Alumni Return to Tell Their Story

 It's always nice to have Parish Alumni back with us.Today Carlton Northrup and David Haines from the class of 2008 spoke about their recent experience with the tornado that hit Tuscaloosa.  They both told stories of devastation but also stories about communities coming together for the sake of others.   Both have been very active in assisting those who have lost their homes or possessions in the recent storms.  While at Parish, David and Carlton were active members of the Habitat for Humanity club.  This morning they said how grateful they were for that experience because it helped shape them into the young men they are today.   Carlton shared the following with our students:

How many of you have endured a power outage?
How many of you have endured a power outage that lasted a couple of hours?
What would you do if you spent the night without power, and you were told that it could be 3 to 5 days before power was restored?  What would you do?

We all live in a cocoon of naive security.  We go through life, and we rely on the web of security without ever thinking about it.

There are certain things that violate the cocoon of security – having your house robbed, your car broken into or stolen, losing a loved one, or having your environment seriously disrupted.

When this violation occurs, we rely upon our safety net.  Who is your safety net?  Who do you turn to when you need security?  What would you do if they weren’t there?

We all have seen pictures of massive damage, from Katrina to Rita to the earthquake and Tsunami in Japan.  But they are pictures.  We look at them, we are sympathetic, but unless you have personally suffered this same tragedy, you cannot be empathetic.

I thought I understood; I thought I could relate to the people whose environment was so seriously disrupted until it happened to me.  Then I realized that I could not.  But I also hope that you never find out for your selves.

I was very fortunate, though, that my safety net is here, in Dallas.  There is a place that I can call home when my own home is under siege.

When you leave here remember that your safety net is here, intact, and there for you.

If you wish to help those affected by the tornadoes, you can join these young men by visitingwww.uagreekrelief.com
Carlton is trying to sell shirts to help raise money for those affected by the storms.  To buy a shirt visit  www.prayforttown.com

Tuscaloosa tornado

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TED Video of the Week

In education we often say that good lessons can be learned from failure.  Students even agree that failure can be a good thing.  General Stanley McChrystal, speaks about some lessons regarding leadership that he's learned over his career. 

One quote that I found interesting, for parents and for educators is this: "Leaders can let you fail, but let you not be a failure."  How can we foster this idea in schools and homes, where are students can confidently try something new, knowing that they themselves are not failures? 

Enjoy.

Sr. Community Service - Tehjal Suri

This reflection was given by senior, Tehjal Suri regarding her community service with BRIDGE Lacrosse - Dallas.  

Martin Luther King, Jr. once commented, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.”

I go to a school where the tuition costs as much as some colleges. I drive a beemer. I own expensive Tiffany jewelry. I have the latest Macbook and iPhone. And yet, I’ve never felt spoiled because I ignorantly assumed everyone got what he or she wanted, eventually. I never truly considered myself in the dark until I met these kids, underprivileged kids living in the nooks of downtown Dallas.

After playing on the Varsity Lacrosse team for three consecutive years, my high school coach introduced me to BRIDGE Lacrosse, a non-profit organization established in Dallas, Texas to introduce diverse and traditionally underserved children to lacrosse.

So I decided to become a Co-coach for the 5^th-8^th grade girls teams. I teach them the basic skills, how to cradle to protect the ball in your stick. How to catch. How to throw. How to even just hold your stick. And while these seemed like basic things to me, that I thought were so easy, I began to see the frustration in these kids’ eyes. They were used to just kicking a soccer ball around and aiming for the goal, crossing their fingers and jumping around hoping the ball would make it into the goal. But lacrosse was a new concept to them. In soccer, touching the ball with your hands was illegal unless it was a throw-in. But now, the whole game was being played with your hands holding a flimsy stick. That was the only thing in control – a stick that came up to their waist and that had a “head” attached to it. But as these girls struggled, one kid stood out to me.

Her name was Manny Gonzalez. But I call her “Speedy Gonzalez.” The name kind of describes her best – she was the speedy one on the team. And she never gave up.

After our usual warm-up and skills practice, we sometimes would schedule a scrimmage, boys against girls. But, of course, the girls weren’t too excited because they were afraid to show their weakness in front of the boys. They could barely go four steps and keep the ball from dropping and now we wanted them to play a whole game against these rough and tough boys? As the game started, one after one the girls dropped the ball from their stick only to be stolen by one of the boys. Finally, Speedy Gonzalez was fed-up. She hated two things the most: 1) anybody being faster than her. And 2) losing. This second one decided to give her boost because the next minute I witnessed was amazing. Suddenly as I blew the whistle for the circle draw to begin the game, Speedy Gonzalez caught the ball in the air, ran as fast as she could, yelling to her teammates “COME ON PEOPLE! Where are you when I need you. What do you have to lose? Just run with the stick and have my back” as she headed straight for they boy’s goalie. Now a happy ending would be that she got the ball in the goal. But instead, the ball went straight for boys’ goalie, and let’s just say it hurt in the wrong place. But the girls could care less. They jumped up and down, cheering like cheerleaders because they had FINALLY gotten the ball past the midline, and this time it was on the offensive side of the field. After that, every girl made a run for it, some still missed the goal and watched the ball roll out into the road, but they didn’t care. They had finally learnt it wasn’t about winning.

