MLK

"the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. will we be extremists for hate or for love? will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension of justice?"

this week i am thankful for dr. martin luther king jr. and his Letter from Birmingham Jail. I've read this letter before, but for some reason the words are much more powerful for me as i read it to prepare for a class discussion in the freshmen seminar class that i am TAing for.

why is this man important? why does he deserve a holiday in his name on a cold monday in january? there are many reasons why he deserves recognition: his passion for reconciliation, his relentless pursuit of justice for the oppressed, his thoughtful words and moving speeches. yet this time as i reflect on his letter, i am amazed by his vision for the kingdom of God. and this is what has been so meaningful to me as i have reflected on it in the past couple of days.

one theme throughout his letter is that of time and urgency. one of the charges made against him is that his behavior is "unwise and untimely" and that instead of participating in demonstrations, he should be taking these concerns to the courts and let the courts work through the process of reconciliation and equality.

"justice too long delayed is justice denied" (503)

~~

"human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation" (508)

yet king points out that we are called to kingdom work now. i believe that Jesus calls us to respond to his message and choose to participate in the work he began, not by our own merit, but by his love and grace. dr. king was disappointed that members of the church were operating with a different vision of the kingdom - a distant, far-removed concept that would only come into play after death and at heaven's gates. i find dr. king's vision of the kingdom as a present kingdom (although not yet fully present) and one in which we can find great joy and peace if we choose to participate in it now. what a privilege to participate in this kingdom, despite our brokenness and weakness.

dr. king speaks with eloquence and knowledge that is inspiring. it's especially inspiring to me as i enter into the world of academia again. dr. king was ACTIVE in what he believed, yet he was also a critical thinker. he quotes philosophers and theologians, which to me shows great intellectual thought - and thought that furthered his arguments and action. sometimes it is easy to separate thought from action or to delegitimate the study we do in the classroom. yet when dr. king sites the work of philosophers and theologians, i am more convinced that studying machiavelli and marx this semester is worthy of my energy. hopefully another semester of critical thinking, intense studying, and looking back into history will make me a better thinker, and as a better thinker, a better active-ist (not in the sense of activist yelling on the street), but an informed person of action, whose actions are backed up with thought and attention to what really matters.

dr. king's words are also a challenge to me. he was disappointed with the church, particularly the "white moderate." i'm a part of the church. and i am white. but i hope to not find myself within the apathetic "white moderate" who says "those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern" (511). i hope to be an "extremist for love" as king states. but i hope to do that in response to the greatest love that i have experienced: the love and blessing of Christ.

if you're looking for something inspiring, uplifting, motivating, or something filled with a message of justice and shalom, i encourage you to read Letter to Birmingham Jail. i hope you'll be as blessed as i am.

final days of summer

summer 2011 wrapped up with some of these fun festivities...

[french cheese party]

our dear neighbors down the road are french and invited us over for a delicious french cuisine with the cheese "rocklet" (pronounced with a fun french accent :)) you get slices of the cheese on your plate and then everyone has a little skillet that they use to warm it up on this warmer that sits in the middle of the table (see first picture above). we piled our plates with bread, potatoes, and meats to complement this delicious cheese. it was scrumptious and the company was very fun as well--our neighbors invited three french citizens so there was lots of beautiful french spoken!

[disneyland]

we had a blast at the theme park a few days ago. it was crowded, but the lines were short so it was a perfect day -- lots of laughs, great company and plenty of screaming on the rides. it really is one of the happiest places on earth :)

and now i am back in massachusetts. i cannot believe it - it's been 8 months, but it feels like home to be back here. i am so grateful for my time at home this summer and look forward to what is in store in the fall!!

blast from the past

la vida

3 years ago i started the college adventure with la vida, a 10-day backpacking trip in the adirondacks with a group of soon-to-be freshmen and two sherpas. it was an incredibly challenging experience, but i am grateful for it because it introduced me to good friends, showed me a breathtakingly beautiful part of the US, and pushed me physically, mentally, and spiritually.

i wish i could say that i loved every minute of the experience, but that would be a lie. the first few days were pretty rough for me - particularly because of the rain that followed us for the first 2-3 days. carrying 25 pounds on your back as you walk through muddy terrain and try to keep as much of your body and clothes dry was not my idea of a fun & exciting trip in the wilderness. but, things got easier as the days went on...i became a competent water pumper, cooked and enjoyed delicious foods like freako butter (=peanut butter + M&M's + secret ingredients i can't give away), and successfully didn't look at myself in a mirror for 10 days (seeing my face in the mirror of a car when we got back was a little frightening unfortunately). my backpacking skills are still very minimal...i was never able to tie knots correctly when we set up for camp (which made the "solo" part of the experience a problem since i set up my little tarp incorrectly and was dumped on by a thunderstorm in the middle of the night), but i saw spectacular mountains, got to know fun people who encouraged me especially during the first few weeks of adjusting to college life, listened to hours of lord of the rings from the boys in my group (it was a great distraction as we hiked the days away), rock climbed at one of the most beautiful peaks in the ADKs and saw more green than i had ever seen before (california woods are very different than the East Coast - but both are equally beautiful).

