Making a difference

So I realize that it's been quite a while since I posted anything in my blog. A lot has been happening, from our first year anniversary to thinking about buying a house (we still have tons of questions and haven't even started), to being very irritated by our mouse "friend" in our apartment. Those are all very recent. However, I think I'll start with something else.

Almost a year ago, my husband and I went to a small community festival that his band (he wasn’t a member yet at the time) was playing at. A gal named Kali made a presentation for a project she was getting started called Operation Net – a project design to raise money over the course of a year to purchase 1000 mosquito nets for men, women, and children in Uganda to prevent the spread of malaria.

Malaria is spread through mosquitoes, and affects about 500 million people a year – 1 million of which die. Mosquito nets only cost $9.50, but this is a near impossible thing for a Ugandan family to buy, since most live on less than $1.00 a day. I’ve been keeping track of Kali’s updates since I heard about it, and recently she completed her goal and God provided even more: Kali was able to collect $11,900 or enough for 1,260 nets. The most extraordinary thing that I think there is to her story is that she is 18 years old – highlighting the fact that people can make a difference at any age. I decided to ask her some questions about how Operation Net got started after she went on a trip to Uganda in May 2008.



Y: What did you do there, and how old were when you went to Uganda?

Kali: For one week we were in a smaller village called Luwero. Every morning we would have conferences for the people of the church and I gave lessons to the ladies. Then we would eat lunch (which we provided for everyone) and had an afternoon session, with lots of singing and dancing. We then would go hut to hut praying for the elderly, sick and orphans. We visited many people and heard about their situations. The second week we were in the capital, Kampala and did the same thing there but at a different church. We also spent a lot of time going hut to hut and meeting new people and helping them out. I was 17 when I went, and just turned 18.

Y: How did you first think of Operation Net? (I.e. was it a class or something else)

Kali: Upon returning home from Uganda I knew I had to do something to help the people suffering there. I felt God pulling at my heartstrings to do something. At first I wasn't sure what to do but I got the idea after talking to some of my new Ugandans friends about malaria..and how it was effecting their lives. My friend Ivan's mom was sick with malaria and because of it he couldn't afford to go to school. Little stories like that made me choose to focus on malaria in my project. I created Operation Net shortly after and created the details of it as I went.

Y: What happened to your friend's mom, who had malaria? How old was Ivan when you met him?

Kali: Ivan is my age. His mother is sick on and off (which is how malaria works) It just hits you and when it hits you are down for usually a couple of weeks. So it is when she is sick that he cannot go to school. They have received nets so they are doing better.

Y: What was your process and planning like a year ago when you first had the idea?

Kali: First off I had to educated myself more about malaria and what can be done to prevent it. I then researched the cost of nets. Eventaully worked it out with the Bob-Gad, who planned our trip, that he would buy the nets in Uganda (to help their economy) and distribute them. I also had to set up an account with the bank and get all of the legal stuff out of the way. I then began to set goals (always set them very high). Once I had the that figured out I made posters, a website, business cards, and started spreading the word. I then also began speaking at venues about it and started receiving donations. As Operation Net flourished I added on the letter to Congress, t-shirt fundraiser, smencil fundraiser, and began contacting newspapers about it.

Y: Were there people who were skeptical?

Kali: There were people skeptical of my trip to Uganda and as I expected Operation Net. I had some people tell me I was wasting my time, that I would never reach my goal of 1000 nets, and that I should help people here rather than in Africa. Some of them were very nasty about it..but the best way to handle it was to be polite, answer their questions, and try to get them to understand the need in Africa. At times I was discouraged by it..but at the end of the day I had way more people supporting me than not so it was okay.

Y: Who were the people that supported it from the beginning? How did they encourage you?

Kali: God was my main source of encouragement. He gave me the idea, made it happen, and changed lives. My parents and my family supported me right off the back. They kind of already knew that when I was passionate about something I did it..And did it for real. So they were there for me the whole time and were a huge help. I also had a group of close friends, called Team Net, who helped me out and were excited about it. My church also was very supportive, as well as a group of family friends.
They encouraged me by prayer, kind words, and getting involved. A lot of them donated money right away which told me they believed in the project and cared. Others spread the word about it and helped me reach more people with my message. Most of all they were simply there for me when others said I was wasting my time. They believed in me and took time to learn about it.

Y: What are your next steps from here?

Kali: From here I will still be involved with Operation Net..but more on the side line rather head. I have handed the leadership over to a friend in NC since I will be going to college in the fall. I will be attending Eastern University to major in economic development and minor in communications. I hope to study abroad in Uganda and eventually work for an organization that does development work there. I know I will return to Africa..and Uganda. I am going to work hard and learn more so I can better help those in need in the future.

