Category Archives: Social

The Road to 65, Mile 8: Leaves In The Wind

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December 6, 2014, Scottsdale- This day was the 34th anniversary of Penny and I having met, in Zuni, NM. Since her passing, 3 1/2 years ago, I have found myself spending this day doing something or another that celebrates our Faith. This year, December 6 was the day chosen by the Baha’is of Scottsdale, and the United Nations Association of Arizona, to observe Human Rights Day, which actually falls on December 10. Several speakers addressed key issues pertaining to human rights:  Immigration, Native American affairs, the persecution of Baha’is in Iran, and the ongoing state of affairs between Blacks and Whites in our country. A longtime educator, who is Baha’i, made the case for Universal Compulsory Education as the overall impetus for solutions to these, and other issues, being generated. A member of the audience made a passionate plea for communities to address human trafficking.

As this last is a huge concern of mine, especially as it pertains to children and teens, I spent several minutes during the social portion of the gathering, hearing this lady out on the matter. Like her, I see both official sanctioning of human trafficking (albeit in a surreptitious manner) and the tendency we have towards viewing strangers, or those from outside the immediate circle of friends, as those better left in anonymity, as contributing factors to how easy it is for trafficking and slavery to persist in today’s world.

I will be glad to have a kindred spirit in my corner, in taking on these evils. For too long, our society, and the human race as a whole, have regarded those outside one’s social circle as leaves in the wind. I saw some of that in evidence among those in attendance at last night’s gathering, which underscored my earnest and hard-working colleague’s point: Without us, who will bring in the light?

The Road to 65, Mile 7: Peace Flows Outward

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December 5, 2014, Prescott- I’m a bit late with this one, but yesterday was full, and exhausting.  I actually slept until 8, this morning.

Anyway, after getting my car’s tires rotated and balanced, Friday morning, I headed to work, on a half-day assignment. It was an afternoon with two sections of kindergarten: 30 five-year-olds. There was little core academics, it being Friday afternoon, and all, but teaching social skills is still a large part of Kinder. The big item of the day was cleaning up, after thirty minutes of play with manipulatives. I basically had two rules for that playtime: Share items and space; No running around in the classroom.  At clean-up time, I called “High Five” and held up my hand. There was complete silence, so I simply said, “See this mess; clean it up”. Within five minutes, all items had been put away and the room was spotless. Yes, there were thirty five-year-olds, and 16 of them were boys. We will be in good hands, when I reach my nineties.

There are two ways of handling groups, as I noted yesterday. Inner peace, reflected from the person facilitating a group, is essential. It touches all, even the most troubled and self-loathing person in the group. Of course, such a person needs extra assistance and attention, and may need to be removed from the group, in extreme cases. That was not necessary yesterday.

In the evening, there were two gatherings: A Christmas dinner, in business attire, and a drum circle, to which I went, in my vest, shirt and tie. The Christmas dinner found me listening, with rapt attention, to a person slightly older than I, who has led an amazing life- from studying Psychology,under the late Gen. Norman Schwartzkopf, when he was an Army captain and teaching at USC, to leading Search and Rescue teams in the high desert and Rocky Mountains, alike. The peace that comes from a wealth of experiences is indeed exemplary. The Drum Circle, held monthly, is always a soothing and centering occasion.

So, December, a rather expensive month, financially, is also a time of rich and peace-imparting events. I will discuss another of these in the very next post.

The Road to 65, Mile 6: Obedience

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December 4, 2014, Prescott- As a career educator, I insist on an orderly classroom environment for no other reason that that learning, both group and individual, is essential if the human race is to progress as is its birthright. I don’t have a whole lot of rules to impose, save: ” When I speak, you listen, with both ears”; “Focus on what is in front of you” and “You are to respect everyone in this class, and in this school, starting with yourself and radiating outward.” That said, I abhor the maxim, “Children should be seen and not heard.”, common in Victorian days and still followed by certain people over the age of 55. Children need to develop their voice, and need to be heard, but in a proper and systematic manner. I believe “Do it because I said so” has its time and place, mostly when addressing a child who is under the age of six. Nothing good comes out of extended chaos, and children should never be allowed to place themselves or others in mortal danger. My son was taught the Hot Stove, Don’t Play with Matches and Lighters, and Look Both Ways rules, well before that age. I further believe that respect is as respect does. Aram was asked for his input on things that impacted his life, and his ideas were frequently taken into consideration. Developing this faculty proved essential, in his young adulthood, when he had to initiate a very difficult process, relative to his mother’s care, while I was at work.

