Sometime around the and New Years 2008, I started talking about writing a blog. The whole season was full of love and joy. In addition to the All-Star line-up of my friends and family Syracuse, I got to spend an entire week in New York City with some of my most beloved friend's from McGill. And I wanted to bring them all home with me, in my pocket or something. I was living, full-time, in Ithaca, a very magical place. The professional “enjoyeur” ( a franglish word I just created) I wanted nothing more than to share the joys of everyday life with all the wonderful people I get to see rarely.
Of course, little perceived obstacles began popping up all around. Lack of a computer. misplacing my digital camera. figure out how to get Linux to work on my Sony VAIO. work. yoga. Kahlua. Sunshine. Margaritas. Waterfalls. RIBs. And let's face it, being a professional “enjoyeur” also means I'm can be quite the procrastinator. But this time I'll write the blog. I just needed a topic, which I found at Spanish for Activists camp. This is about my personal effort to help build a strong and efficient social justice movement. While savoring life as best as I know how. Like right now, I'm enjoying some West African Style Peanut Brittle, at my new favorite night spot in Syracuse, Strong Heart cafe. All vegan all the time.
But how can I and how can we build the Revolution? With love and joy. We're bring down the system, reclaiming our communities, supporting our brothers and sisters around the country and around the world, quantifying our progress not through dollars and GDP, but how much pure love energy we can generate. We will sing it, dance it, and celebrate the fact that we are not alone, that there are people resisting and asserting their right to live in community and in dignity, at one with nature and the rest of the world.
As I mentioned, I spent last weekend at CUSLAR and CISPES' Spanish for Activists camp. There we were, all 40 or so of us activists from all over New York States and New York City, from all walks of life. Students, lawyers, community organizers, professional revolutionaries, some younger some older, all similarly concerned with creating a world that respects everyone's dignity. Como crear un mundo donde caben muchos mundos?
We spent all day together, in language class, listening to talks from the front lines of grassroots organizing. We shared delicious meals and sang and danced and communed in the forest. I imagine that this may have been what the Polish Solidarity camps of the 1980's looked like, minus the priests and the kielbasa (Spanish camp was all vegan, woohoo!). Compassionate and concerned individuals coming together to talk strategy and celebrate the existence of hope. The weekend could not have been quite as memorable if it hadn't been for the campfire sing-along that went into the wee morning hours.(Thank you, Rise Up Singing.) A sucker for the romance and magic that abound in the forest, I lost a bit of sleep admiring the stars, the rain, the cicadas, the morning dew, the wildflowers, and all the natural elements that make Willseyville, NY so similar to other spots along the 42N latitudinal line.
I finally got on the bus from Ithaca to Syracuse a couple days after Spanish camp to take part in the dramatic procession commemorating the dropping of the nuclear bombs on the civilian populations of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I was struck by the silence of those marching behind me as well as that those dotting the sidewalks of downtown Syracuse. The slow drumming at the head of the procession could not be ignored. This was a funeral procession for the 200,000 killed as a results of the bombings that opened the way to the nuclear age. Processions like this one, that I believe occur all around the world around this time, mourn not just the loss of life but the beginning of the nuclear age, with all the threats nuclear energy poses to peace and the health of our planet. More importantly, these procession are our collective voice challenging the Empire and the elites that have stolen the reigns of power. Come together. Power to the people. We don't need no more troubles.
I want to end this first installment of the blog by thanking you, my friends, for taking the time to read my thoughts and to encourage you to not sit idly because there are people out there doing bad things to other people and our planet. We have the opportunity to make some choices in our daily lives. Choose to do something. Choose not to buy that overpriced pair of jeans Made in Poor Country X. Think about what you put in your mouth and think about who you're giving your hard earned money to.
I hope to publish weekly, with bells and whistles and pictures of my dog, so check back next week and hold me to my word. It's a process. Evolving. Under construction.