Y: What sort of advice - as a young person - would you give to other young people who want to help with global issues but feel overwhelmed by how many issues face the world?

Kali: I myself often feel overwhelmed with the world and its problems. Coming home from Uganda..and still now I lay awake at night upset with the amount of people suffering. I break this feeling by telling myself I am one person with one life, and even though I am just one person I can make a difference. You have to tell yourself that even if you just help one person or save one life it is worth it. No contribution is too small. It only takes one person to make a difference. It doesn't matter how young you are...you can change a life. See the big picture but realize you cannot save everyone. You cannot change every issue. You are one person. But then focus on something you are passionate about and do something about it. Aim high and dream big. Take every high and every low and learn from it. Use your life to make a difference. Get others involved. Yes, you are only one person but you can make a big difference.





"If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a closed room with a mosquito." - African Proverb

Crocodiles | longing for spring

Sitting and checking my usual TV stations (FoodNetwork, Animal Planet, and Discovery Channel), I parked myself on the Discovery Channel as I discovered a new series called, Tattoo Hunter. Being a fan of tattoos and wanting to learn more about their various histories, I was intrigued. The host, tattoo anthropologist (who knew there was such a thing??) Lars Krutak, was going to a people in Papua New Guinea called the Kaningara. He was intrigued by the Kaningara because of their very secretive and spiritual scarification ritual that was also a rite of passage for boys to become men. They believe in a crocodile spirit, called Nashut, and that if the men scar themselves in a way that is representative of a crocodile they will inherit some of his power. Over 1000 little cuts are put into the flesh of the men on their backs, chests, and bellies-- the chest being the head of the crocodile with the nipples as the eyes and the bellybutton being the nose.

Though the scarification was the only thing discussed in the episode, this article is Krutak's assessment of his visit and of the Kaningara and reveals more about their worship of the crocodile and their male-centered culture. Without retelling the entire article, it is very interesting the different ways that the men separate themselves from anything and everything feminine, even having the notion that it is the males who give life, and not the females. More than that, of course there is a spiritual side to the entire ritual of the crocodile scarification in which only males are to participate. Their "spirit house" is forbidden to women; if any should enter, they would be killed-- reserving spiritual practicies and spirituality for men and men only. It would be interesting to learn more about the social structure of the Kaningara, particularly of what part the women play besides birth (and even that is, in a way, stripped of them). Krutak is sure to note that modernity is changing much about the spiritual traditions -- or at the very least, the skin-cutting -- of the Kaningara, but I wonder how much of it still leaks into their social structure.

I can't help but think of Old Testament passages that forbid cutting of one's skin, or tattoos. While there are Christians who believe that tattoos are "of the devil," I would to a point disagree... being biased, having three tattoos myself and looking for more eventually. But there are also Christians such as myself who would agree that the forbidance was in the context of what pagan cultures were doing around them and why they were getting the tattoos. The Kaningara are a reminder of that: while also a rite of passage, the whole ordeal was/is also thought to cause the man to inherit some of Nashut's power. The underlying reason was basically in worship of something not God, like the pagans from Biblical middle-eastern times (and boy would I love to learn more about those practices to be more informed!).

I also can't help but think of other passages, like in Romans where Paul writes, "...they [humans] became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." The Kaningara are or were certainly spiritual and religious and have a profound connectedness to what they believe ... probably even more than some Christians I've known. They are certainly more connected to the spiritual world than any American would be, and it's that kind of depth that's respectable. I might not agree with it and it's contradictory to Christianity, but that doesn't mean I can't respect it. What's harder to respect is the spiritual ambivelance of "there may be a god of some kind out there but I don't think it matters" because there's no commitment to it; no passion, no solid stance besides "it doesn't matter to me or affect my life."

*

Winter makes me thoughtful, and while normally I'm able to vent those thoughts somewhere I've been so caught up in busy-ness that it's all been trapped in my head. Before you know it, the thought fizzles out like a smouldering matchstick and all that's left is the smokey haze. Winter makes me thoughtful because, in Philadelphia, it's miserable: seemingly constant gray overcast skies, gray sidewalks, gray buildings, brown-gray mockeries of trees, dead leaves, and cold air. The relief comes when there's not an overcast day and blue sky breaks up all the gray... which usually has it's bitter winds, but at least there's the hopeful blue sky that reminds me it'll pass. It's hard to be motivated when everything around you is gray, though, even when busy-ness prevades my life! Maybe I try to keep busy so that I don't notice the gray as much- which would explain so many things.

