The Peace of Wild Things

Invisible Hope

“It is most comfortable to be invisible, to observe life from a distance, at one with our own intoxicating superior thoughts. But comfort and isolation are not where the surprises are. They are not where hope is.”

― Anne Lamott, Stitches: A Handbook on Meaning, Hope and Repair

Dog Eat Dog

Lyrics Here

Put On The Sleeves Of Love

Reading

So...I've been pretty sick since the day after Christmas. It isn't exactly how I thought I'd be spending the break. The plan was to catch up on a bunch of social media work (research, writing) for my new job and spend some quality time with the kid. Our quality time has consisted mainly of napping together between trips to the bathroom.

Today, on day four, I realized maybe I should just surrender -- stop trying to work or clean or read between naps. I'm not doing any of them very well right now. I'm embracing reading because my nightstand bends from the backlog and maybe reading will make me happier. That's what the science is saying.

Last night I finally read Ross Gay's, Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, which I blogged about in November but just got around to. I don't usually read an entire collection of poems all at once, but this was an exception. It is an exciting book, lyrical and lush, full of sorrow and humor. Besides the exceptional title poem, "Feet" was a standout, as was "Spoon", written for a murdered friend. Gay weaves his appreciation and knowledge of gardening throughout and the language is so satisfying, relateable, yet utterly new. I can't remember enjoying a book of poetry this much in a very long time. I shed a few tears, which sounds a little over-the-top, but the themes were treated so beautifully. (I can't mention Gay without noting his essay, Some Thoughts On Mercy.)

And this brings me to where I am now. Smack dab in the middle of Ta-Nehisi Coates' Between the World and Me. I didn't purposely choose this book to compliment Gay's, but it does. I devoured the first half this morning and will finish the rest tonight before going to bed. I would have finished it all at once, but the kid was interrupting and the book warrants complete concentration. This hit me squarely.

"The Dream thrives on generalization, on limiting the number of possible questions, on privileging immediate answers. The Dream is the enemy of all art, courageous thinking, and honest writing."

The book is brilliant, difficult, sad, and unnerving and absolutely required, as Toni Morrison said. When I heard the Tamir Rice ruling last night I just sunk. Again. Again. Again.

I don't know if I can read my way out.

Reading on Race & Ferguson

Some Thoughts On Mercy
Ross Gay | The Sun
This essay was published in The Sun in July 2013 by poet and professor Ross Gay. So relevant tdoay. A beautiful piece.

When we have mercy, deep and abiding change might happen. The corrupt imagination might become visible. Inequalities might become visible. Violence might become visible. Terror might become visible. And the things we’ve been doing to each other, despite the fact that we don’t want to do such things to each other, might become visible. If we don’t, we will all remain phantoms — and, as it turns out, it’s hard for phantoms to care for one another, let alone love one another. 

Why I Fear For My Sons
Kimberly Norwood | cnn.com
Commentary written by a Washington University law professor and mother.

The Case for Reparations
Ta-Nehisi Coates | The Atlantic

John Crawford Case: It’s Open Carry for Whites and Open Season on Blacks
The Root

For-Profit Policing Means Ferguson Is Basically a Debtor’s Prison
Michael Hendrix | Values & Capitalism

Voter Registration Drives in Ferguson Are "Disgusting," Says Missouri GOP Leader
Tasneem Raja | Mother Jones

I am racist and so are you
Rachel Shadoan

More proof that kids are smarter than adults (and more on FYI here)

More on Ferguson

 

The Racial Divide
I've been reading more articles that show the real disconnect between how white residents and black residents see Ferguson and how they propose to move forward. I am making an assumption that the churches of Ferguson are just as segregated as the rest of the community - wonder if clergy from Ferguson area churches have met?  Seems like a natural place to start. But the quotes from some of the white people in these articles are so out of touch.

"There’s is a not a racial divide in the city of Ferguson.
That is the perspective of all residents in our city,"
Ferguson’s current mayor James Knowles
told MSNBC on Tuesday. 

The size of the rock he's sleeping under has obviously crushed his sense of reality. 

Having a parade isn't going to fix this problem. I'm not suggesting I know how to solve it, but the first thing I would do is make sure black people have representation at every discussion. And maybe, just maybe, the white folks should just shut up and listen. Really listen, for a change.

• Why Did Ferguson Erupt? (NBC News)
• The Two Very Different Worlds of Ferguson (Slate)

The Educational Divide
My dear mother-in-law's entire career was in pubic education. She has very strong ideas around equal educational opportunities for ALL children, regardless of race or socioeconomic status. I respect her opinion and insight tremendously on these kinds of issues. Her network consists of others equally versed and passionate on educational affairs. One friend did some educational consulting work with NISL in Ferguson. Her friend was "so impressed with the quality and enthusiasm" of then superintendent Art McCoy, who was recently forced out by the all white school board.

• Listen to the Democracy Now! interview with Art McCoy.
• Mike Brown and St. Louis education: Symptomatic of a failing system 

Ending On A Positive Note
On a more optimistic note, Do Something Now is a Facebook page that share ideas about how we can all be a part of the solution to the challenges we see playing out in Ferguson, MO and other places. Events being held by various organizations across the area are listed. 

The Peace Train riding through Ferguson made me smile. And so did God's tweet.

The Real Ferguson

In my Facebook and Twitter feeds over the last couple of days, there have been some "this is the REAL Ferguson” or “this is the REAL St. Louis” posts. Each time, I feel a pang of hope and a pang of discomfort. I understand that they are well-meaning efforts to show the (many) positive sides of our communities being overlooked in the mainstream media during this situation.

But I do think it is important to consider the language. 

