Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Somethin' to dance to


Chris Brown is an up and coming superstar....and that is without a doubt. He exudes dance genius and his personality invites admiration. I think he is clever. Check out one of his latest hits.......

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Thanksgiving


While driving somewhere sometime last week, I listened to a christian radio station, 99.5 (KKLA). The guest speaker was an older christian woman. She shared about her family tradition during Thanksgiving. I think they were promoting a book about the Pilgrims. She said they read the book every year, as she did while her children were growing up. She and her husband did this so her children and her family could appreciate the luxuries they enjoy today (CAN we say "REFRIGERATION"!) or (CARS that have 4-8 horse power engines). Okay...here's a brief tangent....6 horse power. That's six (6) horses people. I'm sure we aren't comparing it to ponies or aged and lame horses either. One horse is amazing, then you multiply it by six and you get us driving on the freeway for seriously long distances!!! So if you wake up totally ungrateful or believing there is NOTHING good in your life...think about horses. So back to Thanksgiving and the lady I was talking about.....she asked her children to write what they were thankful for on a piece of paper. They did this every year while her children still lived under her roof. I was touched! It reminded me of my first Thanksgiving after turning to God. I had so much in my heart and could not let the opportunity to share God and encourage my family to share something they were grateful for at the table. (not our family tradition - eating was and lots of that). It did, however, become something we did every year and that I will do until I die (as long as I can write or talk or communicate). God instructs through the apostles to pray without ceasing with thanksgiving, to thank God daily in all circumstances....so why not at this holiday do the same aloud. It's a perfect opportunity to do with believers and unbelievers alike, because we all have gratitude for something. Atheists thank people. Paul encourages to "not grow weary doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest of righteousness" (in his letter to the Galatians). Well...the woman's husband got to share a letter from the older son to the younger son, who are young adults now. The older son told his brother all the things he admired and appreciated about him and how he often thanked God for him. He told him that God taught him so much about compassion through him. His brother has M.S. I nearly cried. But see...that is the fruit of their parents training. So this year at Thanksgiving - tell people what you appreciate about them and thank God for them. Share your gratitude aloud. You will smile at some point, which feels much better than a food coma (any day). :)

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Free Trade Agreements


(The photo is not my own. I uploaded it from a website. The children are from Costa Rica).
I went to Costa Rica last summer (2006) on a member's mission trip with church. It was a wonderful experience on many levels. Costa Rica is known for their hospitality, warmth, sabor, rain forests, and (my favorite) COFFEE. Although my focus was not for personal pursuits, I was able to enjoy connecting with the culture and the politics. I wrote on coffee production and distribution for my senior thesis the year before, so the ideas were fresh in my mind. I was overwhelmed with the sensory experiences when we got a brief tour of a prominent coffee plantation. The coffee fields were BEAUTIFUL! I remembered the issues I wrote in my senior thesis regarding the production of coffee. Quite often the farmers are neglected physically and financially for their goods, because the middle men (let's call them marketers) monopolize on sales with manufacturers and distributors (I know...I know...Starbucks included). I learned so much in my research. Have you taken a trip down the coffee/tea aisle at your local grocery store? Do you know those brand name coffee labels...let's say.....Folgers? Well, not only are they multi-national corporations that employ people in other countries ( I did not say anything about child labor or sweat shops). Well, what happens is they work with the middle man and the farmer gets little (LITTLE) money for their hard labor. (Have you worked in a coffee field, strawberry field, cacao field? - I haven't either, but I can see the people bending over in the strawberry fields off the 5 Freeway in Southern California. It looks painful. That's like real hard work, the kind that requires a massage and a hearty meal at the end of the day. (How much do they get paid?) Oh, they are immigrants...maybe that's not regulated either. I really don't know, or have any facts and today is not my day to be Erin Brokovitz (I have a feeling I mispelled her last name - forgive me and correct me by all means). Well...it's every body's day to be like her. Advocate. Speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Fight for those who cannot fight or give tools to those who do not have any so they can fight for themselves. That's what I am talking about.