I just want spring to come. There's such a loud longing for it that anytime there's a hint of warm weather I get a little giddy on the inside. There have been a few on-and-off warm days (like today) that I've felt so much better about everything. They're little rays of relief that God gives me to let me know that there's something else around the bend in this season. Life overall has been good I'm just tired of contemplating and thinking and planning and pouring out. I think this coming week will give me many opportunities to recieve art (go to galleries) and put a little bit of rest and fun back into the bucket. Here's hoping for some actual Sabbath! Here's hoping for continued warmer weather-- green leaves and color couldn't come soon enough. There's something utterly refreshing about seeing a tree full of leaves and green grass and colorful flowers. I can't wait for it to get here.

I stumbled upon a Japanese woodblock website and found these beautiful images and I wanted to share. I'd really like to look at these more!

There's so much to be said

You know, there's a sense of futility in saying "One day I'll write all the things I want to say, one day I'll get you to speed with what's going on in life." There's simply just too much! Thoughts on Obama's policies so far, thoughts on finances, job skills, family, and so on. I'm looking forward to some time soon when I can just open up the vent a little.

One perk lately, though, is that I was published in PRISM again; I worked on some more illustrations for a few articles! The image here is on the cover, which was particularly exciting, though also a very frustrating layout. I'm more into verticals than I am horizontals, so it was a challenge. I still don't think it was completely successful, but the editor seemed to like it well enough.

There's also two images inside the article, but I only have a link for one of them: here (PDF)
The other articles are also fantastic, and you should give them a read if you can.


Also, messing around with a number of other things... Got into two galleries recently: one at White Stone Gallery in Manayunk, and the other is the Heitmann Atelier & Gallery in Lacnaster. These are the first shows I've really been in since college so I'm really excited! It's definitely but a fire in my gut about doing more art and being intentional about going after galleries. It's going to be tough because I'll need to get stuff framed, and I have to do my on-foot research for galleries but I really want to start working on this part of my life more than I have in the past few years. Here are some things I'm working on..


Unsure of where to go with this, and even more unsure about the red I added.













This spins off of another idea that I had and trying to figure out how to visually represent if Mary had told the angel no. Generally, I like this. I wonder if I should leave it as is, or work more at it.








There are also many other ideas that I have yet to put onto paper in some format or another. I'm hoping I can do that soon- if all goes well, and by the grace of God, that will happen tomorrow when I go to the studio! But, in the meantime I must also focus my attention on CCO's annual conference, Jubilee since I'll be taking a crew up there with me. That's this weekend. I'm excited about it, as well as stressed, but more anticipating what God will have to say to each of the students that will be coming with me.... and myself. The conference revolves around the idea that every square inch of what exists in the world can be claimed by Christ, whether it's in the "secular" world or the "sacred" world. It's a place where students can learn more about how Sunday connects to the rest of the week, and how their faith connects to the rest of their lives.

It's a pretty great time of learning, stretching, growing... and meeting new people too!

So after the busy-ness of this weekend, I'm hoping to be more productive creatively. We'll see what crops up.

Blip

Please don't give up when it's easy
Don't you know that me and Jesus will cheer you on?
He's the only one that will be constantly everything you need

Will you come back?
It's all she wants to know
She knows she's part of the problem too
Could she let it go?
It'd take a miracle
So that's what I'm praying for
Yeah

-- Mae, Tisbury Lane

I don't know what the song is about, but it's a fun song and these lyrics in particular made me think of a friend. It made me think of me too.

It's Christmas Eve, I got to see two best friends last night that I haven't seen since I got married, and one of them lives in a completely different state. It was really nice and I wish I could see them more often. They were both commenting about how weird it is that I have a husband and I'm married, and it is kind of funny to think about. I've been married for just about 7 months. Awesome. Coming with being married for 7 months is probably that the last 3 months have been one of the hardest I've had in a long time, and all of it has nothing to do with being married. News from a friend broke my heart, yet through it God managed to dig stuff out of me that I didn't even know was there. He used one issue to point at a deeper issue. And now it's been a process of working through it, and I am so grateful for Scott's presence because I think a lot of this would be more difficult without him.

It's appropriate that I think about all of this during Christmas and the Advent season. Advent is all about celebrating the anticipation of Christ's birth. God coming to Earth, Immanuel, is all wrapped up into Jesus... and with that comes healing, restoration, redemption, humility, beauty, freedom. And right now I'm working on looking it all right in the face. This is why Jesus came, this is why He died.

It's a beautiful thing.

