Earth Day

Last night I attended a watershed film festival that was part of Earth Day activities.  The film that was shown was Return of the River and it shared the story of the Elwha Dam in Washington State, how it was built and the effect that damming the River had on the communities and the environment, and how it was eventually removed and came to life again.

It is a story that kept coming back to me today.

In many Christian Churches today Revelation 21:1-5 was read. It is the passage that speaks to a New Heaven and a New Earth -- and it has been for some the justification for NOT taking care of the Earth. I guess the thinking is that since God will create a whole new heaven and earth, taking care of this one is not a priority! I don't believe that is what the passage means, rather it speaks to a new way of living post empire. In the case of Revelation, the Empire was referred to as Babylon but was a veiled reference to the Roman Empire of the time. In our day we live in an empire and have imperial actions and domination to address. We too have the option of resisting empire, of living with values that reflect love, justice and inclusion. 

Today when I heard  the reading from Revelation regarding a new heaven and a new earth; and how the first heaven and earth that had disappeared … I thought of the Strong People of the River, the Klallam People, who had lived on the banks of the Elwha for thousands of years, with a culture that was in tune with the river, and with the salmon that spawned in the high clear waters; salmon that went down into the sea to grow big and strong and then returned bringing the nutrients of the sea back to the people, and also to the river and the other creatures that relied on it. I thought of the people's anguish as hundreds of thousands of pounds of concrete were dumped into the water to build the dam. Of their grief when the waters were backed up to create Lake Aldwell, a reservoir that covered places that were important to the lives of the people and to the fish, and their distress at the second dam that kept so many of the fish from returning home.

But I also thought of the people who had built the dam, the European Americans who had looked at the majestic river and the powerful falls and had had a vision of inexpensive and plentiful power that would make life easier for themselves and for their families. Both the City of Port Angeles and the Georgia Pacific Paper Mill that was the primary provider of jobs and industry came into being with the creation of the Elwha Dam. With the abundant power a new city was born – filled with people who marveled at the beauty and abundance of the Pacific Northwest, prospered because of the wealth of the forests and enjoyed fishing and relaxing around the Reservoir Lake. For these people, the dam had created a paradise. 

When it was first suggested that the dams come down, the people of the city reacted with astonishment, then anger and sometimes with more than a little racist behavior. They were very disconnected from the paradise in which they lived -- so disconnected that they believed that they had created a paradise out of the wild rather than participating in the destruction of a paradise that already existed.

When the Dams began to come down in 2011 and the river was fully free again in August of 2014, the People of the River believed that the divine protectors of the River had at last awoken from a slumber that was caused by the Trickster. Surely they felt that their tears were being wiped from their eyes, and that the death and mourning, crying and pain that had been part of their lives was finally ending -- as the words in Revelation might describe it. Indeed, for over 100 years they had held onto the hope that the dam that had destroyed their livelihood would one day be removed. 

A Klallam storyteller came to last night’s event. He said that for the Great Spirit, a hundred years is only a moment in time - something that we should all remember, but too often forget. 

The decision to bring down the dams was not easy. It took a long and sustained effort by the Klallam People and their allies – and it took city people willing to take a long hard look at the data that scientists had gathered over the years that the dam was in place.

 

The run of Salmon went from over 400,000 a year to 4,000 the first the first year that the dams were in place to almost zero in the succeeding years. But that was not the only destruction. The reservoir that some had referred to as a paradise, was slowly choking on the silt and debris that could no longer be washed down to the sea. The estuaries at the mouth of the River became rocky and void of life without the constant refreshment of the free flowing water. The native people suffered. The fish grown in hatcheries were not strong or healthy. The Native storyteller referred to the hatchery fish as "poodles instead of wolves". The once abundant wildlife suffered as their source of nourishment was depleted and the waters became murky and unclean. 

With all the evidence in place it became clear to those who were charged with making a decision, that that everything is connected. It is not possible to change a powerful river without collateral damage.    

In Laudato Si Pope Francis wrote that ‘Care for nature is part of a lifestyle which includes the capacity for living together and communion. Jesus reminded us that we have God as our common (Parent) and that this makes us brothers and sisters. Fraternal love can only be gratuitous; it can never be a means of repaying others for what they have done or will do for us. That is why it is possible to love our enemies.’

