Poverty - What is the answer?

(I almost started out this post with the words, "Dear Friends" but don't want to sound like John McCain.)

Awhile ago, Cameron told me about Blog Action Day, an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. They say their aim is to raise awareness and trigger a global discussion. (photo credit - read the story)

In 2008, the Blog Action Day theme is Poverty. Again, they say, Global issues like poverty are extremely complex. There is no simple, clear answer. By asking thousands of different people to give their viewpoints and opinions, Blog Action Day creates an extraordinary lens through which to view these issues.

Today, I am short on solutions. What I do have are stories. Last Friday, on my way to court to file a report about one of the kids I work to advocate for through CASA, I passed a woman who was making her bed for herself on the sidewalk. She was settling into her sleeping bag at around 3:45pm. On my way back, I walked past her curled up in the sleeping bag, apparently trying to sleep just steps from the entrance to the underground train. (photo credit - read the story)

At the bottom of the stairs, I passed a man holding a cup out, begging for change. As I walked away, I heard him frantically saying, "Please, God." "Please, God." "Please, God." "Please, God." (photo credit - read the story)

I stopped by my office to drop off a few things then headed out to where Cam was picking me up for the day. I passed a woman, on another street corner, begging with her two young children. They were somewhere between 5-10. The boy was covering his face with something. I imagine he may have been feeling shame. Maybe he just didn't want to see all of the people walking past them like they were invisible. The girl was doing her best to help her mom engage the crowd. I wanted to ask this woman why she was out there with her kids but I am sure that she wouldn't be if she felt that she had a better option. (photo credit)

Why didn't I stop? On my way from the ferry to my office, a walk of about 10 minutes, I walk past an average of eight homeless people. I just cannot stop and talk to each of them let alone begin to help. So, generally, I stop and talk to no one. (photo credit - read the story)

I do what I can, working, for very little pay, 30 hours a week to try to help the 30 kids who are on my case load at CASA. I volunteer with Project Homeless Connect.

On Monday, I had lunch with a friend who also wants to do something, has also worked in the non-profit sector and also volunteers but we don't have the solution. (photo credit - read the story) Note: These photos are not of the people I saw last Friday but they are photos of the people I see everyday. They are from an amazing set of photos taken of people on the streets of San Francisco.

What are you doing? What should we all do? Here's one idea.

If you haven't yet, please visit www.one.org and considering signing The One Campaign Declaration. As the video says, "We aren't asking for your money. We are asking for your voice."

Another way to have your voice heard is to vote. I am hopeful that if we elect a president who has a plan for addressing poverty, if we elect Barack Obama, that will be a step in the right direction but we all have to be willing to help. He says, I'm asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change... I'm asking you to believe in yours.

Cam and his students have some ideas. What are yours?

Here are links to other things I have written on the issue of poverty:
Make Poverty History
BE EMPOWE(RED)
What I want for Mother's Day
We are African
Tonight's the Night the World Begins Again.
Why I live here
Stood-up by the mayor
Do I look taller?
I had to wear a hairnet.
Why I'm bitter (and appreciate him noticing).
Juxtaposition

Thanks for your interest and caring. Peace.

DC in Detail

On June 8th, I posted a rough recap of our first day in DC (that Saturday, June 7th). I promised to repost an edited version with photos. Here goes.

We woke up and bolted out of here at 7:45 am, rushing to the Metro to try to get tickets that would allow us to go to the top of the Washington Monument, later that day.

They they start giving them away at 8:30am so we thought we had left in plenty of time but we actually got the last set of three together. I called my folks to say, "Hi" but wasn't up for talking much. It was still before 6am in California. I was hot the weather was muggy and I hadn't had breakfast or any caffeine. We got the last 3 tickets for the last slot of the day which was what we wanted as we had tickets for other activities at noon and 7pm.

