This is goodbye, Blogspot

http://ravenrhapsody.tumblr.com/

Be Intentional

I recently had the privilege of spending three days with Arun Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi's fifth born grandson. My Mother was hosting a fundraiser for the Sunanda Gandhi Memorial Home and School; a school that Arun started and is still building in the poorest rural area in India. Getting to visit with him during his trip was insightful and inspiring for me.

After a lecture I was reflecting with one of my friends who wasn't as impressed with his speech and wished Arun would have been more in-depth and not as "quotable." However, I disagree. Arun Gandhi is like his Grandfather in that he doesn't lay everything out neatly, and give the answers away. He's not commercialized. I, too, believe that the power of finding the meaning of something by myself is more powerful than someone else pointing it out to me. This way of teaching breeds understanding and critical thinking.

Something that I took away from his visit was to be aware of "passive violence" because violence isn't just physical. He described passive violence through a story. The story was that as a boy he threw away a pencil that had gotten too tiny to write with, at about three inches, assuming his Grandfather would give him a new one when he got home. However, his Grandfather didn't give him a new one. Instead, he questioned him, "Why did you throw it away? What was wrong with it? Where did you throw it away?" and so on. In the end, much to Arun's dismay, Gandhi made him go outside with a flashlight to find the pencil. When he got back his Grandfather implored him to think about the resources that went into making the pencil, that by throwing it away he was depriving someone else of resources, and that because we have such easy access to things we overconsume and overproduce. So, consequently, his Grandfather told him that by throwing away the pencil he was being violent towards the Earth and others who could have used those resources. It's not just about the pencil or that wasting is indirect violence. It's about being intentional with our actions and words.

I realize that Gandhi and his Grandson are about small changes and not about greatness on a grand scale. "Be the change you wish to see in the world," means that you know, realistically, not everyone is going to be well-known or "important" but that just by being intentional with yourself, you are creating change.

different place, different look

Birmingham, AL makes me look almost pale green and sickly. It was probably the smog that covered the entire city while I was there. Portland, OR makes my skin look softer and my lips darker. Anywhere in Texas my blemishes can be spotted. Sedona, AZ makes my teeth seem whiter and my hair straighter. Chicago, IL makes me seem chubbier; that or I really do get chubbier during my visits there. These are just the places that I could really see the differences. I might just be imagining things but I have photographic proof.

Go Do

I was reviewing my previous entries here and they all seem like such downers. I really don't know what that's about. My other collab. blog isn't like this. It's fun and for the most part up-beat. So here's something that gets me going in the mornings right now: http://vimeo.com/9289064

I love the low key, high contrast, hard lighting, blue hue of it all. There are some scenes that are music video cliché, such as the person standing at the edge of the ocean, but they still work. I love the constant movement and that there's really no structured plot. I think they echo the message of spontaneity and action in the lyrics, which are literally, "Go do."

Idealist

Yesterday, I realized that my mother is an idealist. I don't know why I always assumed she was a realist because of the work she does. And then I realized how silly it was of me to even think she wasn't an idealist because of the work she does. She and one of her sisters is night and day but they're both idealists. This world would be drab and stuck in a rut if there weren't any idealists around. I don't have anything against hope or idealism but I prefer my realist self.

Adventure

Y and I had a great day together despite our minor setbacks.

1) Car ran over massive rock
2) Park reached capacity before we entered
3) Thought friend was dead for a good hour after reading morbid and cryptic messages
4) Lost camera on mountain
5) Healthy sized rock tumbled down mountain. Tiny part of rock broke off and bounced off my shoulder and then my head. Bigger portion of rock scraped my leg and rolled over my foot.

All in all, it was a fun, adventure packed day. We ended it with a good dinner at TC.

p.s. It was Y's camera and after much exploring we found it! And yes, besides two huge bruises, I am okay.

Little Bunny Fufu

One of my dogs ate three baby rabbits Monday morning. Apparently, some mommy rabbit thought it would be a splendid idea to make a burrow in my back yard over night. Needless to say, I sobbed like a baby for a good hour. I posted this on my collab. blog too:

Dear Bunnies One, Two, and Three,

I apologize on behalf of my carnivorous dog. You hadn't even opened your eyes to witness life when your lives were taken. I can still hear your squeals and cries as she took you in her mouth and proceeded to swallow you whole. I mourned for your deaths that fateful morning. I sobbed and shouted incoherent words when I couldn't release you from the clutches of my dog's mouth. I sobbed for your mother, realizing she would find you gone from the safety of the burrow she built for you. Most of all, I sobbed because of the reality of the cycle of life; knowing it wasn't cruelty that possessed my dog to eat your fragile bodies and take your lives. Maybe it was because it was a Monday.

Sorry & love, Dog Owner

Spoiler Alert

It looks as if Freddie from Skins has been murdered. Nooooo...Whyyyyyy?!? I might have beef with the writers now.

IWD

Whimsical

My pandora radio can do no wrong today playing a mix of Noah and the Whale, Sea Wolf, Rogue Wave, Fruit Bats, The Western States Motel, Modest Mouse, The Strokes, The Shins, Kaiser Cartel, Field Music, and Chris & Thomas.

Whimsical is my favorite word. It conveys this light, care-free, flexible, content attittude. I've noticed that when I really like something I deem it whimsical, even if it's not the correct adjective.

The lyrics, "Everybody sees the stars in your eyes." Four leaf clovers. Scarves and floral print dresses. The Sound of Music, Away We Go. Red pandas, dogs, lemmings. My personal essay on being an atheist named Atheism: The Belief. The closing ceremony for Winter Olympics 2010. Qoppa Qoppa Qoppa (ϘϘϘ), a make-believe sorority of young women I love: A, K, L, M, & my honorary member Y.