Jesus commanded his disciples to love one another. It was for them a challenge to care for one another as they might care for their own families. But we are also challenged to love those who are not part of our family, our clan or tribe; people who are outside of the boundaries of ethnic, racial or national groups that we identify with. This means looking for the common good and putting the needs of those we love -- which means all people -- ahead of individual gain.

 

The call to care for our common home is not simply a commitment to recycle and drive less; it is a call to consider the relationships that we have with all of creation. Pope Francis speaks of a universal fraternity; of the need to love and accept the wind, the sun and the clouds, even though we cannot control them.

To live in communion with nature, to view each person and each creature as precious and loved by God calls for a lifestyle conversion that is only possible if we work at it each day, not just Earth Day or on the Feast of St. Francis, but every day.We need our own sacred stories and the stories of other peoples as well to help us understand one another and learn to live in communion.

 
And we need a powerful hope that what we do for the Good of the Earth and for the Earth Community matters. Surely we can hold in our hearts a hope that is as strong and faithful as the hope that sustained the Klallam during the many years when their river was held captive.

Anyway, that is what, was thinking today. Maybe you have heard that story before, or another that is similar. I would welcome and thoughts or comments that you might have.  

Opportunity for Everyone

Yesterday was an exhausting day. On my way to work, walking as I do the last mile in order to get a little exercise into my day, I received a couple of curious texts. One about  "an interesting day ahead" and the other from a co-worker inquiring if I had "made it to work yet." I didn't know what the texts were about but within a couple of blocks I saw the flashing red lights and police barricade.
A man from the street community, living in a tent outside my place of work, had been shot in the back. He is in critical condition as I write today, stable but perhaps paralyzed as the bullet apparently hit or lodged near his spine. The perpetrator was not apprehended.

As an advocate for homeless campers, I am incredibly distressed. No one should have to sleep on the streets unprotected from violent people. Before Christmas two campsites were burned down in the same area, one right in front of my church. Public safety people, fire department etc., told us that camps had been burned in several different areas of town where homeless people congregate to sleep.

Generally the conversation around public camps has to do with unsightliness or the fears that local housed residents or business people have. These concerns need to be addressed but the fundamental issue is that people, human beings with all the needs of any other human being, are sleeping on concrete sidewalks in makeshift huts or in tents without sanitation, running water or garbage service. Theses shanty towns are smaller than the ones we see in the news outside large cities in the developing world, but for the people who live in them, life is anything but pleasant even though they are living in one of the wealthiest countries in the world.


In the campsite that is currently being cleaned up - now that an incident has taken place- there were men and women, couples and a family with children. Likely they felt safer in a place with other people near a church and a school where people treat them with some dignity. But it is not a good place for campers. Along with the Director of a small school across the street we have been pushing for the last year for a protected zone around the school - a block or two around the school so that parents don't have to guide their children around tents and sleeping people to get them into school. Although we had been assured that our request was a good one and that the street would be kept clear while the city worked for longer term solutions, there was little follow through after the first few weeks.

What we need in our city is more housing that is affordable and accessible to families and individuals just starting out or for those who work in necessary service industries where the pay is not high enough to cover the cost of the market rate apartments that are springing up everywhere that a developer can manage to purchase the land. Long term thinking needs to include the needs of people at all levels of income or the creation of ghettos and shanty towns will continue to be the only option left for the poorest of the poor. When the low cost studio and one bedroom apartments are filled with working people who cannot afford to move into market rate housing or cannot find affordable housing near enough to their jobs, then there are no places left for the poorest people even when there are housing vouchers to assist them.

Other countries, other cities have figured out how to care for their citizens. We need to do the same.   

winter to spring/layers to skin

Yes. That is Yeeesssssss!!!
It was nearly 70 degrees today.
All during the wet cold months of late fall and winter Pacific North westerners bundle up in layers of sweaters and rain proof garments and vacate the streets as quickly as possible.
On my way to the light rail each wintry evening I passed a number of outdoor eating areas all tied down and abandoned for the rainy season. It was like walking through a twilight ghost town. The people you pass are shrouded in rain clothes, hats or hoodies and no one has a face.  Only a few offer a muffled hello in response to yours.
Then the sun comes out and people blossom like the desert after a rain storm. Spots of color and skin, yes, SKIN appears. People wearing shorts and halter tops, even those who might look better with a little more covering unbutton and remove a layer or two or three for the sunshine. The outdoor cafe chairs and tables are completely filled within minutes with colorful people all alive for the first time since the rains began.
Really it is an overnight transformation (sometimes only a few hours).
On the way into work I passed a man sitting with his face toward the sun. "I am soaking up every last bit of rays" he said, "since it won't last long."
How true. It is only March and we still have the April showers for May flowers to go until the rainy season officially ends (the day after the Rose Festival concludes is the usual first day of sun.)
But for the moment I can't help but feel good along with all of the other creatures of the area. My sinuses are clear. The moss between my toes has been shed. My overcast headache has lifted and my spirits are up in the blue skies of promise.