This brings me to obedience. Each of us has to obey the Laws of Nature, or else suffer the consequences. Ditto for the Golden Rule, good health and hygiene practices, mutual respect in any given relationship, and the Twelve Laws relative to attraction. The sensible among us do our utmost to follow such laws. The reckless challenge them, and sometimes the Universe suffers such people gladly; other times, not so much. I have been both, in my life. Now, I find a modicum of obedience to the Laws of the Universe to be better for me and mine. Obedience, though, is best when not blind. The Victorians, largely operating out of fear, were dead wrong in that respect.

The Road to 65, Mile 5: Giving and Taking

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December 3, 2014, Prescott- I had a satisfying day. Seeing so many children in three groups of third graders find they were able to understand the idea behind multiplication, with the simple explanations I was able to offer, is the best outcome of a work day I could ever want.

I got some further materials for another passion- sharing and promoting Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils. I have to use the complete title, as there are plenty of adulterated, watered-down oils, which have actually made people sicker. The oils I use, and offer, do not.

I got into a brief discussion on FB about eating animals. Now, I enjoy eating some meat, from herbivores, or fish There is, though, a very sad level of ignorance among Americans as to eating carnivores. Many see nothing wrong with it. The fact is, the animals at the top of the food chain are lacking in the nutrients that the human body needs to stay healthy. Even more difficult to understand is the pre-occupation some have with killing and butchering endangered species, “because we people are endangered, too.” Seriously? If you decimate a resource, it’s gone, period. We have a food distribution problem, in this country, and around the world. Buffets are copious and delectable, and the food could be put to better use, in a number of instances- even if we just consider those who are underfed and undernourished, in our own communities. Thankfully, a growing number of communities are starting to address the food distribution issue. Massachusetts has made it illegal for restaurants to throw food away, when it has not yet been on someone’s plate. The leftovers have to be made available to food banks and public kitchens.

Finally, most states have land given them, in trust, when they were still either founding parties to the new United States of America, or while they were territories thereof. The December 1, 2014 issue of the Wall Street Journal discusses this matter in some detail, and when I find that article, I will summarize it on this site. The gist is, we have until June of next year to arrange for the revenues generated by limited use of these lands to go into funding our schools. So, for those seeking to reverse a trend towards closing schools and forcibly increasing class sizes to an untenable level, this issue is one of those on which we need to increase our level of erudition.

The Road to 65, Mile 4: Standing Up versus Caving In

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December 2, 2014, Prescott- One of the things that happens, as one gets on in years, is that what the rich and powerful say and think becomes less and less important, unless of course one happens to be rich and powerful.

Being of common stock, I find it easier to speak up, on behalf of those who have been, and are still being, shoved to the sidelines. This evening, our local school board decided that it was more to THEIR advantage to close two schools, and start preparing the grounds on which they sit for sale, than to hold on to $500,000 in non-transferable grant money.

I wrote last night about the lure of the dollar. There is another lure at play, in many communities:  Dominance over the masses. Here in Prescott, it is wealthy, often politically liberal, elitists who are more than glad to disregard the well-being of the “lower classes”, when there is money to be made. A recent article about a community in the Bay Area shows a similar process at work. Then, there is Chicago, where an arrogant elite attempted to close several schools, a few years back, again with an eye towards cashing in on development.

