There's something on my mind I need to write about. It has to do with when others are hurting and I feel powerless to help or change their situation. Do others feel this way sometimes?
I believe so, especially when confronted with a natural disaster or crisis that hits close to home, such as an illness or like the hurricane Katrina devastation. So many were left affected by that storm. For example, the children. I have an on-line friend (I've never met her in person) through an adoption triad support group list. It's a list from the home I was originally adopted out of, in New Orleans, in 1964. I joined the list five years ago when I was thinking about searching for my birth family (that's a whole other long story for another blog). My friend is a teacher at a school in a Louisiana Parish city an hour or so north of New Orleans. She has been writing to me about the children "survivors" the Red Cross brought into her community. Some of these children not only lost their homes but lost their parents as well. She wrote to me the other day:
"The kids at school are so restless. They want to go home, and some of them have no home or school to go too. I can't find enough words to help them out. I find myself getting frustrated, and I can only imagine how they feel. There are so many new problems to deal with. I don't think any of us anticipated the changes that would come about with devastation such as this. The classrooms are so crowded, not enough textbooks, supplies are so limited, and the children are so frustrated because they are multi-levels. The kids from public schools in New Orleans are among the lowest level in our State. Whereas our Parish, is one of the highest level school systems in the State. I think the younger children are more at an advantage than the older children. They can at least blend in a little more, and try to catch up a little easier. My heart just hurts for these kids."
I'm glad my friend writes to me personally and lets me know a real day-to-day recovery side of the story that otherwise would be lost in the greater scheme of world news these days. Here is a story of the heart, for the heart. And my heart is moved when I read what my friend writes. Yet I'm in NY, how can I possibly give of my presence and time? And, I'm a nun with no personal monies of my own significance to give towards supplies. I feel powerless to effect any sort of change in those children's lives, that they're needing right now. It's frustrating for me, and I'm just waiting for someone to say, "you can always pray."
That may be fine for you, but it is not enough for me that I only pray for these children. My friend shared with me her frustrations and her aching heart, not so I'd do anything about it, just because she needed to share her aching heart. But my own heart of compassion just won't seem to let me read it and sit on it and do nothing about it.
The world is so big. And we cannot even seem to take care of our own children. We are over in some foreign country fighting a war over oil instead of looking at our consumption of fossil fuel and using our God given creativity to come up with new ways of living so we don't have to depend on so much on those fossil fuels. I'm angry because we could be using the money we're spending over in Iraq to be taking care of our displace New Orleans children and families. President Bush gave those families $2,000 debit cards. Did he seriously think that was going to begin to get them back on their feet? They still have no homes to go back to, no jobs....nothing!
AND.....we have children who have suffered horrendous loses of home, some have lost their parents, they've lost their way of life as they knew it and they have been relocated to another community, put in a school where textbooks and supplies run short and the academic levels suddenly show the inequalities of which they've been treated in the educational system.
Where is the space for these children to grieve their loses? Where are the supplies these children need? These children should not have to be going to school frustrated every day without having supplies. Haven't they lost enough? What is wrong with this nation? Where has our compassion gone?
I may feel powerless, but I'm not powerless. I can empower myself to share this story with others locally and connect those with resources to those without. I can allow my prayer to strengthen me into action. Otherwise, my prayer and god are a powerless prayer and god.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Apathy or Ache?
Last Wednesday, International Peace Day, I was invited to speak to students and faculty at a very large public high school in Ridgefield, CT. E., a senior at the school who made the arrangements, is what her mother calls an "old soul." She had arranged a room upstairs and across from the cafeteria. Students could get their food then come into the room and join us for an open forum and discussion about peace. She had asked friends to come, and made announcements at the school. I'm not sure what other advertising there was. Less than 1% of the student population showed up.
From the cars and local shops, I observed that Ridgefield, CT is an upper class suburban township. I googled the high school and found the following statistics: has an enrollment of about 1424 (grades 9-12); is 93% white; and only 2% of the students are receiving free or reduced-price lunches. Let me tell you, that public school was NICE!
Enter a nun in habit, ready to open a discussion about what the Earth can teach us about peace. There are four lunch periods, each 45 minutes long. The first period, one student showed up. A young man, whom E. actually didn't know. I was standing in the hallway and he asked why. Apparently I peaked his interest with my topic (the Earth teaching us about peace), so he decided to stay. But halfway through he challenged me. He said he did not believe peace was possible in our lifetime, or ever. It would take a change of consciousness that he did not believe was possible for humans to make. The second lunch period, no students showed up. The third lunch period, no students showed up at first, then with only 15 minutes until the end three came and two teachers (so I gave the cliff notes version). The fourth lunch period, four of E.'s friends came and three parents, one being E.'s mom. E. had mentioned that when she asked one of her friends to come to the talk she'd told her, "Why bother? It's a waste of time. There will never be peace."