The first taste of Spring in the northwest. Nothing like it.

To My Children, with love.

We talked over the holiday about the presidential campaign. I always appreciate what my sons and daughters have to say. I am proud that they are thinking about what goes on in the world and coming to their own conclusions. I also like it when I am challenged by the next generation because it gives me hope that society is continuing to evolve. We talked in particular this weekend about the candidates in the Democratic Party, about Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.
Like the younger generation I am inspired by Senator Sanders. I have followed his career for some time because I sincerely believe the country needs to adopt more people nurturing policies like universal healthcare and affordable education. I look at other industrialized nations and see that they are able to take care of these needs for their people and I wish we could. I have always appreciated Sander's recognition of the growing divide between those who have everything and those who have nothing.
I realize that our nation has taken on the role of defense for more that just our own nation and that is not all bad, but it is costly. I also think that this nation "defends" the American way of life even when it is unhealthy or unsustainable, and I think you agree with this. I am hopeful that change is coming, that people are moving slowly in the direction of universal care ... most of the time... albeit very slowly. Mostly I am encouraged by how your generation is willing to live differently, try harder to be sustainable and open to inclusive community.
Like you I am very worried by the political conversation on the other side that has edged so far to the right; anti-immigrant, protectionist, and xenophobic.
I am writing this however in response to your statement regarding whether or not I would vote for Secretary Clinton just because she is a woman. The answer is no since I didn't vote for McCain and Palin just because Palin is a woman. I do have some sense. But when it comes to Clinton I feel differently.
As much as I like Senator Sanders something different happens when I look closely at Hillary Clinton.
She is not perfect. I wish she held some Sander's views more overtly. I don't really believe in dynasties. I didn't like it when we had two Bush presidents from the same family. (There are millions of people in this country and at the minimum there are dozens who have held public office including Governors and Senators who should have background to be President so why would I want the wife of a former president?) Nonetheless, when I look at Hillary Clinton I see a woman who has done all the right things to be president (with the exception of being married to a president -- although that seems to work pretty well in other countries!) If she was a man I think the commentary would be very different.
In my own life and work I have experienced how women who move to the top are supposed to accomplish things like all the men who have gone before them while remaining overtly female and how they are criticized if they do things differently. I have also lived through the women's movement when it became clear that only the women who became as aggressive as men were able to knock down the doors or raise the ceiling for the women who came after them -- even though the personal toll was very high since no one liked pushy women.
But, back to Hillary Clinton. She has experience of her own, she is smart, she has moved through the system and she is in a position to knock down the door and suddenly the rules change. It is not that people don't want a woman, they just don't want an insider. They want someone who will change things -- someone like Senator Sanders or (yikes) Donald Trump. But when I look at them I see two old white men. What's different about that?
When I look at Hillary Clinton I see someone like myself. A wife and mother, and also a highly educated woman who has broken through barriers because she has learned how to play the game as the men want to play --- and done so with as much integrity as she can just as many men have done.
But now when she is in position to move forward... this is not what the nation wants.

How different from what we have always had would it be to have a woman as president? I don't know but I would really like the chance to find out.

President Obama could not provide all the change that he wanted. He was stopped at every point by those who simply did not want a Black President... especially one who was on the side of the middle class and the poor. What has changed however, is that there is now a model in the highest office of the land for every young black person. A good model too, since President Obama has not been riddled with scandal, always showing the nation a loving first couple and first family. He is articulate, educated and extremely thoughtful. Young people are the future and they need this good model - we all do.
 
When at last we have a woman president there will be a model in the highest office of the land for every young woman regardless of color. That is something my generation has never had -- nor any generation before us. I agree that it would be nice if Hillary was the perfect candidate... but has there ever been one? Are only women supposed to be perfect? I mean, isn't Bernie Sanders a little old... too old to be president for the next 4-8 years?
Maybe having a woman president shouldn't be so important to me.

