
www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-1017-putnam-religion-20101017,0,6283320.story
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Bullying
There has been a lot of press about bullying lately. Children in school are bullied to the point of despair - especially gay children. We have all read the stories. A local high school has had four suicides recently. Children and teenagers don't have enough perspective on life to realize that it can ever get better, or that life will go on after high school.
Where do children learn to hate those who are different? If you watch very young children at play they rarely even notice differences in each other. It is learned somewhere. There are churches that profess to be Christian - which means they follow the teachings of Jesus - who preach that gay people are evil, sinful, unworthy. Jesus certainly never taught that, but if there are children in that church, what message have they received? We all know that Jesus taught us to love each other, and our enemies. In Matthew 22:5 he says, "But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subjected to judgment."
If those children hear political discussions at home against gay marriage they have received the message that there are people out there who are less valuable than they are - otherwise why would they not be deserving of the same rights?
Dan Savage is a popular writer, columnist and blogger. He is gay and has started a campaign called, "It gets better". Many Hollywood stars have come on board with messages to gay teens that life does get better. His column this week (you can read it in Scene magazine) included a letter from a professing Christian who disagreed with Dan's previous thoughts on how many Christians encourage bullying by their beliefs.
He wrote,"The kids of people who see gay people as sinful or damaged or disordered and unworthy of full civil equality learn to see gay people as sinful, damaged and disordered and unworthy. And while there may not be any gay adults or couples where you live, I promise you that there are gay and lesbian children in your schools. And while you can only attack at the ballot box, your children have the option of attacking actual gays and lesbians, in person, in real time.
Real gay and lesbian children. Not political abstractions, not "sinners". Gay and lesbian children."
A final point: What do you call politians who waste millions of dollars of advertising by name-calling, mud-slinging, outright lies and half-truths against their opponents. I call them BULLIES. When will we reject this type of advertising? Why is anyone sponsoring it? Personally I am insulted every time I see one because these ads assume that we are gullible and stupid if they think we would blindly accept their ridiculous accusations. I am in favor of outlawing ads that mention the opposing candidates and only refer to what that person intends to do if elected. But, of course, that will never happen, because this is America and we love free speech. I don't believe ANY of them anymore. But children are looking and listening. These so-called public servants are teaching them how to be bullies.
Where do children learn to hate those who are different? If you watch very young children at play they rarely even notice differences in each other. It is learned somewhere. There are churches that profess to be Christian - which means they follow the teachings of Jesus - who preach that gay people are evil, sinful, unworthy. Jesus certainly never taught that, but if there are children in that church, what message have they received? We all know that Jesus taught us to love each other, and our enemies. In Matthew 22:5 he says, "But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subjected to judgment."
If those children hear political discussions at home against gay marriage they have received the message that there are people out there who are less valuable than they are - otherwise why would they not be deserving of the same rights?
Dan Savage is a popular writer, columnist and blogger. He is gay and has started a campaign called, "It gets better". Many Hollywood stars have come on board with messages to gay teens that life does get better. His column this week (you can read it in Scene magazine) included a letter from a professing Christian who disagreed with Dan's previous thoughts on how many Christians encourage bullying by their beliefs.
He wrote,"The kids of people who see gay people as sinful or damaged or disordered and unworthy of full civil equality learn to see gay people as sinful, damaged and disordered and unworthy. And while there may not be any gay adults or couples where you live, I promise you that there are gay and lesbian children in your schools. And while you can only attack at the ballot box, your children have the option of attacking actual gays and lesbians, in person, in real time.
Real gay and lesbian children. Not political abstractions, not "sinners". Gay and lesbian children."
A final point: What do you call politians who waste millions of dollars of advertising by name-calling, mud-slinging, outright lies and half-truths against their opponents. I call them BULLIES. When will we reject this type of advertising? Why is anyone sponsoring it? Personally I am insulted every time I see one because these ads assume that we are gullible and stupid if they think we would blindly accept their ridiculous accusations. I am in favor of outlawing ads that mention the opposing candidates and only refer to what that person intends to do if elected. But, of course, that will never happen, because this is America and we love free speech. I don't believe ANY of them anymore. But children are looking and listening. These so-called public servants are teaching them how to be bullies.