Next, we walked to the Jefferson National Memorial. It was beautiful and impressive. I had never seen it up close. I liked reading the words to the Declaration of Independence from inside the monument.

A kid from Wisconsin asked Sam where he was from. When he said, San Francisco, they asked, "You've been on the Golden Gate Bridge?" When he answered, "Yes," he was congratulated. Another kid from the group said, "We should take a picture w/this kid." They did. Outside, a small high school (or middle school) band was playing the Star Spangled Banner and other patriotic songs. It brought back memories of traveling and performing with the band when I was in school junior high and high school.

We walked past where the Bureau of Printing and Engraving, where they print the paper money. (Which we learned isn't actually made of paper but fiber-like cotton, according to our tour guide that night.)

Outside the Holocaust Museum, I admired Ronald Regan's words that were engraved on one of the walls. Since we still had some time before our tour of the Holocaust Museum, we had some breakfast, including a knish. It was nice to cool-off, relax and refuel. The ladies made a delicious iced vanilla coffee drink for me. The caffeine and air conditioning helped.

We decided to go check out the WWII Memorial. That morning, my mom mentioned that it was one of the newer memorials and none of us had seen it before. There wasn't much shade so our walk there was hot. I was moved by Bronze panels, which told stories of people's experience's during WWI, on the walkway to and from the fountain.

From there, we saw the White House in the distance, as we walked around the Washington Monument, instead of cutting through the center of the park, to stay in the shade of the trees on the periphery.








I wish we'd have been there a couple of weeks before, to witness the Forgotten Children Exhibit. For one work week, CASA staff, volunteers and supporters placed 850 life-size displays of foster children at the Washington Monument, each day. These displays represented the 850 children who enter the foster care system on a daily basis. By the end of the week, 4,250 displays stood in front of the monument, representing the 4,250 children who entered foster care during the workweek. (photo credit)

Near our admission time, we returned to the Holocaust Museum. The first exhibit we toured was in the basement. It featured the Nazi Olympics held in Berlin in 1936.

Before entering The Holocaust's permanent exhibit, each of us selected the ID card bearing information about a person who was Jewish and their experience, during the Holocaust. Two of the three people, whose ID card we selected, died. From what I understand, seems to be representative of what happened to the millions of people were wrongly persecuted, imprisoned, tortured and murdered during that time.

Walking through the exhibit that day, seemed to be the first in-depth telling of the history of the Holocaust that Sam had experienced. I was proud of his seriousness and willingness to watch, listen and learn. I learned much too.

Walking through Daniel's Story, a Child's Story of the Holocaust, helped person-
alize the infor-
mation and bring the experience to life for us. It was a lot to absorb but incredibly important. Awhile ago, as a family, we started reading The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. I would like to finish it soon. I just saw that they are making it into a movie that will be released on November 7th.

We thought about eating on the grounds of the Washington Monument but it really felt like we were in a sauna outside so we opted for another hour of air conditioning and ended up having lunch in the cafe of the Museum of Natural History. I was happy to be able to have an egg plant sandwich and a salad (even if they were just OK). Sam shared his fries and Cam and I split a chocolate bar.

Our next stop was the Washington Monument. Before arriving in DC, I'd been saying that I'd wanted to go to the top of it my whole life. Standing at the base of it that morning, I remembered that I had been to the top of it when I was here with my 6th grade class. What I'd remembered before this visit was that I hadn't been able to go to the top the last time I was here, when Sam was three. This time, we had tickets.

Thankfully, the bench for people with tickets for the 4:30pm tour was in the shadow of the monument. Sam and I reminisced about how we liked to go to the top of the Arch when we lived in St. Louis. We also talked about how we had gone to the top of the John Hancock Building and the Sears Tower in Chicago. I just remembered that I also called him from the top of the Empire State Building, when I was in NYC for work, when he was five. The view from the top of the Washington monument is impressive on each of the four sides.

