Hero Headquarters

This space could easily be hero headquarters, because I certainly write here a lot about heroes. I've asked about your heroes and said what I think it takes. I have written about a number of folks that I think are heroes. I've even quoted the wise words of Jason Chu, who in his song Marvels said "We become heroes because of what makes us human." What more than is there to say?

Well our ideas of a hero are not all the same. A hero to you might not be one to me. Lately I have seen more and more heroes and that is something to celebrate. That wonderful human factor - that love of good and decency.  We all are capable of doing something heroic.  It doesn't mean we have to pull someone from a burning building or out of a car wreck.  We don't have to thwart an armed robbery or help an old lady who just had her purse snatched, to be a hero.  Each of us can be heroes in our own way.

The many activists who stand up for justice and equality belong in this category too.  The unconditional love - the "making a difference" kind of people:  heroes.  There seem to be more and more folks coming out and changing the world.  You can be a hero too!  You can make a difference.  Perhaps you already are.  I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.  Tell me about the heroes in your life!

A Facebook Post About Changing The World

If you spend any time on facebook, you can find just about anything.  Some folks post nothing but pictures of their pets or the food they eat.  Some post pictures of their daily adventures.  People ask a lot of questions too.  Some are funny ones.  Some make you think.  The other day a friend of mine posted a question which I just had to comment on here.

The question posted was "If you are given a chance to change the world, would you take it?"  A number of people liked the question without commenting.  There were a lot of comments though including some who said they were already doing it.  I responded that I always believe in changing the world.  (That's one reason why I write this blog).  Someone posted that they didn't believe they could ever be influential enough to change the entire world.  Oops!  Wrong answer, (as far as I'm concerned).  We ALL can change the world!  Every one of us!

Some people think that facebook is a waste of time, but I find some great information and some wonderful discussions there.  This one wasn't huge.  There were only about 25 responses, but I like that several people were seriously looking at changing the world.  I guess I might have an issue with the question's wording "If you are given a chance .   .   ."  It is my belief that we all have that chance every single day.

A lot of people post great quotes on facebook too.  Sometimes the quotes are in the form of posters that you could decorate your walls with.  One person posted a wonderful quote in response to this question: 

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." -Mahatma Ghandi

End discrimination

When I was little I witnessed so much prejudice and hate. I can remember the "Whites Only" signs and the separate drinking fountains and I remember all the hateful things that were broadcast on television. Most of the obvious prejudice was racial. Later I became aware of the prejudice that existed based on sex, religion, age, gender identity, and prejudice based on sexual orientation.  

 

There are some people who think that such discrimination has ended. How wrong they are!  We have seen so many examples this year.  While there are indeed better protections under the law, and while many attitudes have gotten better, we still have a very long way to go.  This includes privilege and preferential treatment.  When a missing white woman is trending for days on social media and the lead story on tv news, but missing people of color are ignored, that is discrimination.

Will it EVER end? This is one of those things that we really can do something about. We have the power! We can make things better. Why do we tolerate so much hate speech? Why do we remain silent when people are discriminated against right in our midst? If we all spoke up and if we all decided to say No! to discrimination, it would end immediately. Do we really want a world of hate?

What do YOU think?

Reflections from Twenty One Years Ago

The words below I have printed here before, but in this troubled week, I think it will be good to see them again.  Twenty-one years ago, when the terrorist attacks stunned the nation, Frank Tracy Griswold was Primate and Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States.  Three days after the attacks, as the country was trying to understand and to heal, memorials were held.  Bishop Griswold recounted that day of mourning in an essay in which he mentions the "selfless volunteers and their eagerness to be useful."  That was certainly true in the aftermath of 9/11 and the world would be so much better off if it was always true. 

As I said, I think Bishop Frank's words are good to see again, so here below is that essay:

On Friday, September 14, the day of national mourning, I knew my place was here in New York with those who were courageously struggling with the aftermath of the hideous events of the previous Tuesday. A police van picked me up at the Church Center and transported me through checkpoints to the Seaman's Church Institute within the restricted area where police, firefighters, National Guard, rescue workers and Con Edison technicians were being cared for with food, fresh changes of clothing, and words of thanks and encouragement from tireless volunteers.