“This is the REAL Ferguson” implies the other Ferguson is not real—that it is fake or illegitimate—and that kind of denial and oppositional thinking (real vs. fake, us vs. them) is part of our collective problem, along with not wanting to acknowledge, atone for, deal with, or discuss the complex and multifaceted issues of race and racism in this country because they are uncomfortable, inconvenient, difficult, and frankly, it sometimes seems futile.

There are many sides to this community, all real. There is ANOTHER side of Ferguson and St. Louis—a side where people of different races live in relative harmony, collaborate, work to improve neighborhoods and for the common good. But I think that is disproportionately smaller than ANOTHER side of St. Louis—which is a very segregated community* where inhabitants either don't question the status quo or are incapable of escaping the status quo.

I do feel this is a very real opportunity for meaningful dialogue, action, and change for the better. A lot of folks are expressing similar sentiments. There are so many people who love this city and are fighting for it. But more important than fighting for this city in an effort to inflate our civic pride—we need to fight for each other and for our children. All of them.

 *According to data from Brown University's US2010 Project, looking at the 50 metropolitan areas with the largest black populations as of 2010, St. Louis ranks as the 9th most segregated.

Ferguson & First Day

The girl on the left was supposed to start first grade in Ferguson today. 

The girl on the right did get to start first grade today.

It was hard to be focused on my own kid this morning. There is just so much wrong.  

When this little girl protesting showed up my twitter feed, I sort of lost it. 

The injustice of the Mike Brown killing by police has been soul-crushing. The militarized over-reaction by police to protesters has been surreal. The slow reaction by elected officials has been depressing. Yet I know so many who are on the right side of this. I hope people outside of St. Louis, but more importantly, the black community here, understand that there are many people who want to see justice and change and are willing to work for it. I totally get why there would be mistrust or apprehension. Events over the last 4-5 days have not offered up stellar examples of compassion. Crap, let's face it. We wiped out the natives who were here and have been oppressing people of color for hundreds of years. Our track record sucks.

But there are swaths of people cleaning up the neighborhood, holding peaceful vigils, interviewing folks who have been directly affected, trying to get the stories out. Last night, I was up until 2am watching live streams and twitter feeds about #Ferguson. Not just friends and acquaintances from around the city, but people all over the world are outraged. It was hard to believe that this was happening. In Ferguson.

When I was just a bit younger than my daughter is now, we would visit my grandparents in Ferguson every week. They lived on Alameda and a trip to the city (sidewalks!) was a big deal to this country kid. My cousins and I would walk to Gasen's drug store or walk down to the church parking lot to play with no cares or worries. Later, my aunt and uncle raised their family on the same street, calling Ferguson home for over 25 years until they retired. For years we would go to Wabash Park to watch fireworks on the Fourth of July. I've always had a nostalgic affection for Ferguson. 

I am just going to keep praying that something much larger and something good comes out of this situation. A real dialogue about race and some real action about race, poverty, education, and how we treat our children (and each other). Maybe I'm naive, but that is all I have to hold on to. The idea of raising my daughter in a country that accepts this kind of systematic abuse of power, that treats the black population (especially black males) like they are completely disposable, is unbearable. But I know I have to do more than pray. I have to take action. I'm not sure what that looks like right now. And I think a lot of people feel this way and are asking, "what can we do?"

I hope the family of Mike Brown and the residents of Ferguson know the world is watching. Change is going to come. There is love in this world. It can prevail. It has to.

Forward

Compassion, tolerance, and respect won last night over paranoia, greed, and hate. And even though my state went red in the presidential race, Missourians had the sense to re-elect McCaskill over that lunatic Akin. I am giddy about that.

I love our president.

I can’t think of a political or public figure in my lifetime that has affected me as much as Obama. I respect him and find him inspirational. He is exactly the kind of compassionate yet pragmatic leader this country needs now. I shudder to think what would have happened to us on the foreign-policy front if Romney would have been elected. Disastrous. And I am hopeful that Obama’s re-election will neutralize efforts to overturn the Affordable Care Act. More women elected than ever before…I am really excited.

Obama won because the Democratic party works on policies that the middle class, immigrants, minorities, women, and young people care about. Those are the people that increasingly make up the fabric of this country. And we will continue to look forward and fight for change.

Politics 101

Explosion of Benevolence

“We have this fantasy that our interests and the interests of the super rich are the same. Like somehow the rich will eventually get so full that they’ll explode. And the candy will rain down on the rest of us. Like there’s some kind of pinata of benevolence. But here’s the thing about a pinata - it doesn’t open on its own. You have to beat it with a stick." 

~Bill Maher 

Please read an introduction
TO
90 Days, 90 Reasons

Girls & Media

Occupy

Writer Francine Prose had this poignant take on Occupy Wall Street.

Below are some of my favorite images from what has been happening.

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Parental Leave

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I'm using Labor Day as a chance to get on my parental leave soapbox--a labor issue I think is of supreme importance. According to a 2007 Inc. magazine report, "the United States is one of only five countries that does not provide or require employers to provide some form of paid maternity leave, placing it behind a majority of the world when it comes to instituting family-oriented job policies."

Paid family leave has been shown to reduce infant mortality by as much as 20% (and the U.S. ranks a low 37th of all countries in infant mortality).

Look at how we compare to other nations.

Hear how great the Swedes have it - 480 days (to be used before child turns 8), 60 of the days have to taken by the father, and parents receive 80% of pay.

Do something about it.

With unemployment so high, I can't help but think adopting more liberal and flexible work policies for parents would be the common good. If universally, parents could take advantage of time off with no fear of penalties and with decent pay, it would seem there would have to be more job slots open in the work force to compensate. And more mother's would/could probably breastfeed, or breastfeed longer, and the benefits of this have been proven time and again. I'm not saying we have to go as far as the Swedes. Six months, 80% pay, and guaranteed to have your same job. We should be able to figure this out. We can do better.