Once we were back on the ground, we took a walk along a park, past the White House, to the National Archives building. We talked about how this was the place where Nicholas Cage stole the Declaration of Independence in that National Treasure movie. We stood in line to get inside the building then stood in line to get to see the documents. It was memorable to be that close to the Constitution, Bill of Rights and Declaration of Independence.

Afterwards, we walked towards the Capitol, along another park and arrived at Union Station. In a bit, we'd catch a trolley that would take us on a night tour of the monuments. In the meantime, we enjoyed some well-deserved Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Of course, the child opted for a fruit smoothie. My Chunky Monkey (banana ice cream w/walnuts and chocolate chunks) in a waffle cone was quite enjoyable.

Jazzy Jan was our driver and tour guide on the trolley. She was infor-
mative, humorous and fun. She kept us moving but made sure we had just enough time at each stop.

The first stop was at the Franklin Delanor Roosevelt Memorial. I hadn't been to the FDR memorial before. His quotes about social responsibility are inspiring to me. (photo credit)

(As I was writing this post, I received a text message from Barack Obama asking me to make a donation to the American Red Cross. I did. You can too.)

The sunset was lovely.

Our next stop was near the Lincoln Memorial. We walked over the the Vietnam National Memorial first.

Explaining to Sam that each name, which took up such a tiny bit of space, represented a life made the magnitude of the wall's size significant.


I told him about how I'd been there with my family when I was about his age.

Here is the photo, I mentioned previously, of my brother standing next to my dad at the wall.

I remember my dad being moved when he found the names of men he knew on the wall.


After the Vietnam War Memorial, we walked up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to go meet Abe. He is impressive.

We read the Gettysburg Address and then sat on the steps of the monument, looking out on the Reflecting Pool, the WWII Memorial, the Washington Monument and the Capitol in the distance.

There was a storm brewing in the area and we enjoyed seeing streaks of lightning in the distance. Sometimes, the lightning would light up the clouds.

Before returning to the trolley, we walked through the Korean War Memorial. The faces of the men looking out at us were captivating. (photo credit)

Our final stop on the trolley was the Iwo Jima Memorial. We learned that the statue, of the men raising a flag on the top of the island's highest point, is the largest bronze sculpture in the world. (photo credit)

We learned other interesting pieces of information, as it started to rain and we rode the trolley back to Union Station. From there, we took the Metro back to the stop closest to our hotel and went back to the room to rest and relax.

After a shower, I watched a video of Hilary Clinton calling on her supporters to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States. It was a day full of patriotic experiences.

Cam's 91-year-old grandmother, Lurene and his dad's sister, his Aunt Mary Lu, came into DC, from Maryland, to spend the day with Cameron and Sam. They went to the Native American Museum for lunch. I'm glad I was able to to see them for a few minutes before I headed off to my conference. It sounded like they had a great day.

Cam's does an effective job of summing up the rest of the trip with this list.

We were all learning, each day. Maybe another day, I will write a separate blog post about how I got to go to Capitol Hill and meet with representatives from Congress, including Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi's cheif of staff, asking them to do more for our kids. Their interest and concern was moving.

"When you get to the top of the mountain, remember me."

While all the buzz, this morning, is about Barack Obama selecting Joe Biden to be his running mate, (Cam thinks this is a solid choice and since he's the one who first told me about Barack, that's enough for now.) what I want to talk about is a group I just joined called Rural Americans for Barack Obama.

Obama is reaching out to Rural America. I appreciate him coming up with a plan to bring hope to those of us from there. I'd rather be hopeful than bitter.

In Dave Stewart's, "This is My American Prayer," Forest Whitaker, Cyndi Lauper, Macy Gray and others sing "When you get to the top of the mountain, remember me."

If you want to show those in Rural America you remember them, join Rural Americans for Obama.