And that’s what I loved about these kids. They finally realized, they just had to give a little. Give a little push. So what if they didn’t make it into the goal. It was an even bigger accomplishment that they could correctly cradle the ball and not drop it for a whole 50 yards!

 

Lacrosse has always been a sport that helped to teach me values like commitment, teamwork, respect, and responsibility. Speedy Gonzalez showed commitment and encouraged the others to do the same and this encouraged teamwork. Her teammates respected her enough to trust her and realize giving up wasn’t an option.

Coaching the kids at BRIDGE made me realize that I can give back to my community by creating more possibilities for these kids to become successful adults. I can see the light Mr. King mentioned – the light that shows me there’s more to the world than the “private-school-student bubble” I live in. 

Texting while driving

There's a group on facebook called "Honk if you love Jesus, text while driving if you want to meet him."  AT&T has recently released the below documentary about the dangers of texting while driving.  I see this far too often.  Parents do this while driving their kids around town.  At the same time, students seem pretty confident in their ability to text and drive.   I hope this is something we all take seriously because there are far too many accidents that happen because of this! 

Integrity

HOW DO YOU DEFINE INTEGRITY? (Please give your definition below!)

Here at our school we often talk about being a "Culture of Integrity - Our foundation is a broadly inclusive community within the values-orientated Episcopal Tradition." 

I have always respected the people who can admit their own errors or gracious give praise to others who deserve it.  Yet, when competition enters the picture, integrity seems to go out the window.

Here are three videos I am going to show tomorrow in chapel to help unpack the word INTEGRITY.

First, Derek Jeter, who on Sep. 16th 2010 was "hit by a pitch" during a game.  The problem?  He wasn't hit at all!  Here are some comments by people in the sports world regarding...integrity????




Next, Brian Davis, who displays his level of integrity during the 2010 Verizon Heritage Tournament.  This is the recap of the final hole and then the playoff.  Notice something here - he called the penalty on himself.  What does that say about his own level of integrity?



Finally, notice how the commentators speak about Brian Davis in their recap.

Book Recommendation

A few weeks ago I was at the NAES Biennial conference where president Daniel Heishman was discussing his new book Good Influence: Teaching the Wisdom of Adulthood.  If you want to read his plenary address follow the link below.  It’s probably worth the few minutes of reading when you have the time. 

http://www.episcopalschools.org/resources/library/?fa=displayDoc&docid=2137

At the same time I would recommend reading his book.  He fundamentally talks about the importance of Adults mentoring young people into being true adults.  In a society where youth is praised, where parents are "best friends" with their children, and where adults have to ask children how to use technology, Heischman offers a compelling philosophy of adulthood along with practical means to educate young people.  It's worth your time.  

The first 25 pages of the book can be found here on Google books.

Evolution of St. Nicholas

I am always interested in the ways we have turned a Christian saint into a jolly old man who lives in the North Pole.  Actually, Saint Nicholas was born in 270 and died in 347.  Maybe we can learn something from this story about St. Nicholas...

One day, by chance, Nicholas heard about a rich man in Myra who lost all his money when his business failed. The man had three lovely daughters, all wishing to get married, but he had no money for their marriage. Besides, who would marry them, he thought, since their father is such a failure? With nothing to eat, the man in desperation decided to sell one of his daughters into slavery. At least then the rest of them might survive.

That night before the first daughter was to be sold, Nicholas, with a small bag of gold in his hand, softly approached their house, and, tossing the gold through an open window, quickly vanished into the darkness.

The next morning, the father found a bag of gold lying on the floor next to his bed. He had no idea where it came from. "Maybe it's counterfeit," he thought. But as he tested it, he knew it was real. He went over the list of his friends and business associates. None of them could possibly have given him this.

The poor man fell to his knees and great tears came to his eyes. He thanked God for this beautiful gift. His spirits rose higher than they had been for a long time because someone had been so unexpectedly good to him. He arranged for his first daughter's wedding and there was enough money left for the rest of them to live for almost a year. Often he wondered: who gave them the gold?