And now I get to spend my first Christmas apart from family. Yikes. I'm excited though since I will be spending it with my new part of the family, my in-laws. A lot of people complain about in-laws, and I can see why, but I've had so many second and third sets of parents through friends that it doesn't feel that much different. It'll be good. Here goes!

Thanksgiving has come and gone

So it's almost Christmas.
I'm still alive and God's doing a lot of work in me -- but it's about 12:30AM so I probably shouldn't write up a long blog entry.

Two of my very good friends are getting married tomorrow and I'm very excited about it. WOOHOO!

News Article: Kin outraged, distraught over teen's cyber suicide

http://www.news.com.au/technology/story/0,25642,24684860-5014239,00.html

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gtO167ywBhMURgOmp4ScpR7rBdvgD94JV9P80

... there are several other articles about the sad news, if you follow links provided on the websites.


To summarize, a college student in Miami, FL, took it upon himself to overdose on bi-polar drugs over live web-feed on a bodybuilder's website a few days ago. There's no telling how many watched -- the website it was aired on hasn't said the number -- but it's pretty evident from the article that not only people watched, some encouraged and others thought it was fake.

Through my teen years of internet socialization (and probably internet addiction), there were a number of times in which online friends had mentioned that they were thinking of suicide and I would do what I could to talk them through it or out of it. What I don't understand is how so many teens are jaded enough to not take it seriously and regard another person's life as not worth their time -- through webspace or in real life. While there are those who threaten suicide to get the attention they feel so deprived of, I don't believe it is worth the risk to think they're faking it. Even if an individually is just looking for attention, there is still the issue that that person does not already feel loved enough that they don't have to look for attention. What else is going on psychologically and emotionally? Don't we all want to feel and know the comfort of being loved? Don't we all act out -- in large or very small, internal and external ways -- when we do NOT feel loved?

The message that comes across when we write it off as just an act is, "I do not care about you. Your life is worthless to me."

A college student, probably a freshman or maybe sophomore, killed himself "publicly" and people watched. Granted I think that if he took a gun to his head like the fellow in another Florida location, someone may have acted sooner. Really though, why would that change anything - as if gun suicide is more serious than pill suicide?

Or for those who thought he was joking and it was done to get some laughs... Why would anyone joke about overdosing on a pill?

Why is death funny?

Also, I wanted to highlight a quote from the Associated Press article:

Montana Miller, an assistant professor of popular culture at Bowling Green State University in Ohio, said Biggs' very public suicide was not shocking, given the way teenagers chronicle every facet of their lives on sites like Facebook and MySpace.

"If it's not recorded or documented then it doesn't even seem worthwhile," she said. "For today's generation it might seem, "What's the point of doing it if everyone isn't going to see it?"

Ms. Miller brings out a good point that teenagers publicize every facet of their lives via the internet. Having more or less one of those teenagers, only using the 'archaic' LiveJournal, I totally relate to her statement. But I'd like to push it further than simply saying that if something isn't documented it doesn't matter. There is a ring of truth in that... I'd dare say that every detail is given also because it creates this sense of intimacy with other people. Especially with journaling and blogging. "This is my journal, and you are reading it. This is the kind of stuff I share with my friends... sometimes my closest friends. Because you know this about me, you must be one of my friends and care deeply about me. If I know you in real life and you read this, then I don't have to talk about it with you because you know it already." At the very least this is how I reflect on my journaling habits during my teen years. I would write about guys I liked, thoughts on sexuality, thoughts on religion (why I hated it and later on my process of becoming Christian) when I felt very sad or hurt or pissed off, and so on. In many ways my teen angst is spelled out loud and clear for the world to see for however long LiveJournal exists. These are the kinds of things that used to be recorded in private journals that any teenager back in the hayday would be agast if anyone actually read it.

But I didn't actually know most of the people who would read that journal. I never met them face to face, although few I did talk with on the phone and others I wanted to actually meet. But it created a world of comfort and secruity for me, that there were people knew me and understood me. Some of them I believe did care for me but it created a sense of longing that would likely never be fulfilled -- which easily lead to hours upon hours of late night online sessions, and becoming angry/depressed when the internet was taken away (in place of getting grounded as a penalty).

Not that the internet is bad or having friends who live in Indonesia or Australia, or just on the other side of the U.S., is bad. That isn't what I'm getting at and to think so is to seriously miss the point. The point is that it calls to question our own securities, I think... and calls out that we are afraid to know people and look them in the face, knowing they know us too. Why can't we just talk to the person next to us, get together with the friend who -- if you're in college -- lives right down the hall?

Why are we so afraid of what we crave the most?

I think it's worth discussing, that's for sure.