Rough Recap of our first Day in DC

I'll go ahead and post this rough recap of our first day in DC and go back and add some photos and edit it later. We woke up and bolted out of here at 7:45 am, rushing to the Metro to try to get some of the tickets to the top of the Washington Monument that they start giving away at 8:30am. Race for the Cure "runners" on the Metro. Line at the Monument. I called my folks to say Hi but wasn't up for talking much. It was still before 6am in California. I was hot the weather was muggy and I hadn't had breakfast or any caffeine. We got the last 3 tickets for the last slot of the day. What we wanted as we had noon and 7pm apts. Walked to Jefferson National Memorial. Beautiful. Impressive. Had never seen up close. Liked the words inside. A kid from Wisconsin asked Sam where he was from. When he said, San Francisco, they asked, "You've been on the Golden Gate Bridge?" When he answered, "Yes," he was congratulated. Another kid from the group said, "We should take a picture w/this kid." They did. Outside, a small high school (or middle school) band was playing the Star Spangled Banner and other patriotic songs. Brought back memories. Walked past where the Bureau of Printing and Engraving, where they print the paper money. (Which isn't actually made of paper but fiber like cotton per our tour guide.) Had some breakfast, including a knish, in the Holocaust Museum Cafe to cool-off, relax and refuel. The ladies made a delicious iced vanilla coffee drink for me. The caffeine helped. Since we still had some time before our tour of the Holocaust Museum, we decided to go check out the WWII Memorial. My mom had mentioned that morning that it was one of the newer memorials and I didn't think I'd seen it before. Hot walk to it. Loved the Bronze story panels on the walkway to and from the fountain. Then, walked around the Washington Monument (instead of cutting across the park) to stay in the shade of the trees on the periphery. Saw the White House in the distance. Returned to the Holocaust Museum. Each of us picked out an ID card, each with information about the experience of a Jewish person during the Holocaust. Two of our three people died which seems to be representative of what happened to the millions of people were wrongly persecuted, imprisoned, tortured and murdered during that time. Yesterday, seemed to be the first in-depth telling of the history Sam had experienced. I was proud of his seriousness and willingness to watch, listen and learn. Walking through Daniel's Story, a Child's Story of the Holocaust, helped personalize the information and bring the experience to life for us. It was a lot to absorb but incredibly important. We ended up in the cafe of the Museum of Natural History for lunch. We'd thought about eating on the grounds of the Washington Monument but it really felt like we were in a sauna so we opted for another hour of air conditioning. I was happy to be able to have an egg plant sandwich and a salad (even if they were just OK). Sam shared his fries and Cam and I split a chocolate bar too. Next was the Washington Monument. Before arriving in DC, I'd been saying that I'd wanted to go to the top of it my whole life. Standing at the base of it that morning, I remembered that I had been able to go to the top of it when I was here w/my 6th grade class, when I was about a year older than Sam. What I'd remembered was that I hadn't been able to go to the top the last time I was here, when Sam was three. This time, we had tickets. Thankfully, the bench for people with tickets for the 4:30pm tour was in the shadow of the monument. I reminisced with Sam about how we liked to go to the top of the Arch when we lived in St. Louis. We also talked about how we had gone to the top of the John Hancock Building and the Sears Tower in Chicago. The view from the top of the 555 Washington monument is impressive on each of the four sides. From there, we took a walk along a park, past the White House, to the National Archives building. We talked about how this was the place where Nicholas Cage stole the Declaration of Independence in that National Treasure movie. We stood in line to get inside the building then stood in line to get to see the documents. It was memorable to be that close to the Constitution, Bill of Rights and Declaration of Independence. Afterwards, we walked towards the capitol, along another park and arrived at Union Station. In a bit, we'd catch a trolley that would take us on the night tour of the monuments. In the meantime, we enjoyed some well-deserved Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Of course, the child opted for a fruit smoothie. My Chunky Monkey (banana ice cream w/walnuts and chocolate chunks) in a waffle cone was quite enjoyable. Jazzy Jan was our drive and tour guide on the trolley. She was informative, humorous and fun. She kept us moving but made sure we had just enough time at each stop. The first stop was at the Franklin Delanor Roosevelt Memorial. I hadn't been to the FDR memorial before. His quotes about social responsibility are inspiring to me. The sunset was lovely too. Our next stop was near the Lincoln Memorial. We walked over the the Vietnam National Memorial first. Explaining to Sam that each name, which took up such a tiny bit of space, represented a life made the magnitude of the wall's size significant. I told him about how I'd been there with my family when I was about his age. There is a photo of my brother standing next to my dad at the wall. I remember my dad being moved when he found the names of men he knew on the wall. After the Vietnam War Memorial, we walked up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to go meet Abe. He is impressive. We read the Gettysburg Address and then sat on the steps of the monument, looking out on the Reflecting Pool, the WWII Memorial, the Washington Monument and the Capitol in the distance. There was a storm brewing in the area and we enjoyed seeing streaks of lightning in the distance. Sometimes, the lightning would light up the clouds. Before returning to the trolley, we walked through the Korean War Memorial. The faces of the men looking out at us were captivating. Our final stop on the trolley was the Iwo jima Memorial. We learned that the statue, of the men raising a flag on the top of the island's highest point, is the largest bronze sculpture in the world. We learned other interesting pieces of information, as it started to rain and we rode the trolley back to Union Station. From there, we took the Metro back to the stop closest to our hotel and went back to the room to rest and relax. After a shower, I watched Hilary Clinton calling her supporters to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States. It was a day full of patriotic experiences. Cam's 91-year-old grandmother and his dad's sister are on their way to meet us. I'm glad I will get to see them for a few minutes before I head off to my conference. Have a great day.