But by the end of the year, the family again had nothing, and the father, again desperate and seeing no other way open, decided his second daughter must be sold. But Nicholas, hearing about it, came by night to their window and tossed in another bag of gold as before. The next morning the father rejoiced, and, thanking God, begged His pardon for losing hope. Who, though, was the mysterious stranger giving them such a gift?

Each night afterwards the father watched by the window. As the year passed their money ran out. In the dead of one night he heard quiet steps approaching his house and suddenly a bag of gold fell onto the floor. The father quickly ran out to catch the one who threw it there. He caught up with Nicholas some distance away and recognized him, for the young man came from a well-known family in the city.

"Why did you give us the gold?" the father asked.

"Because you needed it," Nicholas answered. "But why didn't you let us know who you were?" the man asked again. "Because it's good to give and have only God know about it."

TED Video of the Week

I've spoken about the need for adequate drinking water in chapel and have blogged about it here before.  Over in Uganda I saw people walking miles to find relatively safe drinking water.  At times young boys or girls couldn't attend school because their job was to walk and retrieve the family's water for the day.  Living Water International is an organization that I've supported over the past few years.  However, I support any agency who is creative enough to find ways to provide clean and safe drinking water for the over one billion people who don't have access to it.  In this video, Michael Pritchard talks about his invention of The Lifesaver Bottle.  Maybe during this Advent season we can worship God in Christ by helping those around us who are in need. 

Advent

It is easy to get caught up in the consumerism of this time of year.  Millions of people flood the stores the Friday after Thanksgiving to buy new TV's, computers, clothes, electronics, etc.  But why?  Do we inherently believe that more stuff will make our lives better?  Advent Conspiracy is an organization that has encouraged people to spend less money on gifts for people on Christmas and actually spend time with family and loved ones.  Likewise, they encourage people to take some of the money that would be spent on gifts and give it to help those in need.  Below are just a few of the organizations that I will support this Christmas season.






Advent Conspiracy

Living Water International - Providing clean drinking water in the name of Christ to people all over the world. 

The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) - An AIDS support organization providing education, support, and ARV's at little to no cost for people with AIDS in Uganda.

Episcopal Relief & Development - Supporting people who are suffering all over the world.

Heifer International - working with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the earth.

 North Texas Food Bank - A non-profit hunger relief organization that distributes donated, purchased and prepared foods through a network of feeding programs in North Texas

Empower African Children - Empower African Children believes in the transforming power of education. We see the promise and potential of orphans and vulnerable children in Africa. And we know what's possible when you believe in and invest in these children.

TED Video of the Week

My favorite musician this past year has been by far Andrew Bird. I find his music creative, intriguing, imaginative, collaborative, heartfelt...the list can go on and on.  When I think about education, or faith for that matter, it seems to me that these are the traits teachers ought to embody in the classroom.  A good teacher is a good student who finds learning intriguing, who is imaginative, who collaborates with colleagues, who teaches with a strong passion not only for young people but also the intellectual pursuit of wisdom.   In our classrooms, or chapels, do we engage our students and pursue these traits together?  When we teach do we create music like Andrew Bird?  Do we engage students on a deeper level and invite them into the conversation?  Are we able to discover the deep mysteries of life?

What about faith?  It seems that we often think that we can't make a bit of difference in the world.  Or - to use the metaphor of music - we can only play one instrument with one melody.  This, for many, is boring and a waste of time and therefore it's not surprising the many young people have no religious affiliation.  However, when the music is looped (in a positive manner) then one person can create a beautiful, deep, and impacting song.  That's the faith I wish to live...

Friendship

This morning in chapel the students described the qualities of a good friend.  Here is was we came up with. 

PBS has done it again!

I've been impressed with the way in which PBS retells stories of history, especially regarding religion.  Just a few weeks ago PBS aired its God in America series.  This six part series provides an interesting and enlightening read of our history as Americans and our relation to religious language.  I highly recommend watching the series.  Click "watch the full episode" at the bottom!

Watch the full episode. See more FRONTLINE.

TED video of the week

Do you care about joining in the global struggle end poverty?  Here is a great TED video from Jessica Jackley, the co-founder of Kiva. 

do we know ENOUGH about our faith?

By now I’m sure you’ve read about the recent study by the Pew Forum, which found that the majority of Americans are quite religiously illiterate.  I remember when I left for college, or even worse grad school, in order to study theology.  Even the leader of my church in Colorado said, “David, you know if you study theology you will lose your faith.”  WHAT?  For some reason anti-intellectualism has infiltrated the American religion, and it seems to me that this has to stop.  We have governmental leaders making decisions about world politics who don’t know the first thing about Islam, or why the Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church didn’t speak for 1000 years.  Check out the story from NPR. 

facebook part II

What does your facebook say about you?  Earlier today I asked this question, and received a lot of comment about it throughout the day.  In an earlier post, I wrote a bit about facebook places, the option to "check in" somewhere.  Watch this, and be sure your facebook settings are as private as possible. 