I stay away from strictly partisan politics, both for religious reasons and because it happens that members of one party are as bad, if not worse, when money changing hands is at stake, than members of the other. I also don’t regard it as strictly a Race Card issue, though that can enter into the picture, when the elite are of one group and the disadvantaged are mostly of another. I have seen plenty of White on White repressive actions, though. Members of the Tea Party are often bona fide recipients of economic and class snobbery. One particularly repugnant “social service” provider in the Phoenix area, about five years ago, referred to its clients as “recipients”. The heavy-handed treatment they received was a prime example of the arrogance of power.

This is how it is, whenever the people most-affected by a decision are shunted to the side, to make way for the bulldozers and the bankers. It’s by no means a “white” problem, either. Asian and Middle Eastern magnates excel at pushing the multitudes out of the way, when it’s convenient.

So, while I will continue to stand by the children of all neighbourhoods in Prescott, and wherever I find myself in the days and months ahead, I will also keep encouraging them, as well as their parents, to keep informed, to stay vigilant and to stay active. It’s very important for those of all targeted groups: Lower and Middle Class Whites, Hispanics, Blacks, Native Americans and Asians, to take matters into their own hands and resist, peacefully but persistently, the web of control that is being woven daily, for the benefit of a small group of opportunists. The first thing to be resisted is the “Divide and rule” mentality. We who stand together cannot be moved against our will. We who cave, who knuckle under, cannot move at all, of our own will.

The Road to 65, Mile 3: Seeing Beyond The Green ($)

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December 1, 2014, Prescott- I am involved in a local project, which will hopefully keep a key local elementary school form being closed by those who see the property on which it sits as the site of another hotel or shopping plaza. It is far more valuable to the community as an educational institution than it ever will be as a commercial zone. Less than a mile to the west, there is a large vacant building, at a major intersection, that is begging for a tenant. To the south, another property, which would make a fabulous guest lodge, also sits empty, at yet another key intersection.

We have just witnessed one of the most intense attempts ever, at dismantling a major national holiday, falter and stumble, with Wall Street weighing in, today, by selling off a pile of junk. Sure, the easily-bored and disconnected among us showed up at the malls, and bargain hunters, who would have waited until Saturday, went in and scored their usual screaming deals. The difference from last year seems to be that most of us have had it. For that matter, I haven’t been to a store on Thanksgiving weekend since 1996, and then only to use a birthday gift card from my in-laws.

I sense that, with all the drama in discount outlets like WalMart, and the bad weather in much of our continent, “Joe and Jane Sixpack”, who are also family people, are wanting to get back to the real sense of who they are, who we are, as sentient beings. When my son and I took a brief walk along the beach front, at La Jolla Cove, San Diego, last Friday, it was comforting to see a huge number of families enjoying the day and the sea air. A similar number were in evidence a bit further north, at Torrey Pines.

There will be more gains on Wall Street in the foreseeable future, and more people are likely to return to the workforce. There are also possible climactic and social disruptions, some severe, that will reverse the trend towards economic recovery. Japan is still reeling, ecologically and economically from the Fukushima nightmare, and the northwest Pacific Coast, from Bristol Bay to the Bay Area, is witnessing troubling die-offs of marine and shore life. Other parts of the world also report unsettling ecological changes. For example, we had better hope, as a human race, that the Balkan Peninsula does not have a repeat of last year’s severe winter, given the relatively meager harvests reported from that area. Thus does the pendulum wildly swing.

The answer is not to shrink back, but to reach out ever more fervently. I will do my best to carry on my journeys of discovery, even if on foot and in relative paucity, as the true purpose of these is always to connect. The same is true of my efforts here in Arizona. It is the bonding, the networking, which will see us through all challenges. The solution lies not in the Paper Green, but in the True Blue.

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Being 64

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November 28, 2014, San Diego- I woke today, looked in the mirror and lo & behold: There was a face that looked every bit of sixty-four. I’ve always regarded looking one’s age as a sign of a life well-lived. Acting one’s age, that’s another matter. After all, men old enough to be my father have made no bones about going after young women. That’s not my style, though. I had a fine marriage, have a son who is contemporary with the aforementioned ladies and besides, I enjoy the company of people of all ages, as friends, at this stage of my life. Maturity, for sixty-somethings and older, is a choice.