Your Voice Can Change the World

This morning, in my in box, there was a message from the Barack Obama campaign asking me to share my thoughts for the future. I was honored and appreciate them asking. I know they asked all of us but that they are interested in hearing from everyone is what makes it so cool.

After I hit submit, the following video played. I found it moving.



Especially the part at the end where he says, "Your voice can change the world." Since I've been speaking up, trying lately, it meant a lot. I hope it inspires you too.

You can help protect polar bears today.

It is overwhelming to watch the disasters unfolding in Asia and easy to feel powerless, unable to help the victims. Today, prompted by Barack Obama's campaign I gave $25 to the American Red Cross (and another $25 to his campaign). Last weekend, we purchased mother's day roses for my mother and maternal grandmother, making a significant donation to Save the Children but we only have so much money. (photo credit)

I was happy to learn about something I can do, something you can do, to help our world, to help polar bears, that doesn't cost a thing. Please join me in signing the We Campaign's petition to put polar bears on the federal Endangered Species list.

The Bush Administration has until May 15 to decide whether to place the polar bear on the Endangered Species list. Tell Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne that the polar bear, and its fragile Arctic habitat, requires protection from the effects of global warming. Sign the petition today.
(photo credit)

While you're at it, sign the petition for a global treaty on climate change.

The We Campaign is an effort launched by Al Gore and the Alliance for Climate Protection to promote solutions to the climate crisis. It's an urgent issue, but the climate crisis is also solvable if we work together and unite our leaders around solutions like renewable power and enhanced energy efficiency. We can leave the next generation a healthy climate.

Solutions to global warming exist. Calling on leaders to make them happen. Join We.

Thank you.

What I want for Mother's Day.

I woke up this morning at 4am feeling rested enough to face the day. Seeing an opportunity to steal an hour or two for myself, I decided to get out of bed and get online. I thought I'd post photos of our recent trip to Yosemite or read up on the latest election news.

Instead, another link caught my eye. It said, 10 million children worldwide die from lack of health care. I read the article and learned:

Use of existing, low-cost tools and knowledge could save more than 6 million of the 9.7 million children who die yearly from easily preventable or curable causes, the report said.