In the midst of the chaos I was asked to celebrate the Eucharist. It was Holy Cross Day, and how appropriate and right it was that our mourning and grief be rooted and grounded in the mystery of the cross. St. Paul speaks of sharing the sufferings of Christ. I thought that every act of violence, and all that it produces, is an instance of Christ's own suffering with and on behalf of those he came to reconcile to one another through the cross.

In the Gospel reading for the day, we hear Jesus proclaim: "When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself." The cross is Jesus' facing into all the subtle and obvious forces of evil the divide the human family, drawing us all to himself in order that we might be transformed and live in new patterns of relationship: patterns which are grounded in the awareness that - at the heart of all differences of language, race, culture and ways of believing and naming God - we are profoundly one in the mind and heart of our Creator. That this terrible act of terrorism has provoked blind and indiscriminate blame directed against our Moslem and Arab neighbors is to allow the evil we are suffering to catch us up in its ongoing destructive force, and make us its victim in yet another way.

After the Eucharist, Phoebe and I were taken through more checkpoints to "Ground Zero." This close to the impact, gray ash lay everywhere and coated the silent and abandoned buildings, among them St. Paul's Chapel where George Washington worshiped. Outside the church the American and Episcopal Church flags, stained and torn, fluttered at half-mast. An ancient tree had been uprooted and its branches rested on the gravestones. The building was intact, but the churchyard was thick with ash and debris and thousands of bits of paper. The iron gate was ajar. I pushed it open and climbed the littered and ash covered steps to the open door of the church. In an eerie way, everything seemed to be in order, except for the covering of dust. I found myself in tears. Here, at the heart of all the chaos and destruction was a place of solace and prayer.

The sacristy door stood open. I went in and found a piece of paper and a pen and wrote "I have been here and you have my prayers and my love. Frank Griswold, Presiding Bishop." I turned to leave and just then the priest arrived. "I'm here and the church is open," he said. What more could one ask for at a time like this than the ministry of presence.

As we left, I looked up at the crucifix above the altar and had the sense that the extended arms could receive and embrace all the madness and hatred and destruction and suffering that lay close by and in all the places in our fragile world where violence and death and innocent suffering are a daily reality. Somehow this terrible event has joined us in solidarity with the suffering of the world.

That evening I took part in a service at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. At the end of the service, the congregation with lighted candles in hand followed us out onto the cathedral steps where people, instead of dispersing into the evening, drew close to one another, still holding on to their candles. Passersby joined them, some stopping to buy candles in nearby shops.

Spontaneous singing began…"We shall overcome…." I thought of the overwhelming generosity of spirit that had flowed through the day. I thought of the selfless volunteers and their eagerness to be useful; the many workers and their gratitude; the congregation bound together in mutual support. I was seeing evil overcome by good which is the only way in which our world can be healed. I was also seeing our church in action and prayer and hospitality mediate the real presence of Christ.

How grateful I am for our Episcopal household and for its clear witness at this time. The days ahead will be difficult and demanding for us all, and I pray that we will be able to live them with the courage and strength that are ours in the risen Christ.

    +Frank T. Griswold
    XXV Presiding Bishop and Primate
    The Episcopal Church, USA

Death of the Queen

After 70 years as queen, and after 96 years of life, Elizabeth II passed away yesterday afternoon with her son Charles and her daughter Anne beside her.  Charles became King at the moment of her death, but I want to say something about Elizabeth.

Elizabeth II became queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland way back before most of us were even born, following the death of her father, King George VI.  Her face and even her manner is so known to just about everyone.  As her son and daughter-in-law face new duties ahead, they and they rest of the family are so busy with official duties, that they hardly have time to grieve.  Losing a mother is tough.  I know.  To lose your mother though and then need to immediately replace her officially, has to be a difficult chore.

I have no idea about the funeral plans or the official transfer of power.  We will all certainly hear a lot about those things in the days ahead.  

I know many people are anti-monarchy.  There are many reasons, but right now that doesn't matter.  Queen Elizabeth always cared about the people of the Commonwealth.  For good or for bad, she cared.  From everything I have seen, Charles cares too.  It would seem to me that the kind thing right now would be to show decency and respect.  Let the family grieve.  Remember the good, and there is so much good.  There will be plenty of time later on to address any changes.

Elizabeth II

 

Table cooperation

The process of working together to the same end, is called cooperation. It isn't a new concept, but it doesn't happen nearly as often as it should. I've even told you this particular story about cooperation before, but I really like it, and it's important, so I thought I would tell this story again.