So what was this? I asked myself. A school filled with teens headed toward adulthood and college. Obviously most of them (according to the statistics 98%) not having to worry about their basic needs being met and most likely having much more than they could possibly need or want. Yet they haven't the time or care to waste in talking about world peace. It looked like apathy to me. Why should they care? Look at all they had. They didn't have to worry about anything, about whether their town well was being drained dry by the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, or whether their drinking water was being polluted by the milling factory making their clothes, or whether some foreign government was trying to force their way into their homes and lives.
But Sr. Catherine Grace had a different idea. She thought perhaps what they were displaying more than apathy, was ache. Ache because there's a deep, inherent part inside of them that somehow knows that everything their parents are pushing them to do and succeed and have is somehow disconnected and killing a part of themselves as it kills the Earth.
I shared this with the few students who did come to talk about peace. And I'll write it here as clear as I'm able. (I don't have a board in which to draw a picture.) It's my belief that one of the reasons we don't have peace today is because humans have removed themselves from the processes of the Earth. The Earth is ONE process which INCLUDES the human being. And humans aren't the end of that process or necessarily at the top of that process. Because we have disconnected ourselves from that process, we developed a sense of entitlement and possession when it comes to the Earth, its resources and, at times, other people. Thus we use the Earth and we use people and when we're through with them, they're dispensable.
If we, as humans, were able to make a major consciousness shift and re-connect...."re-member" that we are a part of the Earth processes, then we would be unable to treat the Earth and our brothers and sisters the way we do now. Because we would understand that so as we treat them, we are treating ourselves.
From the cars and local shops, I observed that Ridgefield, CT is an upper class suburban township. I googled the high school and found the following statistics: has an enrollment of about 1424 (grades 9-12); is 93% white; and only 2% of the students are receiving free or reduced-price lunches. Let me tell you, that public school was NICE!
Enter a nun in habit, ready to open a discussion about what the Earth can teach us about peace. There are four lunch periods, each 45 minutes long. The first period, one student showed up. A young man, whom E. actually didn't know. I was standing in the hallway and he asked why. Apparently I peaked his interest with my topic (the Earth teaching us about peace), so he decided to stay. But halfway through he challenged me. He said he did not believe peace was possible in our lifetime, or ever. It would take a change of consciousness that he did not believe was possible for humans to make. The second lunch period, no students showed up. The third lunch period, no students showed up at first, then with only 15 minutes until the end three came and two teachers (so I gave the cliff notes version). The fourth lunch period, four of E.'s friends came and three parents, one being E.'s mom. E. had mentioned that when she asked one of her friends to come to the talk she'd told her, "Why bother? It's a waste of time. There will never be peace."
So what was this? I asked myself. A school filled with teens headed toward adulthood and college. Obviously most of them (according to the statistics 98%) not having to worry about their basic needs being met and most likely having much more than they could possibly need or want. Yet they haven't the time or care to waste in talking about world peace. It looked like apathy to me. Why should they care? Look at all they had. They didn't have to worry about anything, about whether their town well was being drained dry by the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, or whether their drinking water was being polluted by the milling factory making their clothes, or whether some foreign government was trying to force their way into their homes and lives.
But Sr. Catherine Grace had a different idea. She thought perhaps what they were displaying more than apathy, was ache. Ache because there's a deep, inherent part inside of them that somehow knows that everything their parents are pushing them to do and succeed and have is somehow disconnected and killing a part of themselves as it kills the Earth.
I shared this with the few students who did come to talk about peace. And I'll write it here as clear as I'm able. (I don't have a board in which to draw a picture.) It's my belief that one of the reasons we don't have peace today is because humans have removed themselves from the processes of the Earth. The Earth is ONE process which INCLUDES the human being. And humans aren't the end of that process or necessarily at the top of that process. Because we have disconnected ourselves from that process, we developed a sense of entitlement and possession when it comes to the Earth, its resources and, at times, other people. Thus we use the Earth and we use people and when we're through with them, they're dispensable.
If we, as humans, were able to make a major consciousness shift and re-connect...."re-member" that we are a part of the Earth processes, then we would be unable to treat the Earth and our brothers and sisters the way we do now. Because we would understand that so as we treat them, we are treating ourselves.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Compline chorus
I'm a bit uneasy tonight. Rita is bearing down on the Texas/Louisiana coast, headed straight for an area my older brother lives. He lives in Jasper, just north of Beaumont. I'm worried about the tornadoes that will be spawned.
Whereas the Gulf Coast has been dealing with nature's force and destruction the past two months, tonight I was blessed to experience what I call "the healing side of nature." As we were singing Compline, we had some voices of nature join us. During the chanting of the Psalms an owl added a few hoots, and at the close of the office we heard the coyotes yipping and howling. There was something calming in hearing the sounds of nature join our chorus. Reminding me of the deep connection and interconnectedness we have with all creation.