Monday, October 11, 2010
National Coming Out Day
Today is National Coming Out Day, a internationally observed civil awareness day for coming out and discussion about gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender issues. It is observed by the members of the LGBT communities and their supporters (often referred to as allies)on October 11 every year.
I am an ally. I have known and loved a number of gay people. I always believed that it is not a choice. One dear friend looked me in the eye and said, "No one would choose to be gay" and I believed him. There have always been gay people and there always will be. Nearly all scientific studies have found that same-sex attraction is not chosen. Yet, in America we continue to discriminate against and deny rights to gay people - our fellow citizens.
I have been reading a book by Tony Campolo - a renown and leading evangelist for the past several decades. His book "Red Letter Christians" discusses Christian views on current topics. "Red letter" refers to the words of Jesus, often highlighted in red in many bibles - the words that are so often ignored by Christians in favor of misinterpreting a few sentences in the Old Testament instead of heeding the new covenant that Jesus brought by his life and example here on earth.
The following are some quotes from "Red Letter Christians."
Most people agree when it is asserted by homosexual rights groups that if gays and lesbians pay taxes, they should have all the same rights as the rest of us. Right now, gay couples are denied some of these basic rights.
The US government Accountability Office cites 1,138 rights enjoyed by heterosexual couples that presently are denied to homosexual couples.
Almost 10,000 young men and women have been thrown out of the American armed services since this policy hwas put in place.(2008 data).
24 foreign nations, including Israel, Great Britain and other allies in the fight against terrorism let gays serve openly, with none reporting morale or recruitment problems.
Justice for gays and lesbians should be on the political front burner for Red Letter Christians on election day because it is impossible to tell people we love them if we deny them the basic rights we enjoy. And loving people - all people - is clearly preached in the red letters of the Bible. (See Matt.22:37-39
I am an ally. I have known and loved a number of gay people. I always believed that it is not a choice. One dear friend looked me in the eye and said, "No one would choose to be gay" and I believed him. There have always been gay people and there always will be. Nearly all scientific studies have found that same-sex attraction is not chosen. Yet, in America we continue to discriminate against and deny rights to gay people - our fellow citizens.
I have been reading a book by Tony Campolo - a renown and leading evangelist for the past several decades. His book "Red Letter Christians" discusses Christian views on current topics. "Red letter" refers to the words of Jesus, often highlighted in red in many bibles - the words that are so often ignored by Christians in favor of misinterpreting a few sentences in the Old Testament instead of heeding the new covenant that Jesus brought by his life and example here on earth.
The following are some quotes from "Red Letter Christians."
Most people agree when it is asserted by homosexual rights groups that if gays and lesbians pay taxes, they should have all the same rights as the rest of us. Right now, gay couples are denied some of these basic rights.
The US government Accountability Office cites 1,138 rights enjoyed by heterosexual couples that presently are denied to homosexual couples.
Almost 10,000 young men and women have been thrown out of the American armed services since this policy hwas put in place.(2008 data).
24 foreign nations, including Israel, Great Britain and other allies in the fight against terrorism let gays serve openly, with none reporting morale or recruitment problems.
Justice for gays and lesbians should be on the political front burner for Red Letter Christians on election day because it is impossible to tell people we love them if we deny them the basic rights we enjoy. And loving people - all people - is clearly preached in the red letters of the Bible. (See Matt.22:37-39
Sunday, October 10, 2010
TREES!
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy, they will sing before the Lord.
Psalm 96:12
Oh, how they are singing on this glorious October day. It's 10-10-10!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Is it "1984"?
Last night on the national news there were two stories that made me wonder if we're going to be living in Oceania in George Orwell's "1984". One was a mayor in California that has outlawed drive-throughs in any business in the city because he has decided that people are lazy and don't walk enough. I don't know about you but I don't imagine that getting out of your car and walking 17 steps into McDonald's to buy your Big Mac and large fries is going to do a lot of good. Remember being a lone mom or dad with two toddlers in car seats? Wouldn't you still like the option of driving through to get a few McNuggets to give a teething child?