There was a man who was taken on a tour of both heaven and hell. In hell he was shown a banquet hall filled with diners seated at a table that was covered with all kinds of delicious food. Each person’s back and left arm were tied to the chair so that bending at the waist was impossible, and the left arm could not move. The right arm was stiffened so that the elbow would not bend. The people at the table could gaze at the delicious spread and they could smell the aroma of the food, but they weren't eating.

Now in heaven, the picture was exactly the same – backs and left arms shackled, right arms stiffened – but the diners were feasting and rejoicing. How can this be? Cooperation! They were working together. Each diner used his stiffened right arm to feed the person to his or her right. It was a beautiful scene, a picture of people working together, a picture of cooperation. 

Working together as a team, we can do so much more! Think about it. How wonderful this world would be if we all worked together!

Inspired by Kennedy

When I was young, Robert Francis Kennedy was the junior US Senator from New York State, where I was growing up.  I remember him saying “There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why? I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?” Those words had a profound impact on me.

Robert Kennedy's life was cut short by a bullet, but he had already gotten my attention.  I don't know how many lives he touched; we never know such things.  I do know that ever since I have been trying to not only get involved and make a difference in the world, but to motivate others to participate too.  I really believe that it was Senator Kennedy who inspired me.

We may not all be inspired by a Kennedy, but we all can give back to this world of ours.  It isn't important that we give in a certain way - the important thing is that we just do it!

honoring labor

No school.  A last chance to picnic.  The end of summer.  The last opportunity to wear white.  Labor Day means many things to different people, but the first Monday in September is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers, and it is a day to celebrate our labor unions.  The working class are the ones who keep the nation moving and so a day of tribute is indeed in order. Hard work, whatever you do, has value.  This is the day we honor that.

 

Now many folks get the day off from work today.  Seems odd, huh?  How do you celebrate labor by not laboring?  This is a workingmen’s holiday, but not all of us need to work on the day to appreciate the significance.  For over 100 years we have remembered labor on this date - it all began back in New York City with the Central Labor Union, and hopefully we will continue to, because as I said, workers truly are our country's backbone.

Have fun today.  Enjoy whatever it is you may be doing.  Remember though the real meaning of today, and give your support to labor! 

Harvey said

The wonderful actor and writer Harvey Fierstein has brought thousands of hours of enjoyment to the world.  I can't tell you how many times I have watched Torch Song Trilogy for example.  Harvey also says some pretty inspiring things too.

Harvey said "Time will tell us what we did and didn't do."  Yup.

"Never be bullied into silence," he also said.  "Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself."

One more thing from Harvey:  "I do believe we're all connected. I do believe in positive energy. I do believe in the power of prayer. I do believe in putting good out into the world. And I believe in taking care of each other."

Thanks for continuing to not only entertain us Harvey, but also to inspire us.

happiness

On this Friday morning, are you happy? Right now as you read this, do you have a smile on your face? Is there a feeling of joy about you? 

I want to talk about happiness here today because there are folks who never seem to be happy and others who always seem to be happy. It doesn't have to be an either-or situation. Do you fall into either group, or are you more in between?

There is a statement attributed to Abraham Lincoln that I find a lot of truth in. "Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be." In other words, we can decide if we are going to be happy or not.  It's up to us, at least in part.  Yes, I know bad things happen and I don't expect us to smile through those moments of sorrow, but I bet we can all smile a little bit more.

I'm fortunate to be part of a family that has always been filled with joy and I seem to find friends that are the same way. While every single day might not be the most marvelous, what good is feeling bad about it? There are always good things to look at! May your day be filled with happiness and the month ahead bring you lots of smiles!

No Bullying Zone

Personally, I think the whole world should be a no bullying zone. Unfortunately, my wanting something does not make it happen. If all it took was my desire, we would have a perfect world with nothing but goodness.

To put an end to bullying, we ALL need to get involved. There is no neutral zone. There is no standing by and saying it isn't our concern. Justice and fairness is EVERYONE'S concern.  Bullying too often leads to a lifetime of self-hating or even suicide.  We need to say "No more!"  I'm talking about ALL bullying too.  None of it is ever acceptable.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu said it best: "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse, and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality."

Let's all get involved. Let's no see any more lives ruined because of bullying.