But it is.
      

Menu for change

Six years ago my husband and I traveled to Washington D.C. by train. At the time we were both vegetarians. Neither of us ate any gluten either although my husband is the one who gets really sick pretty quickly when he consumes gluten. Eating in the Dining Car on Amtrak was very difficult. None of the waiters knew much about gluten intolerance and they were not interested in learning. We were told repeatedly that we had to order from the menu "as is" since the food was pre-packaged and no one was willing or able to take meat off the plate let alone offer something else, like a veggie burger in its place. It was not only difficult to eat, it was also kind of embarrassing since the waiters were prone to raising their voices and making us feel pretty bad. A couple of times were told to go "buy food from the snack bar" which, if you have ever ridden on the train, you will know is far more gluten and vegetarian unfriendly than the dining car menu.   
Nonetheless we love traveling by train so we always take food with us in case there is nothing on the menu we can eat. Now, six years later, we are both vegan as well as gluten free and we were quite aware when planning for our recent trip that it could be difficult to order food that we could eat on the train. I called the special services line ahead of time and was told that we could pre-order vegan food although there would be no way to know if the food would be gluten free or not. That was a pretty big issue for us since we do know that many vegan foods are packed with noodles or wheat or other gluten filled products and vomiting on the train from gluten consumption would be rather unpleasant.
I was assured by the Amtrak special services person that no one should make us feel bad and that it seemed perfectly reasonable to her that we would ask for the main entree without the meat. So we decided to take our chances on the regular menu and take food with us as well. Much to our delight the regular menu offered several items that were labeled 'certified vegan' and which came with no foods that would have gluten in them. There was also an option for soy milk on the menu.  So we had vegan Pad Thai with Rice Noodles several times. We ordered potatoes and grits - without the eggs and bacon -- for breakfast and had Gardein black bean veggie burgers without the buns for lunch after I looked up the brand name online and could see that they were gluten free.
The waiters in the dining car were cheerful and helpful. For our last dinner on the train we had the steak, baked potato, and veggies - without the steak and with a Gardein burger in exchange. After one meal the waiter remarked that "you two are so healthy you have the right to scold other diners for the next 20 minutes." We laughed and felt at ease in the dining car which was a very pleasant change from six years ago. We were also aware of several other diners who chose vegan, vegetarian or simple foods.
Sometimes it seems that change will never happen but when we look back through our own lives we can see where change is happening rather rapidly considering how long it took humans to evolve into carnivorous creatures unable to pass up meat or dairy even when it clearly is "not doing a body good."

Into the Wild

I am just back from ten days of travel by train to New York.
In Albany, NY, I met up with several other Climate Ambassadors connected with the Catholic Climate Covenant. We were asked to participate in a Climate Summit at Paul Smith College which is located in the Adirondacks near Lake Placid.
It was my first time in New York and no, I did not travel "into the big city." (That will have to happen some other time.) This time it was a trip into a gorgeous area that has played host twice to the winter Olympics but which this year does not have enough snow to attract the cross country skiers who usually play a major role in the area's economy. We stopped at the Olympic Center Friday morning on the way to the college. The cross country parking lot was empty.
There was however, a skeleton competition in progress. Skeleton? What's that? A very very fast head first sledding event down a very very slick and icy track. I had never heard of it before so if you haven't don't feel ignorant. The lodge at the site featured antique bobsleds along with information regarding the sports of skeleton, bobsledding and the luge. Apparently the skeleton competitors can reach speeds over 130 miles an hour all while going down hill head first. (For the fun of it we tried to take pictures as the sleds whizzed by but there was no luck among any of us in getting more than a small tip of a sled coming or going.) 
After leaving the Olympic site we traveled by van up to Lake Placid where we stopped to get a bite to eat before taking some time to stretch our legs. We walked around Lake Mirror... or better we walked on the Lake. It was my first time 'walking on water' and it made me feel a little uneasy even though there were many people on the Lake including several teams of youngsters involved in ice hockey practice.  (see Pictures below) Clearly the people of the region identify with outdoor activities and the beauty of the region. They are also very concerned about the effect that the changing climate is having on their way of life.
On Saturday evening, March 5, the Climate Ambassadors had been asked to give a presentation at Paul Smith College regarding our work integrating science and faith with the topic of climate change. The crowd that gathered was large and diverse. There were elders as well as young students from area high schools. Some of the people came from faith backgrounds but many did not. The opportunity to dialogue regarding ways that we could all work together to care for Creation was exciting. People stayed for an hour longer that we had anticipated in order to ask questions, share stories and encourage one another.
I will write more in the coming days. I am exhausted now and need to transition from travel to the work day ahead.
 