Well, at least we can still order the food we want - or can we? The second story was about the fact that McDonald's is about to make a policy that Happy Meals will no longer come with a toy unless there is a salad or fruit in the meal. I guess that one won't kill anyone, but come on - taking away the choice of what to feed your child and let them have a toy at the same time? I suspect many parents will be buying TWO Happy Meals - one with a toy and then the one without.
Don't get me wrong, being a teacher in an elementary school where the majority of children qualify for free breakfasts and lunches - I am the first one to say we need to offer them much healthier food - not Pop-Tarts and sugar-laden muffins for breakfast and pizza for lunch. But they are children and we try to teach good healthy habits. The stories above are making decisions for adults. Is "Big Brother" going to censor our every move in the name of health.
I think just about every American knows how to be healthy. We all know what a healthy diet is, and we know we should exercise, but I doubt that we will make those choices because of efforts in that direction by government officials or large corporations.
Education and options are important in this free society, but micromanaging American citizens lives ? Not so much. I never go to McDonald's so it doesn't matter to me - but I'm just saying :)....
Well, at least we can still order the food we want - or can we? The second story was about the fact that McDonald's is about to make a policy that Happy Meals will no longer come with a toy unless there is a salad or fruit in the meal. I guess that one won't kill anyone, but come on - taking away the choice of what to feed your child and let them have a toy at the same time? I suspect many parents will be buying TWO Happy Meals - one with a toy and then the one without.
Don't get me wrong, being a teacher in an elementary school where the majority of children qualify for free breakfasts and lunches - I am the first one to say we need to offer them much healthier food - not Pop-Tarts and sugar-laden muffins for breakfast and pizza for lunch. But they are children and we try to teach good healthy habits. The stories above are making decisions for adults. Is "Big Brother" going to censor our every move in the name of health.
I think just about every American knows how to be healthy. We all know what a healthy diet is, and we know we should exercise, but I doubt that we will make those choices because of efforts in that direction by government officials or large corporations.
Education and options are important in this free society, but micromanaging American citizens lives ? Not so much. I never go to McDonald's so it doesn't matter to me - but I'm just saying :)....
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Julie Andrews
Yesterday on NPR I heard that it was Julie Andrews' 75th birthday and I smiled. Julie was my childhood idol. I loved her in Mary Poppins and then - THEN! - on my 10th birthday I saw "The Sound of Music" and it has been my favorite movie ever since (and that's a long time). Somewhere in the bottom of an old trunk probably lies a large envelope full of every photograph of her from every movie magazine in the 60's that I could find. I still think Julie is beautiful, immensely talented and the epitome of eloquence and grace. I wanted to BE her - and I still do :)
Her 2008 memoir called "Home" is much more than the usual celebrity list of anecdotes. It is a fascinating and touching memoir of her life right up until her big break in Mary Poppins. I do hope she writes another one and tells us the rest of the story as only she can.
In 2003 I had the amazing opportunity to go to Salzburg Austria on a choir tour.(That's me in Salzburg in the photo.) I had the excitement of a child on Christmas Eve anticipating the chance to walk where Julie walked during the filming of "The Sound of Music". I knew the places and the songs by heart. It was just as glorious as I imagined and of course, being in Europe, it still looked exactly the same as it did in the 1965 movie. I climbed the same steps that they sang "Do-Re'Mi" on and stood by the fountain where she sang "I Have Confidence". (There's a video somewhere of me at the front of the tour bus leading a rendition of "Do-Re-Me" too.)
I don't really believe in celebrity worship, but Julie... well, that's different.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Squaw Rock
Only a few minutes from my house in an area of the magnificent Cleveland Metroparks system is Squaw Rock. The trails around it are cut into hilly prehistoric rock formations. If you walk just a short way from the parking lot you can see the sculpture. A blacksmith named Henry Church sculpted it into the rock near the Chagrin River in 1885 to tell the story of the Native Americans, which he called,"the rape of the Indians by the white man."
Into the sandstone he carved a quiver of arrows, a giant serpent, an eagle, a woman with a skull behind her and a baby in a papoose. The other side of the rock has an image of a log cabin and the first capital building in Washington DC.
You never know what you may find on a short walk in a park.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Quotes for Perspective
Immigration is certainly not a new problem. Native Americans used to call it White People.