Also, check out this article from the NY Times. 

Facebook Settings

With Facebook announcing its "places" settings this past week, I think it's important that we look again at the amount of information we share on social media sites.  Students, let me suggest that we all check our privacy settings on Facebook so that we do not share information with people who don't need access to it.  Does everyone need to know when your birthday is?  Should your profile be posted on sites like Google or Yahoo?  I think it's time that we reconsider how much information we put out on the internet!

Below is a video to help you change your settings regarding the new "places" feature that allows you to "check in" at a given location.  From what I've read, you must "opt out" of this feature, as all are naturally "opted in."

 

Water in Uganda

Living Water International is an agency that I've supported over the past few years with my prayers and donations.  This summer while visiting Uganda I saw the need for clean drinking water first hand.  People walk miles to find water, which often contains parasites, and causes many to become ill.  Many who become ill have less than adequate access to health care and therefore these illnesses often go untreated.  According to Living Water International's website, "[n]early 90 % of all diseases in the world are caused by unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene."   Below is a video looking at the impact of inadequate drinking water and its affect on education.



 Read the article.


Back to School: Uganda from Living Water International on Vimeo.

Solidarity

As I have now been in Africa for one week, I’ve tried to struggle with the idea of solidarity.  Many of the people I’ve spoken with here are quite frustrated with the images the world sees of Africa.  They are proud of their country and look into the future with optimistic lenses.  As a muzungu I feel as if I’ve been welcomed as family by the people here.  However, individually and one representing Parish, I’ve wanted to be one who can learn from the people…listen to their stories, and partner with them in bringing good education, stronger healthcare, and in eliminate child mutilation. Doing so, I’ve been thinking about solidarity.

Epistemology is basically the study of knowledge - in other words, it asks the question “how do we know?”  In my studies there are some theologians and philosophers who say that in order to understand poverty, you must be poor…or to understand Jesus, you must be Hispanic, poor, Black, or rich.  See Justo Gonzalez or James Cone.

While I write this, I’m watching the England vs. Germany football match and thinking about my time in Uganda.

Today I said goodbye to the children supported by Empower African Children.  These young people have wonderful stories, and beautiful hearts.  Driving away from the house I was wondering if I can fully know their situation from a distance, or if I must really live with these people I hope to assist.  Eating their food is a privilege, but is that enough?  To learn from them, should we sleep in their houses, use their pit latrines, work diligently for my money, and live in true community?

I know it can be so very overwhelming to live in complete solidarity, but maybe that’s what it takes.

I overheard a conversation the other day about governmental aid to Uganda.  If we follow a completely utilitarian view of aid given to Uganda, might we miss some of the organizations who enter into solidarity with the people to work with them for a virtuous goal?

So can we really KNOW the needs, desires, and passion of people from an office, or a bus, or a nice hotel?

As I write this, there’s an advertisement on the side of my computer by Unicef that says, “Are you making a difference?”  I hope so.  Maybe coming to Uganda will someday entail me living in solidarity, to fully know and try to understand.  But for now, I’ll struggle, fight myself, and try to learn as best I can.

When our students said goodbye, and even now when I write, I have tears in my eyes.  Beautiful people, in vulnerable situations, have learned to live outside themselves…young children, talented, given a gift, realize that if they use this gift, their lives….their country….their world will be transformed.

So after traveling to Africa, should we try to appreciate our big houses, or our nice cars?  I don't think so.  Maybe we try (trust me it might take several small steps) to enter into solidarity with people in the hope to learn, to listen, to act, and to love.