Observing people

I had an appointment to keep today which meant I had to get up early even though I was not working.
I took a book and my transit pass and headed for the light rail line.
I left a bit early so I could get off at the first stop and buy some coffee to take with me. I have changed coffee shops but not because of taste, ambiance or cost. I changed because I feel more welcomed by the people in the new coffee shop. Not everyone was unfriendly or made me feel uncomfortable in the other shop, actually there was only one young woman who made me feel less than comfortable. It had to do with a question I asked when she charged me more than I had been charged before. I asked if the price had gone up and she treated me like I was lying to her which was awkward and embarrassing.  The other ladies are quite nice but it only takes the possibility of that one person being behind the counter to make me turn to the right instead of the left when I get off the light rail.

This morning, in the new shop - which is not really new except to me - the young women were not only friendly, they remembered what I bought last time and asked me about my weekend. I felt good buying the coffee from them. It is nice to be part of a neighborhood and a good way to start the day.
   
On the light rail going downtown I watched as a young man who was clearly blind got on the train with another person, possibly his tutor or daily companion. There is a section that is clearly marked for people with disabilities or who are elderly but no one got up for this young man. I was not close enough to offer my seat but I watched as others shifted their eyes so as too appear like they didn't see this blind man who needed a seat. His companion looked around but no one looked back so he led the young man up the stairs to a regular seat. I felt slightly embarrassed for the lack of compassion or even courtesy or just willingness to follow the rules: "These are priority seats for seniors and people with disabilities!" That means you must get up if you are not a senior and not disabled and offer your seat if someone gets on who fits the description.

Later on the train I was trying to read my book but kept being distracted by a young man about twenty years old who was make noises with a small chain attached to a water bottle. I looked up to see what the noise was and met his eyes briefly. They were blood shot and he seemed to be high on something... marijuana I supposed - since he was in a good mood but unable to hold still like a small child. He started hitting his metal water bottle against his hand or knee in a way that was not musical or rhythmic. I kept reading and at another stop someone got on and sat down across from the noise maker.

The young man began sharing how he was going to drop off a job application at a pizza place. He held up a large envelope that he had with him indicating that it held the application. He then began to talk about how as soon as he had this job he would be able to get an apartment and contribute to the city in a positive way. Contrary to reality he said that housing in the city was plentiful and he would have no problem finding a place right away. All the while that he talked he kept tapping or shaking his water bottle. He also mentioned that he didn't do drugs although he said "I do drink" and added that he thought that drinking contributed to the city's economy. I felt kind of sad thinking that I couldn't imagine anyone hiring this young man to work around people. He was very oblivious to his behavior which was annoying not only to me, but to a number of people who kept glancing at him as he made noises. Eventually he got off the train. I had a good long way to go.

After changing trains I sat down across from a young man who was very very high on something, meth I supposed. He was moving non-stop with his arms and face gesturing and acting as if he was communicating somehow with someone no one else could see. The much older woman who was seated nearest to him was clearly uncomfortable, maybe a bit scared since the young man's gesturing was very elaborate. He got off after a couple of stops and I thought that he had made the noise maker of the last train seem almost normal.

There was a couple with a toddler seated by the window. The little boy was very excited to be on the train. The woman, who I assumed was his mom, kept up a running dialogue with him about everything that was happening. When I first got on the train he looked over at me, smiled and waved. Sometimes it makes me happy to look like a grandmother... I am a grandmother after all and little people feel comfortable around grandmothers. Smiles are nice gifts.

There was another child who got on the train downtown very reluctantly. His caretaker had to coax almost pull the little guy onto the train. She was a woman who would only have been his mother by adoption since they were not of the same ethnicity. I thought that she was more likely a babysitter or caretaker of some sort. I wondered how I would know without making a fool of myself if this woman was supposed to have this unhappy child with her but as I watched them together I could see that she was very gentle and he was eventually at ease with her even if he had not wanted to get on the train at first. Sometimes we just trust that things are okay.

It is amazing that I was able to read so much of my book and get so much people watching in at the same time. I like being out in public. I am wondering what some of the other transit riders were thinking when they saw me!