I’ve thought a fair amount about privilege. In some ways, I enjoy it; I don’t have to worry about being pulled over by police, just because of the type of vehicle I’m driving. I can go anywhere I can afford to go. I am not followed around by store security, even when I’m “dressed down”. No one asks me my business, when I’m in a public place. I could, conceivably, be hassled by people, when in some parts of Hawai’i , or Mexico or any number of Native American communities. So far, though, that hasn’t happened. I was treated just fine in the Honolulu area, have visited Yaqui, Tohono O’Odham, Navajo and Hopi communities, with no unpleasant events and drove a friend to Mexico a few years ago, without any sense of imminent danger.

What I don’t enjoy, though, is seeing people who are just trying to get from A to B, being hassled. I also don’t like seeing miscreants try to poke holes through civility, by creating a scenario of “racism”. Every person should obey the law, not take what isn’t his/hers and refrain from bullying people who are trying to make an honest living. Every person is also entitled to enjoy the fruits of their labours, earn a decent living wage and not have to sneak across borders to do so. There is a lot, an immense amount of work to be done in that regard.

I got a lot done this past year, and will get more accomplished in the year ahead. (Details in next post). For today, though, I am content to head up to La Jolla, hopefully see some marine mammals, hike a bit at Torrey Pines and kick back this evening with a Netflix film at my son’s apartment. Sixty-four is a fine age to be.

What’s In Our Words

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November 24, 2014, Prescott- This is, for an educator, the shortest “work week” of the academic year. Most schools have two days, before Thanksgiving break. It’s also my birthday week, and this year, I turn 64 on the day after Thanksgiving. People are given to calling that day, “Black Friday”, as its sales receipts are supposed to put retail businesses “in the black”. A sad trend has some stores shortening, or foregoing, the Thanksgiving holiday for their employees/associates. One retail outlet even refers to the most important family holiday of the year as “Black Thursday”. Shameful, this.

Words matter. I have had the tendency, much of my life, to be “in the brain, out the mouth.” I could blame this on my autism, and it is probably what has caused this series of faux pas. My late wife spent the best years of her life coaching me out of this emotional trough. Discretion and sobriety were the most valuable gifts she imparted to me, through three decades of steadfast love. I have stumbled and bumbled on occasion, in the three years, seven months since her passing. Good people have been hurt, and I have done myself no favours with these missteps.

The purpose of life, though, is to transcend. We overcome pain, move out of false comfort zones, learn new skills, make new friends and often keep the old. In all of this, a successful effort brings one closer to the Source of all life. I am slowly on the upward path, with my beloved spirit guide urging me on, in matters large and small.

Our words ought to represent reflection, thought, and most crucially, love. What comes from our mouths, our pens, our keyboards can either build or shatter. So, while it’s a fine thing to be ever honest, in our dealings with those near and far, it pays to remember that no one really wants to be shattered, knocked down or left out. Honesty and kindness are not mutually exclusive. Have a fine Monday, my friends.

Community

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November 20, 2014, Prescott- This evening will feature yet another speech by the current President. Some things will change in this country, albeit temporarily, as happens with Executive Order- induced policy adjustments. The whole affair, though, brings me to the matter of communities, large and small.

I have five basic observations:

1. Charity begins at home- Mother instilled this in each of us, from Day 1. Many people in this country are hyper-charitable. It’s an admirable thing, when they have the wherewithal to give copiously. I donate my time and money as close to the end receivers as possible, and as close to my own level of awareness of their situation as possible. There will always be people in need, right in one’s neighbourhood, and there will always be people in need on the other side of the planet.  “The poor will always be with you.” Everyone can share something, but few can give all that much. My son is my top priority, then my family, then the community, starting in Prescott and working upward.

2. A family, and a community, is only as strong as the level of trust between its members. I live in a neighbourhood that is quite homogeneous. There is, however, a high level of mistrust, especially among men aged forty and older. Many of these men are carrying weapons. I don’t pack heat, but I can sense the fear and tension from those who do. Should there be a breakdown in order, many will opt for the quick response. It won’t be pretty.