all in all, it was an awesome way to start off my freshman year of college.

it's been 8 months since...

i ran in the Gordon woods to my favorite lake, laughed loudly with my apartment-mates, made pasta with veggie burgers for the umpteenth time, marveled at the colors of fall, joyfully made myself butternut squash for dinner, walked to chaps bundled in my blue puffy jacket, prepared hot chocolate with a peppermint at the bottom to sustain me to Jenks for long study-hours, watched an episode of glee all cozied up in my pink down comforter, ran to the beach passing the cutest New England cottage houses, got out of breath reaching the top of frost to talk to a professor, enjoyed a butterscotch candy after cashing a check at the cashier’s office (usually a Friday tradition), rode on the T into the beautiful city of Bah-stun, worked out in the often times over-heated gym, finished a run and proceeded to watch a soccer game on the quad, trekked to Maine to visit Maris and her family, huffed & puffed my way up to Laurie’s office on the 3rd floor of the chapel, learned another reason why I love studying political science…

I have missed all of those things and so many more for the past 8 months. But the past 8 months have been filled with its own blessings through new people, places, and returning home to my California family for the summer.
I am excited, nervous, anxious, and grateful for the opportunity to head back to Massachusetts in just a couple of weeks: Excited to see good friends, anxious to begin another year of classes, nervous about transitioning and what is coming post-graduation, grateful for Gordon and all the many things I love about it and how God has blessed me there.

july: here and then gone

i have kept pretty busy this summer with work which has been good (and certainly helpful in financial terms as well :)) but this past month, i got to take a little time off for some fun adventures.

{Birthdays!}

we went down south a couple times during the month to celebrate my grandparents' birthdays (actually, my grandpa's bday is in august, but i'm adding him to this july post :)) i made a delicious key lime pie for my grandma's birthday dessert if i do say so myself, and libby made a lovely apple torte for grandpa's. it has been really fun seeing my extended family throughout the summer (hopefully we'll see my north-west extended family soon too!!)

{Mammoth!!}

my family and i have been so blessed with getting to travel to lots of places together. each of those trips has been filled with so much laughter and memories that we still talk about years later. mammoth was no exception: we had a wonderful time hiking, jacuzzing, resting, reading, walking, and laughing (lots & lots of it). the trip started off a little sadly since we watched the US lose to japan in the world cup final :( kelsey has been VERY into the world cup both last summer and this summer and has gotten our whole family really into it.

and although my soccer skills are terrible, i really enjoyed watching it last summer and this summer...particularly abby wambach. even if you are not a soccer fan you need to watch some of her goals - they were incredible. but after recovering from the loss, we enjoyed the rest of our vacation :) mammoth was absolutely GORGEOUS. no exaggeration there.

[hiking through the snow...libs and i spent some time on our bums during this part of the hike :)]

the mountains were still covered in snow which made some of our hikes a bit tricker as well as more adventurous :) i had fun leading the way through some of the trails which were hard to track since they were covered by a lot of snow. besides hiking, we took a ride up to the top of the mountain using a ski lift, enjoyed baked goods at the famous shatt's bakery, and enjoyed watching movies and playing card games.

[at the top of the mountain - SUPER windy!!]

on our way home from mammoth we visited the location of a japanese internment camp called manzanar. i wasn't super excited to get out of the car and walk through a museum, but this stop was definitely worth it. it is sad to me how these internment camps are not as widely discussed as other human rights violations that occurred during the war. while this internment camp certainly did not treat its occupants like the concentration camps in europe, the many hardships physically, emotionally, and spiritually, that these japanese American citizens experienced is truly heartbreaking and saddening. if you are ever in that area, definitely stop by the museum - it will challenge the way you think about how governments treats minority citizens and how easy it is to resort to rascist policies when there is panic from violence and war.

{Katie visits!}

after we got back from mammoth, my friend katie visited from arkansas! i met katie the summer before our freshman year of high school and we became friends quickly (how could we not with two sisters the same ages?) she moved to arkansas with her family after we graduated high school so unfortunately we haven't been able to see each other too often, but it was very fun to have her out west :)

we took advantage of my grandparents' pool, visited balboa island, shopped & ate out in santa barbara, saw a play in solvang one evening, and went to LA as well!

you got mail

i love mail. in the modern age i guess you can consider pretty much all kinds of technological communication as mail... and i love those too, but not as much as what comes into my black mailbox along the side of the road. or my tiny mail box in the gordon college mailroom.

there's this leap of happiness when i peak inside the m

ailbox and see something addressed to me. and even when it's something i don't really want like my bank statement or some mass-mailing that comes to every college-age person, i still kind of like it.

but what i like the best are letters. letters that start with "dear..." and end with "love...", letters long or short that let you know that someone was thinking about you and took the time to write. i think my love for letters comes from my grandmother who ha

s been my pen pal ever since i can remember. she faithfully writes me letters - no matter if i am in massachusetts, california, or costa rica. she taught me the importance of writing to people, no matter how much faster or more efficient email or facebook might be.

thank you grandma, and thank you friends & family who have written me over the years. thanks for paying for the postage stamps. you have made my mailbox and my life full.

ba-na-na-naaaaa

I have a banana addiction. I used to have a banana a day and I will put a banana in every meal: breakfast (with cereal/oatmeal), lunch (peanut-butter, banana, honey sandwiches are my favorite), dinner (plátanos, anyone?), and dessert (perfect addition to vanilla pudding!)