For all our conceits about being the center of the universe, we live in a routine planet of a humdrum star stuck in an obscure corner...on an unexceptional galaxy which is one of about 100 billion galaxies... That is the fundamental fact of the universe we inhabit, and it is very good for us to understand that.
Carl Sagan, astronomer and writer (1934-1996)
Now is the time to understand that all your ideas of right and wrong were just a child's training wheels to be laid aside when you finally live with veracity and love.
Hafez
For all our conceits about being the center of the universe, we live in a routine planet of a humdrum star stuck in an obscure corner...on an unexceptional galaxy which is one of about 100 billion galaxies... That is the fundamental fact of the universe we inhabit, and it is very good for us to understand that.
Carl Sagan, astronomer and writer (1934-1996)
Now is the time to understand that all your ideas of right and wrong were just a child's training wheels to be laid aside when you finally live with veracity and love.
Hafez
Sunday, September 12, 2010
La Convivencia
from Wikipedia
La Convivencia ("the Coexistence") is a term used to describe a postulated situation in Spanish history from the Muslim Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 to 1492 - concurrent with the Reconquista ("Reconquest") - when Jews, Muslims, and Catholics in Spain lived in relative peace together within the different kingdoms. The phrase often refers to the interplay of cultural ideas between the three groups, and ideas of religious tolerance.
Too bad this is ancient history...
La Convivencia ("the Coexistence") is a term used to describe a postulated situation in Spanish history from the Muslim Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 to 1492 - concurrent with the Reconquista ("Reconquest") - when Jews, Muslims, and Catholics in Spain lived in relative peace together within the different kingdoms. The phrase often refers to the interplay of cultural ideas between the three groups, and ideas of religious tolerance.
Too bad this is ancient history...
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
Photoshop of Horrors
If at my age, I am still secretly comparing myself to images on television and in magazines I can only imagine what it's like for teenaged girls growing up in the age of Photoshop. Recently,Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Connie Schultz reported on a popular website for 18-34 year olds called Jezebel.com. Whenever the website discovers unretouched photos of celebrities they post the before and after Photoshopped photos. One of their first ones was a photo of singer Faith Hill on the cover of Redbook in July 2007. Connie Schultz wrote "The difference between the two images was not just striking, but stomach-turning. Editors had digitally poofed up her hair, deflated her cheeks, shaved inches off her left arm and removed her right arm altogether. They erased fine lines from her face, the protruding clavicle from her chest and the tiny bit of back flesh blooming over the top of her sundress. Her previously small waist was whittled to the size of a 10 year-olds."
Why? What's wrong with being a naturally pretty woman? Why do magazines that are supposedly for women make us all look at images that are literally impossible to live up to?
For awhile I subscribed to a magazine called "More" because it was promoted as a magazine for women over 40. Great, I thought. But after awhile I became really annoyed with a section called "This is what 40 looks like, or 50 or 60..." But of course the women looked nowhere near those ages. I thought here we are again - being told to live up to perfection.
My favorite chuckle of every month is seeing how Oprah miraculously loses 30 or 40 pounds for her magazine cover and somehow gains it all back for the taping of her show. Who are they kidding???
Schultz quoted Jezebel editor Jessica Coen: Remember that every day a young woman somewhere sees one of these overly polished pictures for the first time... and has no idea that they're not real...She may well have no idea that most waists don't really bend without a roll of flesh, that a 40-year old woman actually does have some wrinkles, that no mascara will make one's lashes long enought to tickle her eyebrows. What the girl does know is that the pictures show What is Beautiful. She thinks they are reality. And maybe she doesn't have someone in her life to point out that this is complete and utter bullshit.
Above you can see an unretouched photo of Madonna looking like, well, kinda like a 52-year old woman who is in good shape. The Brittany Spears photo is a small example of retouching. You can click to enlarge.
Monday, August 30, 2010
600 Things to Say
Somehow over the past three years I have had 600 things to say. So for my 600th post I'm just going to keep it light-hearted and share a photo of my son's unique wedding cake - all edible! It's a drum set, and I loved the cracked cymbal because I bought my wild drummer boy many replacement cymbals over the years (and drumsticks of course!)