3. This leads me to my own support system. My Baha’i community, Prescott Save Our Schools, Slow-Food Prescott, American Legion Post 6, and the Yavapai County Red Cross are my local support groups. Individual friends, both real-time and online, local and farther afield, offer additional back-up, and God knows I’ve needed it on several occasions. Those who don’t have a human support system turn to self-medication. This fuels the drug and sex trades, resulting in more misery across a wider area, and thus more human migration, both legal and surreptitious.

4. Politics has been defined as the art of the possible. For as far back as one can study, this has been taken to mean, the art of the powerful. It is time, with social media and its attendant level of awareness, for power to move from the ground up. Political extremists understand this, and have used it to their advantage. The grassroots, however, mean that everyone matters, not just the loudest, the most devious or those with the deepest pockets. Otherwise, what Pete Townshend wrote, in “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, will continue to be the norm: “The parting on the left is now parting on the right”, and back and forth, ad nauseam.

5. Character matters. We have seen so many prominent people, revered by the masses, prove to have committed horrible acts against others. Many will live in denial- Hitler still has his apologists, as do Mao Tse-tung, General Custer and Charles Manson. Others will subvert the misery of others for their own ends- which criminals have done since the Biblical Cain and Nimrod. Each of us does, however, have the bounden duty, from our Creator, as we understand Him/Her/It to be, to “Do unto others as you would have done unto you.” The Golden Rule has nothing to do with “He who has the gold, rules”. As long as we are on the subject, though, it is worth remembering that every behaviour has its consequence, eventually.

The vast majority of people close to me are wondrous, loving and compassionate. I work, daily, to be the same and it hasn’t always been easy. It is, however, the only way I know to be.

Homefront Musings

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November 17, 2014, Prescott-So, eleven days remain of one of the most productive years I’ve ever had. 2014 rates with 1972, 1982 and 1996, as years when I got enough things right, that the screw-ups and missteps that have sometimes threatened to define me, became mere background noise. I won’t sum the year up, in terms of specifics, just yet. That gets done on my birthday, which, as happens every so often, falls on Black Friday.

I don’t observe Black Friday, as I seldom visit shopping malls. I barely observe Cyber Monday, and then, mainly to get gifts I wouldn’t dream of letting go unbought. Most of my purchases will be from “Mom and Pop” stores, anyway: Peregrine Books, Arcosanti Gift Shop, The Honeyman, Sam Hill Warehouse, Shannon’s Gourmet Deli. Cerebral and muse-inspired trump the wan material.

I have been indulging a month-long Facebook campaign to post themed photos. Today’s was “Cooking”, so I showed a quick dish: Punjabi Curry, with Hot Portuguese Sausage.

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Most of my days, of late, have been spent either in a classroom, or trying to preserve a school in which I have worked, on several occasions, for the past three years. It escapes me that more energy is expended in securing funds for a new jail than for keeping schools open. I understand they are funded from different sources, but it is still the result of the same misplaced thinking.

It’s cold, by Prescott standards- went down to 14, last night. This afternoon, I drove a homeless man around, trying to find him shelter. He settled on a place where he felt comfortable, and could be in out of the cold at least. I found myself in that situation only once in my life, and couch-surfed in my cousin’s living room, just for a day or so. That was many years ago, in the dead of a Maine winter. Fortune led me to several months with a rambunctious, but caring, blended family of adults, young and old.

Any encounter with the disadvantaged reinforces just how well I have it now. Physically, I’m alone, but my eternal love is always watching, and sending message waves. Financially, I’m not wealthy, but I’m out of debt and living carefully in a cash economy. Health-wise, regular exercise, daily use of essential oils, and good sleep habits keep me going, so at nearly 64, I don’t look a day over 62! Socially, I have a varied network of friends, both online and real-time, and have been meeting new friends constantly. I don’t go into a friendship with expectations, so the flow is amazing in its depth and width.

Each day, whether at home or on the road, seems to bring far greater opportunities for growth than I would have expected in the darkness of 2011. Let this remain the way.