During our “Faith & Practice” Seminar at LASP, we were divided into groups of 7 or 8 and were asked to come together to discuss how we as Americans should engage with Latin America. Many of the groups, including my own, focused on consumerism since we consume many products from Latin America…and what better topic to pick for me than bananas, a fruit I (obviously) love!

This blog post isn’t meant for me to coerce you into following my new convictions about banana consumption, but rather a way for me to tell you a little bit about what I learned about bananas while I was in Latin America…and why those lessons have challenged me to think differently about my banana consumption and purchases.

[fun fact: bananas do not grow on trees! instead we call them a plant and they grow in group of three. as you can see above, there are three generations for this banana plant - L to R: grandchild, child, and grandparent :)]

Some fast facts from the USDA Economic Research Service

**in 2007, the united states imported 7.908 billion pounds of bananas

**Bananas claim over 50% of the volume of fresh fruit imports

-Bananas rank no. 1 in US per capita fresh fruit consumption (followed by apples & oranges)

-Bananas are imported primarily from Guatemala, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia, and Honduras

Unfortunately, banana production and trade has not always been carried out in an ethical and just manner. While I was at my internship, I read two books on Latin American History/Politics, recommended by one of my professors.

Here is an excerpt that draws attention to some of the harmful affects of the banana industry in the early twentieth century:

"In 1899, [the Boston Fruit Company and Tropical Trading & Transport Company] merged to form a singular enterprise: UFCO (United Fruit Company). Here began a remarkable chapter in the history of U.S. investment, penetration, and control in Central America. UFCO established a virtual monopoly on the production and distribution of bananas"

--Modern Latin America 6 ed. (Skidmore & Smith)

I saw injustice within the banana industry first hand when our group traveled to visit a protest site of former banana workers and they told us their story. At this site, men, women, and their families (approximately 500 of the 7,000 affected by the chemical during a period of time) live under tarps to protest against the banana companies which used pesticides resulting in sickness for many workers. These workers have different forms of cancer and other ailments such as blindness because of the pesticides used on the bananas. Unfortunately, the multi-national corporations involved have yet to pay for the damages they caused and the former workers continue to live at this site outside of the government offices in Managua (the capital city of Nicaragua). The consequences of these pesticides had an enormously detrimental affect on many workers and I do not believe that this story is the only one among other Latin American countries who are involved in the banana industry.

[banana plantation in limón, costa rica moving bananas from the land to be prepared for export. notice the blue bags that are covering them]

Besides workers abuses, many banana plantations are not environmentally friendly because of the bags they use to cover the bananas as they are growing. We visited a few banana plantations in Costa Rica, and you will see blue bags covering many of the growing banana bunches and the amount of these disposed for this huge industry is not good for a planet in need of lowering waste! Now many banana plantations are using recyclable or eco-friendly bags, but in the past this hasn’t been the case.

So…what do we do? There are some awesome fair-exchange/fair-trade banana companies such as equal exchange (www.beyondthepeel.com) and EARTH Bananas, a banana plantation in Costa Rica which sells their bananas in Whole Foods! Even if you don't shop at Whole Foods, you should check them out because it's a really cool business that they are operating. I wish there were fair trade/equal exchange bananas in all grocery stores, but this has yet to happen.

[bananas are rinsed and sorted and then put in boxes, then shipped to us!]

Eating locally has become a bigger theme for our consumption of foods. Eating locally is good for a number of reasons (you should definitely watch Food Inc. to learn more about them!!), but one of them is the lessened environmental impact because of the oil and other resources used to get products across the oceans and continents. Since most of the US’s terrain isn’t very good for growing bananas, it is hard to “buy locally,” so I think the second best option is to buy less.

My local grocery store doesn't sell fair exchange or EARTH bananas so I am trying to only buy organic bananas and eat less of them in general (my next step should be talking to my grocery store about getting equal exchange bananas but i haven't gotten up the courage to do that yet!). Unfortunately organic does not mean "just & ethical", but at least it is better for the environment and not using pesticides is also eliminating the possibility of workers becoming sick from pesticide use. I wish there was a simple answer to eating and buying ethically produced products or that there was one website that would sum it all up and tell me where to shop and where not to shop. But I believe that the exercise of trying to be informed and make good consumer choices is a good practice and something that needs to become a bigger part of my life.

Let me know if you have any thoughts on bananas – I would love to hear them! So far it has been a little difficult eating less of one of my favorite fruits, but thankfully there are many other yummy fruits to compensate :)