They include antibiotics that cost less than $0.30 to treat pneumonia, the top killer of children under 5, and oral rehydration therapy — a simple solution of salt, sugar and potassium — for diarrhea, the second top killer.

I was compelled to visit the website for Save the Children, the organization that was the source of this news and information, to learn more.



There, I learned about their response to the deadly cyclone in Myanmar.

Their article said the death toll could reach 10,000.

This morning, I read other reports that say the death toll soars above 22,000.

(photo credit)



This news and information is truly mind-blowing.

I felt powerless and ignorant at the thought that I couldn't even find Myanmar on a map.

I now know it is near Bangladesh, where in mid-November 3,000 people died from what was called the worst cyclone in a decade.

Save the Children is helping there too. (photo credit)

I read about five of their other current emergency responses and started to feel discouraged.

I wanted to go back to bed or just turn off the computer. I can maybe give a little but lately, I've been giving to Barack Obama's campaign with the hope of getting a president who seems genuinely committed to facing real atrocities. (photo credit)

When I explained to someone recently that the shirt I was wearing was part of the Product (Red) Campaign, they responded that they prefer for their money to stay in the United States.

This mindset is difficult for me when I know children are dying elsewhere but we have plenty of need here too. (photo credit)

Just yesterday, I read that kids who are dependent's of the city of San Francisco, may have to leave Edgewood, one of the best (and only) treatment facilities we have for troubled youth in our city, by June 30th, if funds aren't found. One of the kids on my caseload was moved there just after the first of the year, just before his 13th birthday. He's doing well now. Thriving. What will happen to him?

I don't pretend to have the answers but do want to keep bringing the issues to light in conversation. Thinking about these things reminds me of a quote I read on my cousin Ariel's boyfriend's MySpace page last night. (photo credit)

The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems. - Gandhi (I just asked Jac to be my friend.)

So what are we capable of doing?

Most of us are capable of buying a present for our mom.

This Mother's Day, give a gift that inspires hope.

Honor your mom by sending her a beautiful rose plant or a bracelet that was handmade by Navajo Native Americans and support Save the Children's mission to help children in need in the United States and around the world. Or forget the stuff and make a gift donation.

If you really can't afford to donate any money (I've been in that boat too.), find a way to volunteer. Save the Children. Edgewood. United Way. American Red Cross. Peace Corps. CASA.

Thanks for thinking about your ability to create change. Yes we can.

Why I'm bitter (and appreciate him noticing).

I am dismayed by the response to recent statements made by Barack Obama. Barack said some people in America are bitter. In my experience, he's right. Among other issues, many of us have watched communities flounder and children languish in poverty. These things don't seem right but we've felt powerless to change them. (photo credit)

The politicians who scare me are the ones who want to pretend everything is fine. Denying people's righteous anger is frivolous and dangerous. It offends me and leads me to believe that they are the ones out of touch.

I decided to write about a couple of issues that have made me bitter. In addition, I am hopeful. I am hopeful because we have a dynamic presidential candidate who is willing to acknowledge people's feelings of frustration and stand alongside them to come up with plans for a better world.

Rural America
I'm not from Pennsylvania but I grew up in rural America; Columbus, Kansas specifically. Long before my family arrived, the once-thriving coal mining community had dried up and died. When I lived there, starting in kindergarten, our town of 3500 was the county seat. We were the poorest county in Kansas. (photo credit)

Still, I remember a quaint town square surrounding the county court house where my dad would go for city council meetings. My family shopped at the local, family-owned grocery store (Charlie's IGA). My mom visited Charlie and his employees nearly every day. My dad was friends with the man who owned the bank. The daughter of the man who owned the hardware store taught me how to swim. I went to school with the children of the people who owned the local clothing store and florist shop.

My brother and I were invited into the kitchen where we could make our own pizza at Turner’s Dairy Bell. When we were sick, after doctor's appointments, my mom would take us to Evan’s Drug Store where we could have a root beer float at the soda fountain while our prescriptions were filled.