Healthcare

One of the headlines in today’s paper was about five children in Uganda who are hospitalized due to severe food poisoning.  I wonder what hospital they are in…which leads me to today.  As every day so far, today was exceptional and one that lead me to tears.  We spent the vast majority of the day touring clinics and hospitals in and around Kampala.  Our day began with an early morning tour of a wonderful organization here in Kampala, Uganda called TASO.  TASO is a donor funded HIV/AIDS clinic that assists the underserved population (which is the VAST majority) living with HIV/AIDS.  This clinic serves anywhere from 150 - 250+ patients a day at the cost of 500 shillings per visit.  (500 shilling is about .25 cents, and the majority of the patients struggle to have sufficient funds to pay - which is why many of the staff pool their money to assist those who can’t afford.)  As I walked down the hall to the restroom (which was a hole in the ground) I noticed the hall was full of people sitting quietly in chairs, some with masks over their face (because they had TB).  The people were patiently waiting to either be tested for HIV, receive family counseling (can you imaging the impact a HIV diagnoses can do to a family) or receive a one or two month prescription of their AVR’s (HIV/AIDS medicine).  At the end of our stay, a group of 25 people sang two songs to us, reflecting their work to bring HIV awareness to the communities in Kampala.  “You and me,” they sang, “let’s fight to the end…you and me, let’s fight unto the end.”  While singing, one man and women told their respective story about the family impact of HIV - being shunned, husband dying - and yet the sang with such beautiful passion.  At the end of our visit, I found that many of these people have been taking ARV’s since the mid ‘90’s.  They were kind, gentle, and so very welcoming.



After the visit to TASO we spent some time visiting the government hospital here in Kampala.  Imagine an open-air complex built in the 1950’s that is busy with people.  We spent some time at the mortuary at the government hospital.  The woman was explaining that if a body isn’t claimed within a few days it will be sent to a mass grave.  She offered a tour of the facility, which was eye opening to say the least.  I walked with the director of the mortuary and she wanted to display all of their work.  She walked us into the room for autopsies to show off the hard work of the individuals.  I looked behind us and realized that she and I were the only ones standing in the room while the autopsy was being performed.  (Now I want to visit a US hospital and see how the process is different in the states.)  Trust me, this was far from the facilities seen on NCIS.  The woman was very proud of her work.  The people who were waiting patiently until their number is called.  Sadly, people have to give money up front before they are treated.  Often, if the family doesn’t have money, that means they won’t be served.  If someone needs medicine, a family member will be sent to a pharmacy to get medicine for the doctor.

We ended our day at the International Hospital here in Kampala.  What a difference.  Whereas at the government hospital one would bring their own sheets, towels, etc. the International Hospital provides all necessary accommodations.  The hospital wasn’t crowded, peopled were dressed well, and the doctors and nurses were accessible.  Walking through the children’s ward, our guide introduced us to a boy who was mutilated by a local witch doctor…now the boy is struggling to pass urine.  In the news two days ago, a 14 year old girl was killed by a witch doctor to bring well-being to the family.  The entire day brought about interesting questions and often sad reflection.

Healthcare…something that has been on the minds of Americans over the past year, is a whole new beast here in Uganda.  The lack of adequate drinking water, HIV, inadequate hospitals all lead to an interesting discussion.  Thank God for people who devote their lives to support and assist those who are sick, dying, or living with HIV.  Maybe we all can “fight the battle together,” to bring about awareness, and assistance to those in need.

We’re about to head to a place called Retrak, a home for street children.  I have a feeling I’m going to get schooled in football!

Mzungu

Mzungu is a word used here in Uganda meaning "white person."  As we drove into a suburb of Kampala to visit the home of one of the children sponsored by Empower African Children, Mzungu was often shouted by the children accompanied with a wave.  As we were in this little community, I asked one of our Ugandan EAC US scholarship students about how they feel about Americans.  Teddy told me that many of these people here, especially those who live outside Kampala have only seen white people on TV.  They were probably mesmerized with us just as we were with them.
 In Uganda when visiting someone's home, it's customary to bring along food with your visit.  The market we visited was different from the day before.  This was smaller, less crowded, but just as friendly.  I bought a large can of cooking oil, (something else I don't know what it was), and some bananas.  All in all, this cost about 20,000 shillings, or around $9.  As we arrived to this home children were out playing, adults were washing their clothes or selling different items at the local trading post.  Around the corner was a movie theatre playing an American or European movie translated into the native language here.  It was interesting for two reasons.  First, people can pay 500 Shillings (about 25 cents) to sit and watch a movie that could be heard for a few blocks and second, the theatre  about ten times the size of our student's house.

However, does Mzungu=happy or content?

Although I haven't traveled much, whether I've been in Costa Rica, Mexico, the Bahamas, or Uganda, I have noticed a common theme that people are quite happy.  I spent a summer in the Bahamas and had a great conversation with a women whom I had known for three months.  She said "we don't want to be Americans.  We don't need stuff to make ourselves happy."  Although I was shocked with the size of this house, I was happily surprised that these people were overwhelming content.  As one who has too many bow ties, suits and electronics I find that I have too much.  I have a lot to learn from these people who have little in possessions, but much in love.  When speaking of her family, the mother yesterday held a photo of her son tightly in her arms.  It's not cars, clothes, or possessions that make us happy.  Rather, it's people, friends, family, loved ones.