REsources for Living
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The Passover story is, of course, a story about freedom. It’s the story of how the Israelites went from being slaves in Egypt to being free people with a land and a religion of their own. But I wonder when exactly in the story it is that the Hebrew people finally become free.
From “For Memory”
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Freedom. It isn’t once, to walk out
under the Milky Way, feeling the rivers
of light, the fields of dark—
freedom is daily, prose-bound, routine
remembering. Putting together, inch by inch
the starry worlds. From all the lost collections.
Excerpted from “For Memory” by Adrienne Rich, published in 1981by W. W. Norton & Company in her book of poetry A Wild Patience Has Taken Me This Far.
The Intersections of Privilege
I shaved my head with a Bic razor when I turned 21 years old. I did it intentionally and as a ritual of sorts. I wanted to do something quasi-original for my 21st birthday (in addition to the partying, which to be certain, I did as well).
Though shaving your head isn’t that original, deciding to do it completely sober as ritual of reaching a milestone in our culture seemed about the right amount of original for me. I was elated to find out that I didn’t have an odd shaped head and that I actually looked really cute with a bald head.
I thought about how I was pushing up against culturally norms of femininity but how I also felt that this new look more closely matched an expression of my genuine self. I have kept my hair short ever since. During that time I also absolutely came to relish the pets and touches that my friends jokingly, shockingly, and in surprise lavished upon me.
Justice for Military Families
As newlyweds (married in June at North Parish of North Andover in Massachusetts), we have done our fair share of paperwork. The process of changing names (I took her last name, if you’re curious), joining finances, and other efforts have proven to be both challenging and exciting as we start our lives as a married couple. But of all the paperwork we have completed in the past few months, the most important has been the documentation to prepare for this deployment. The system of filing paperwork as a married couple when your marriage is not recognized on the federal level leaves much to be desired.
People think that because “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) has been repealed, that gay and lesbian troops are treated equally in the military, but this is far from the truth. The system is simply not equipped to deal with the variance in state and federal marriage laws, or accommodate same-sex partners of servicemembers. Needless to say, I see this not only as a personal issue, but also as a civil rights issue, and one that reflects our need for reform as a society. This is an issue of justice and equality.
Inferno of the Living
A friend suggested that I read Invisible Cities, a short novel by Italo Calvino that consists of dialogues between Marco Polo and Kublai Khan, because she found the stories meaningful. Read more →
Restoring Justice
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Over the past few years, I have been a volunteer with AVP—the Alternatives to Violence Project. AVP volunteers work with prisoners who are seeking new ways of relating to themselves and others—ways that are supportive and creative rather than destructive. Read more →
Justice Should Be a Thing of the Past
Women
Alice Walker has graciously agreed to let us publish her poem, “Women” from Revolutionary Petunias and Other Poems in our printed and mailed version of Quest. Read more →
Hands
In a Peanuts comic strip, Charlie Brown is eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He looks admiringly at his hands and says… Read more →
From Your Minister
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Recently I had the good fortune to go on retreat with some amazing ministers. These folks have been called to spend their ministries helping people in extremely difficult situations. Read more →