At some point; however, we also started driving to the shopping mall in Joplin, Missouri. It seems we went almost every weekend. Eventually, Pizza Hut, Wal-Mart, McDonald’s and other national chains moved into my town and over time, most of the other businesses closed down. We weren't farmers but many from the community were and I know now that they were likely struggling.

When I was 17, my family moved to Newton, Iowa, a manufacturing town of 15,000 people whose livelihood centered on the fact that it was the home of the Maytag Corporation. As a high schooler, Maytag wasn't important to me. I appreciate that they gave me one of the full-ride scholarships they generously offered to kids from the community every year. When I was there, Maytag was known as a good place to work. Sam's grandfather worked there, as did three of his four brothers and some of their wives. Without college educations, they were able to support their families, buy homes and afford vacations to the lake with their boat or RV. (photo credit)

I don't know all of the specifics but I don't think Maytag operates there much anymore. They found cheaper labor and operating costs elsewhere. I can't imagine what has happened to all of the families left behind or all of the businesses that survived by providing goods and services to those families.

Once, I took a job representing farmers nation-wide. During my two years in that job, I spoke with individuals who were desperate, filled with panic (or bitterness) because they couldn't make a profit. They couldn't afford health insurance and didn't know how they were going to send their children to college. Many of them said that the work I was doing wasn't helping, that the big corporate farms, companies like Smithfield, had made staying in business impossible for them.

I hadn't known what to do about the things I'd witnessed. While driving along near-empty country roads, between one state association and the next, I wondered what would happen to the people in rural America. It seemed to be becoming more and more a barren wasteland.

In his book, Audacity of Hope, Barack talks about the struggle and plight of people from all walks of life. He has noticed. He is paying attention and better yet, he is offering solutions that could benefit us collectively.

Children
Currently, I work as an advocate for children who are dependents of the court.

Many of the professionals who have dedicated their lives to working on behalf of these children are well-meaning and have the best intentions but they don't have the resources to adequately meet these children's needs. (photo credit)

The efforts of social workers, attorneys, commissioners, judges and teachers are spread too thin. Their case loads are too large. Funding for therapy for children who've experienced profound trauma, abuse and neglect has been cut. Other services such as transportation, visitation supervision and education aren't being adequately funded either. Group homes are closing. Meanwhile, we are spending over $340 million dollars per day on a war.

How can such a wealthy society allow children to languish in poverty?

I appreciate Barack Obama for paying attention and recognizing our pain (and bitterness). We are angry and he understands the reasons why. Denying the wrong that has been done and pretending everything is fine isn't going to fix anything.

We need a leader who is brave enough to see the problems, offer real solutions and give us hope. Barack Obama cares and is in touch with the American people. He will be an amazing president.

Yes We Can to justice and equality. Yes We Can to opportunity and prosperity. Yes We Can heal this nation. Yes We Can repair this world.

Nothing is standing in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change. We want change. I want change. There has never been anything false about hope. We will remember that there is something happening in America. We are one people. We are one nation.

Yes We Can.

I think you might have made a difference.

Barack Obama's campaign asked supporters to bring in new voters and encourage voters who have gotten fed up to get involved again.

I made 25 calls to unaffiliated voters in Pennsylvania. It took less than an hour and was relatively painless.

Sam kept me company and afterwards said, "I think you might have made a difference." I guess that's something.

Fortunate Mistake

This week, I have been inspired by Will.i.am's "Yes We Can" video (which was inspired by a speech given by Barack Obama). We sang parts of it, when we needed encouragement, during our 14 mile hike yesterday.

On Friday night, I set about trying to identify all of the performers. I wanted to know more about them and to support them as a way of thanking them for supporting Barack.

Cam found this MTV article that listed several of the performers.

Next, I searched for images of them and was able to identify some of the artists who had given my favorite performances from the video but I couldn't identify everyone.