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Summer 2010 Miscellany
We just completed our 8th annual bocce tournament to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association. (Yes, we have an 80' court in our back yard) This is Nick, one of our scorekeepers. Through the great generosity of neighbors, friends and family we raised over $5000 this year - in the pouring rain. My husband and stepson will present the check at the local station for Jerry Lewis's Labor Day telethon. (You can see the coveted bocce ball trophy on the far left.)
These fellows were sitting outside a Starbucks, untethered, waiting patiently for their master. I don't know about you but I've never had a dog that would do that.
I enjoyed the fragrance of this gardenia bush all summer. If I brought one blossom inside it would fill a whole room with its lovely scent.
A hybiscus is the most generous plant I've ever had. It gives you new flowers every single day. It particularly enjoyed the heat and humidity of Summer 2010. (I did not however.)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Every Living Thing Clings to Life
The house plant with one leaf,
the elderly dog who won't leave you
until you decide for her,
the trapped insect butting
against the screen, searching,
the man who awakens from a long coma.
Every living thing clings to life,
my canary, his legs could no longer
hold him, his mere ounces,
he rested his head on the seed cup
I placed on the floor of his cage
for as long as he could.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Better
These are the lyrics to the song my son and I danced to at his wedding. I had played the song for him years ago and he remembered and chose it for our special moment - and it was perfect.
by Toby Lightman
He'll be enough to make you cry
He'll be enough to open your eyes
to all the little things that make this world better.
He'll give you love you never knew.
He'll give his heart only to you
and he'll make your life better.
So when he comes to you in the middle of the night
cause he's scared to be alone in the dark
you'll tell him everything is gonna be alright
'cause I will be your light, I will be your night
I will be that star in the sky who watches over you.
You'll tell him everything you know.
You'll tell him - oh, the places you'll go
so you can be a good man and make this world better.
You'll give him all the love you have
even when he makes you so mad,
keep in mind that he made your life better.
So when he comes to you and he's so confused
because he wants to give his heart to another,
you'll tell him everything is gonna be just fine.
And when the years are going by too fast
and he's growing up to be big and strong,
know his love for you will last,
even when he doesn't say it to your face
even when you have to put him in his place,
know that he's a love that nothing in this
world can ever replace.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Turnings
This is the poem I wrote for my son's wedding.
They started in the last season of childhood;
she in a red dress, he in a white suit,
a lovely Mexican flower, a boy with drumming passion.
The spring sun enveloped them in its light and warmth;
a harbinger before the changes, before the growing,
in a sacred turning only God understands.
Now, in this summer of committment they have brought
unguarded hearts, burgeoning dreams,
and Providence has arrived.
Surrounded by fragile hopes and tender mercies
the thread between heaven and earth is spliced into
this moment, tethered to the cradle of a united life.
In the sweet shelter of autumn, some days
will be hungrier than others, and on those days,
burrowing into their home, folding into each other,
they will lift up their eyes, palms raised and open,
and weave themselves together like a bountiful basket
as if they could hold love in their arms.
The winter solstice has not yet come,
but when it does they will not be alone.
Traveling through wind and snow, coming home to love,
they have found something as never-ending as the seasons,
for brought to each new awakening is the
fellowship in mere living, the survival of being loved.
They started in the last season of childhood;
she in a red dress, he in a white suit,
a lovely Mexican flower, a boy with drumming passion.
The spring sun enveloped them in its light and warmth;
a harbinger before the changes, before the growing,
in a sacred turning only God understands.
Now, in this summer of committment they have brought
unguarded hearts, burgeoning dreams,
and Providence has arrived.
Surrounded by fragile hopes and tender mercies
the thread between heaven and earth is spliced into
this moment, tethered to the cradle of a united life.
In the sweet shelter of autumn, some days
will be hungrier than others, and on those days,
burrowing into their home, folding into each other,
they will lift up their eyes, palms raised and open,
and weave themselves together like a bountiful basket
as if they could hold love in their arms.
The winter solstice has not yet come,
but when it does they will not be alone.
Traveling through wind and snow, coming home to love,
they have found something as never-ending as the seasons,
for brought to each new awakening is the
fellowship in mere living, the survival of being loved.
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