Whereas the Gulf Coast has been dealing with nature's force and destruction the past two months, tonight I was blessed to experience what I call "the healing side of nature." As we were singing Compline, we had some voices of nature join us. During the chanting of the Psalms an owl added a few hoots, and at the close of the office we heard the coyotes yipping and howling. There was something calming in hearing the sounds of nature join our chorus. Reminding me of the deep connection and interconnectedness we have with all creation.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Can you imagine...Compassion?
In response to a friend about 'demons' in society I wrote in an email today: The demons were our government refusing to treat our brothers and sisters in crisis with compassion. Can you imagine Christ (seeing our brothers and sisters drowning, hungry, thristing, loosing all from a storm that wiped them out on Monday) flying over in a helicopter on Wednesday and saying, "I'll send help by Friday?"
Monday, September 05, 2005
Only One Color -- Skin Deep
There was a lady in line behind me yesterday at the grocery store asking how long it took to get one of the saver cards. She was from out of town. I told her she could let the cashier know she was from out of town and ask for a courtesy scan. Because of the "color of her skin," I started to ask where she was from, but didn't ask. Was afraid to hear the words, "New Orleans." Afraid I'd start crying right there in the store. I wish I had listened to my heart more than my head. I was getting one of those Spirit tugs I sometimes get.
This morning, reading the paper, I finally gave into the tears. Went to the chapel and had a good sit down cry about the atrocities in New Orleans, the apparent racism that still plagues our country, the inequalities in our own homeland. The death tolls are going to be astounding and, I believe when the numbers start to come in, numbing. I hope that Americans across the country are shaking their heads in disbelief and wondering how could that be in this day and age, in the year 2005, in the 21st century. It should not have happened. It was preventable with planning. It was a foreseeable disaster. An evacuation plan should have been in place 20 years ago. But the poor and especially the poor minorities in our country are not treated equally. And it is something Americans are to be ashamed of.
Here is something I learned at Genesis Farm. It was like a laser hitting me between the eyes the day I learned this. It was so incredible. I was sitting in my chair listening to Dr. Larry Edwards explain about skin pigment. I may get the facts a bit skewed until I'm able to get my hands on the Sci-Am. Articles, but the gist is that we all (everyone of us) have the exact same kind of and same amount of skin pigment in our bodies. What is different is where it lies -- whether closer to the top or further down. And that is what causes the gradation of colors.
Now, really think about that for a minute. Are you getting it? There's only ONE pigment. It's the same composition of chemicals no matter what skin color we are on the outside. There's only ONE COLOR. The difference is where the pigment is lying in our skin, and that difference is due to an evolutionary process that occurred millions of years ago as our ancestral species either remained near the equator or migrated away. I think if we could really get it in our heads and in our hearts that we are only one color, expressed in a diversity of shades (as the earth so abundantly exemplifies in all her glory), maybe...just maybe...one day we'll stop treating our brothers and sisters as something other than our brothers and sisters.
This morning, reading the paper, I finally gave into the tears. Went to the chapel and had a good sit down cry about the atrocities in New Orleans, the apparent racism that still plagues our country, the inequalities in our own homeland. The death tolls are going to be astounding and, I believe when the numbers start to come in, numbing. I hope that Americans across the country are shaking their heads in disbelief and wondering how could that be in this day and age, in the year 2005, in the 21st century. It should not have happened. It was preventable with planning. It was a foreseeable disaster. An evacuation plan should have been in place 20 years ago. But the poor and especially the poor minorities in our country are not treated equally. And it is something Americans are to be ashamed of.
Here is something I learned at Genesis Farm. It was like a laser hitting me between the eyes the day I learned this. It was so incredible. I was sitting in my chair listening to Dr. Larry Edwards explain about skin pigment. I may get the facts a bit skewed until I'm able to get my hands on the Sci-Am. Articles, but the gist is that we all (everyone of us) have the exact same kind of and same amount of skin pigment in our bodies. What is different is where it lies -- whether closer to the top or further down. And that is what causes the gradation of colors.
Now, really think about that for a minute. Are you getting it? There's only ONE pigment. It's the same composition of chemicals no matter what skin color we are on the outside. There's only ONE COLOR. The difference is where the pigment is lying in our skin, and that difference is due to an evolutionary process that occurred millions of years ago as our ancestral species either remained near the equator or migrated away. I think if we could really get it in our heads and in our hearts that we are only one color, expressed in a diversity of shades (as the earth so abundantly exemplifies in all her glory), maybe...just maybe...one day we'll stop treating our brothers and sisters as something other than our brothers and sisters.
Friday, September 02, 2005
Greetings Blogger World
I'm stepping out into the blogger world. This is my first post. I arrived home a few hours ago after spending three weeks at Genesis Farm in Blairstown, NJ immersed in a program called "Exploring a New Cosmology." It was intense and wonderful. But the events in New Orleans, the city of my birth, have left me a bit anguished and I'm quite enraged at the lack of response by our federal government.