Finally, I searched itunes by the performer's names.

I sampled and bought music by John Legend, Esthero, Kate Walsh, Common, Harold Perrineau (Michael from Lost), Nick Cannon, Nicole Scherzinger, Scarlett Johansson and Ed Kowalczyk from Live.

So far, of these purchases, the music I have enjoyed most is by Kate Walsh. Today, I tried to find out more about her and realized there is more than one Kate Walsh. One is an actress from Grey's Anatomy, who supports Obama and was supposed to be in this video.

Kate Walsh, the folk musician, lives in the United Kingdom. I don't know how she feels about U.S. politics.

I do know I am happy I found her music.

To paraphrase a line from Your Song, "It is so pretty, to me."

Yes We Can.

"There has never been anything false about hope." Barack Obama


Hope.
Vote.
Yes We Can.

Tonight's the Night the World Begins Again

Walking up Michigan Avenue, after ice skating with friends at Millennium Park in Chicago, on New Year's Eve, reveling in the lovely snow I hadn't seen in 2 years, surrounded by lights, memories and splendor was surreal. (photo credit)

I'd just taken a picture of the giant Christmas tree in front of the John Hancock building when a man stopped me. He asked if he could ask me a question then asked me not to be afraid. I assured him I wasn't and that he could. Instead of asking a question, he asked me to look at his hands and showed me that he was born without thumbs. He said, "It is hard being homeless." then asked me to help.

Back when I was a single mom in St. Louis, I had to make a rule that I would not to give money to people on the street. I realized I was taking money away from my young child and that I needed it to survive. Despite this long-held rule, I was reaching in my pockets. They were empty.

I knew I had money in my bag but what could the money I had there really do to help this man? I wondered, should I give him some change? Some ones? A $20? That seemed simultaneously excessive and insignificant. Then there was that voice saying I shouldn't open my bag up to a stranger on the street.

I said something lame about how I couldn't help everyone. I said I'd just have to wish him luck. He hung his head. I patted him on the shoulder and walked away. Changed. I haven't been able to stop thinking about him and feeling like I should have done something differently.

I see so much need in the world. I'm happy to be working to make a positive difference and am about to start my work as a CASA volunteer not just a case supervisor. There are so many kids who need.

I have been discouraged by injustice in Africa and the most recent uprising in Kenya.

But tonight, I am hopeful. Barack Obama won the Iowa Caucuses. I know he doesn't have all of the answers but I believe he wants to work towards making things better for everyone.

After writing about my feelings of hopefulness, I was lying awake with a Goo Goo Dolls song running through my head. It's called, Better Days and I wanted to share it with you.

I heard it on New Year's morning, while sitting in Einstein's bagels, taking refuge from the drastically colder temperatures outside and thinking about the man I'd met the night before.

I related to the sentiment, "I wish everyone was loved tonight."

Listen to it if you can.

Here are all the lyrics:

And you ask me what I want this year.
And I'll try to make this kind and clear.
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days.

'Cause I don't need boxes wrapped in strings.
And designer love and empty things.
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days.

So take these words.
And sing out loud.
'Cause everyone is forgiven now.
'Cause tonight's the night the world begins again.

I need someplace simple where we could live.
And something only you can give.
And that's faith and trust and peace while we're alive.

And the one poor child who saved this world.
And there's 10 million more who probably could.
If we all just stopped and said a prayer for them.

So take these words.
And sing out loud.
'Cause everyone is forgiven now.
'Cause tonight's the night the world begins again.

I wish everyone was loved tonight.
That some might stop this endless fight.
Just a chance that maybe we'll find better days.

So take these words.
And sing out loud.
'Cause everyone is forgiven now.
'Cause tonight's the night the world begins again.

'Cause tonight's the night the world begins again.

Congratulations

Barack Obama wins Iowa Caucuses.









I am hopeful.














We are hopeful.