Falling Behind

At Thanksgiving supper, we all took a turn saying what we were thankful for.  My boy said that he was thankful for having food and shelter.  Luckily, he's never been in danger of not having those things.  The same cannot be said for children everywhere.

Last spring, I posted a link to a 60 Minutes story about homeless families in Florida.  Yesterday, 60 Minutes did a follow-up story on the persistence of homeless children in central Florida.  JT and I watched the story together.  At one point, he turned to me and said, "I don't want to know about this because it makes my heart hurt."  We talked about how we can help and why it's important for all of us to care about this problem.  And then we finished watching the story.  It's not an easy story to watch, though it's well-worth your time.

Help for these children and their families can be directed here.

Thankful

Among my favorite things to do in the kitchen is holiday cooking for the people I love.  This year's Thanksgiving was no exception; I even got out the roaster and made a turkey.

The turkey was joined by the usual Thanksgiving fare: dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberries, fresh rolls and the like.  Along with the people I love, of course.

I am as thankful for these blessings as I have ever been.  And so very, very happy.

And Yet

While we were in Washington D.C. last week, we went to see the Franklin D. Roosevelt monument.  Though I'd seen some pictures, I'd specifically avoided too much advance looking.  I'm a Roosevelt admirer of the first order and I wanted to see the monument in real time.

It didn't disappoint.

In addition to statues and waterfalls, the monument features  Roosevelt's words.  They are powerful ideas.

This wall reads: "In these days of difficulty, we Americans everywhere must and shall choose the path of social justice, the path of faith, the path of hope, and the path of love toward our fellow man."

FDR looked for solutions to poverty and inequality, problems we still struggle to solve.

The words next to the men waiting in line for food read, "The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little."

As Congress refuses to address the unemployment problem in this nation, we can look to FDR for condemnation of our failure to take action, "No country, however rich, can afford the waste of its human resources.  Demoralization caused by vast unemployment is our greatest extravagance.  Morally, it is the greatest menace to our social order."

As we keep open the prison at Guantanamo Bay and evict Occupy Wall Street protesters, President Roosevelt reminds us of the importance of civil rights: "We must scrupulously guard the civil rights and civil liberties of all citizens, whatever their background. We must remember that any oppression, any injustice, any hatred, is a wedge designed to attack civilization."

He reminds us of the horrors of war, "I have seen war on land and sea.  I have seen blood running from the wounder.  I have seen the dead in the mud.  I have seen cities destroyed.  I have seen children starving.  I have seen the agony of mother's and wives.  I HATE WAR."

President Roosevelt knew that we need to steward our natural world, "men and nature must work hand in hand.  The throwing out of balance of the resources of nature throws out of balance the lives of men."

Everywhere you turn in this memorial is a reminder of the ideas that saved our nation in the Great Depression and WWII.  The ideas are as powerful as they are timeless.  I wish I could say that I found this all hopeful, but I didn't.  I found it frustrating.  There was a time when our challenges were great, greater than they are today.  As a nation, we organized and took action; we looked after one another.  We were better for it.  Today, we know the answers to our problems; history and Roosevelt could be our guide. And yet we refuse to act.

Time

When I first started work in New Jersey, I struck up a friendship with J, the Spanish teacher who taught across the hall from me.  Many mornings, JT and I would stop in to say hi and JT, then age 3, would hop on the desks in J's classroom.  It's one of JT's fondest memories of his early years at school.

A few years have passed.  J has married M and they moved to two other continents before arriving in Washington D.C., where they've settled for a time.  And this summer, they had M, a baby as cute, charming and easy-going as his parents. 

Some day soon I hope that M will come visit my classroom and jump on the desks.  I think that JT could show him the ropes.

Real Life Observations of JT: Extinct edition

The backstory:  We were at the Natural History Museum in Washington D.C., strolling through the dinosaur display, when JT observed, "Look, Mama.  There's your cell phone."

The kid is two steps ahead of me now and he's only 11. Internet, I'm screwed.

Real Life Observations of JT: Security edition

The backstory: Strolling the Capitol with his new extra long pencil, JT declared it was a wand and he attempted magic everywhere.  He was largely unsuccessful.  Then we came alongside the Capitol police, with their very scary automatic rifle. 

JT looked at L and I and announced, "I don't think that my wand would stand a chance against that guy."

Indeed.

Meanwhile, at the Supreme Court Gift Shop

On Friday afternoon we headed on over to the Supreme Court to check out the fate of justice.  Spoiler alert: Roberts and Scalia are still corporate whores of the first order.  As we strolled through the gift shop, I came across the following board game for kids:

Is this really a good idea? I think not.  Tomorrow I plan to go out and see if there is an Insurance Fraud for Kids! game to be found. 

Fellow traveler L discovered his very own souvenir of American justice: a miniature Supreme Court gavel.

Made in Canada.

Oh, America.

By and For the People

I'm in Washington D.C for the annual Model Congress trip and we took an afternoon walk over to the the real Congress.  After a rainy morning, it was a rather splendid afternoon and as we walked the grounds of the Capitol I was struck again by the splendor of this building and the powerful ideas that created our government.

Deservedly, Congress is at an all-time low in terms of public approval.  They seem to lack both the direction and the will to do right by the nation.  I wonder if they walk the grounds of this magnificent place and think about the privilege and power of self-government.  I fear not; I suspect they've lost sight of their obligations and responsibilities. 

I tell my government students that needn't matter; that the power is in the hands of the people.  I've read the Constitution and I know how this system works.  We have the ability to demand a better government.  But do we have the willpower?

Magical

One of the things that T and I have in common is that we both lived in the midwest.  While I have just 8 years of heartland experience on my resume, she's a native, who's done some serious time in a small midwest town.  When we first met, we quickly discovered that we had in common a knowledge of the Village Inn, a respect for Dairy Queen, and general amusement at the inevitable small town business which combines shoe repair, gasoline, oil changes, and a liquor store.

And no small town would be complete without a grocery store.  In the tiny towns of the midwest, these stores often feature dusty shelves with expired cans of Dinty Moore stew alongside bags of off-brand potato chips.  In the small New Jersey town where T lives these days, there is a small market that would seem to resemble the midwest's local food emporiums.  But there the comparison ends.  T had mentioned before that in terms of space and range of choice available, this place is unbelievable.  When I finally visited this weekend, it did not disappoint.  Once you open the door it's like you've just stepped into the grocery store equivalent of Hermione Granger's magic purse.   

In narrow aisles, with shelves stocked to the (sagging) roof, is row after row of dream-come-true items.  My personal favorite is the row featuring cans of spray paint right next to an impressive assortment of potato chips.  Juices and spices are in the next aisle down.  The liquor section ranges along the back, along with kids' toys, plenty of toiletries, and god-only-knows what else. 

Suffice it to note that in the deli case there is a sign advertising the fact that you can order a whole pig (though it takes a week, so you'll have to cool your heels before that bacon is in your belly). 

Oh, the possibilities.

Dogwood Monday: Week 7

As predicted, the dogwood tree lost the last of its leaves last week.

All over my corner of New Jersey the fall leaves are now officially past their prime but the evening and morning sky seems determined to make up for the missing foliage.  I made some pictures, but they hardly do the sky justice.  For the last few evenings, the setting sun has been bathed in a beautiful orange glow, with a pinkish blue at the margins.

The morning sunrise has been a paler version, with more lavender in the horizon.   

We've had some warm days to go with the lovely light and so I've made time to be outside and enjoy the show.