Where Were You?

It was 1986, and I was sixteen and a half years old and was between second and third periods, enjoying our morning break called  "brunch" at the high school high school.  I was sitting in Mrs. Goodrich's classroom poised to watch the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger.  On board were six crew members and a teacher--the first non-astronaut to get to go to space.  Christa McAuliffe had fired up a lot of excitement for science teachers and students.  We'd get to follow her outer space experiments and learn from her lessons from space.

But almost as soon as they launched, something went obviously, horribly wrong.  Silence rang out in the classroom, and across our campus, and the world.

All seven aboard lost their lives, twenty five years ago today.  Even thinking about it now, my heart sinks  little and I get a little frog in my throat.  They died doing something they were excited about doing, something they loved.  And the whole world watched, and cried together.

Nothing worth having or knowing comes easy.  Yet, how often do we take the knowledge we are given--at someone else's expense--for granted?  NASA didn't just loose six astronauts and a vounteer teacher-in-space that day.  Seven families lost their loves ones.  Our nation lost seven explorers, discoverers, challengers.  Brave men and women who believed what they were doing would help the world.

And for a while, they were exactly right.  The world stopped and cried, and held on to one another while we all wondered what had happened.  Like President Reagan said in tribute after the disaster, "We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and 'slipped the surly bonds of earth' to 'touch the face of God'."

Rise and Shout!

Now, I generally keep my sports writing limited to my own kids' sports, the local High School football team and, occasionally, the one weirdo team that makes a name for itself--good, bad or ugly.

Well, I crossed over my personal boundaries and watched a little Cougar Basketball last night.  I'm a BYU grad, so this is alumni spirit, right?

BYU was ranked #9 in the nation, with a record of 19-1 going in the Mountain West Conference game against San Diego State.  SDSU was ranked #4 and had a perfect 20-0 record coming to Provo last night.  Holy Cow!  What a show!  Cougar star Jimmer Ferdette is Ah-Maz-Ing!  I've seen video game versions that don't shoot as well as he did last night.  And he seems to play this way all the time!  Wowzer!

The really fun part was seeing the Marriott Center, all 22,700+ seats were rocking, washed in Cougar Blue and White.  THAT is one reason kids need to go to college.  I think that kind of fun, excitement, thrill of victory is what makes good memories.  Also, it makes me wish I went to see more  BYU round ball during my time there.  Oh well.  High Definition nationally televised games are pretty great in my cushy new living room chairs.

Rise and Shout, the Cougars are out!  Gooooo Cougars!!!

Shared Thoughts

I thought I would share an article I recently read online.  These, or course,  are not my words today, but the author's thoughts were interesting, and quite intriguing.  I thought I'd share with you since we are all, essentially, looking for ways to make the world a better place and improve our lives too.  And frankly, knowing you as my friends, you are already doing just that.  So these won't seem like new ideas, just a good reminder. Enjoy!

Making a change in the world can be an easy part of your everyday life. Here are 10 ways you can make a difference. From Most Good, Least Harm: A Simple Principle for a Better World and Meaningful Life by Zoe Weil



1. Commit to the 3 I’s: Inquire, Introspect, live with Integrity. Expose yourself to information and ideas about most good (MOGO) living by talking to and learning from people from all walks of life -- especially people who are also trying to do the most good and the least harm; by reading widely and deeply; by visiting websites aimed at making a difference; and by viewing relevant films. You can find a list of regularly updated websites, books, magazines, and films in the resources section at HumaneEducation.org. Then introspect: identify your values, consider what is most important to you, assess your talents and interests, and seek out ways to put these together practically and productively. Finally, live with integrity. To the best of your ability, put your values into practice.


2. Work for change. Give some of your time, resources, and talents to create systemic change that benefits all. Choose the issues that most concern and compel you, get involved, and relish the joy that such generosity brings to yourself and others. If you can, make your career one that is MOGO.


3. Rethink, Reuse, Repair, and Recycle. As much as possible, rethink your use of products that are unnecessary, inhumane, produced through exploitive business practices, non-recyclable, over-packaged, toxic, and/or unsustainable. When you do make purchases, choose the most sustainable, efficient, humane, fairly traded, and healthy versions. Then reuse what you can, repair what is reparable, and recycle when you are through. And in the midst of these 4 Rs, consider what you could borrow instead of buy, and what you could share with friends and neighbors so that they can better rethink unnecessary products, too.


4. Eat for life. As much as possible, choose plant-based foods produced close to where you live, grown organically, and unprocessed. This will improve your health, the environment, the lives of animals, and the wellbeing of other people.


5. Reduce your ecological footprint. Drive less, carpool, walk, bike, car-share, and use public transportation more. If you need to own a car, choose one with the best fuel efficiency to meet your needs. Choose the most energy efficient and ecologically friendly options for homes, home repair, appliances, lighting, heating, and cooling. Choose your recreation and vacations with MOGO in mind as well: an ecotourism excursion over a cruise; cross-country skiing instead of downhill skiing; canoeing more often than motor boating.


6. Transform education. People need relevant information, tools for critical thinking, and motivation to lead meaningful lives that contribute to a better world. Whether you are a parent, student, teacher, elder, or concerned citizen, help make living sustainably and peacefully the very purpose of education at all levels by engaging in dialogue with lawmakers, educators, and school and university administrators.


7. Invest your money ethically. If you are going to rely on a mutual fund for retirement or college, choose a socially responsible investment fund. Ask for a portfolio and assess whether the company invests in the kinds of businesses you want to support. Seek out community banks and credit unions, and consider micro-lending and investment in social businesses as a means of using your money to help others.


8. Build community. Find others who share your desire to make MOGO choices by joining existing groups or creating your own group, and invite people to join you. You will enjoy the friendship and camaraderie, and help make a difference at the same time. Don’t forget the communities of which you are already a part. Get to know your neighbors, and work with them to make your neighborhood healthy, supportive, and safe.


9. Teach others. Share what you know with others and engage them in the challenge of living a MOGO life by using positive communication that does not judge or blame. Listen as often as you speak. Teaching and learning happen everywhere: one on one, in schools, in religious congregations, at camps, in families, in print and film, at learning centers, on social networking internet sites, at senior facilities, and so on. Model your message, and speak your truth in kind and inspiring ways wherever you are and with whomever you’re in contact.


10. Strive for balance. Set reasonable goals for yourself, and remember that the “most good, least harm” equation includes you. You are a role model for a MOGO life, so find the balance that lets you live joyfully, enthusiastically, and compassionately.



ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Zoe Weil, author of Most Good, Least Harm: A Simple Principle for a Better World and Meaningful Life (Copyright © 2009 by Zoe Weil), is the co-founder and president of the Institute for Humane Education. She created the first M.Ed degree and certificate programs in humane education in the United States. Zoe leads MOGO and humane education workshops throughout the Unite States and Canada. She lives in coastal Maine. Visit zoeweil.com for information on workshops and presentations.

Calendaring

Before we begin, The Girl is doing fine...no lasting horror from the morning back-out.  But her head is congested and her nose is runny still.  Must be January and mid-winter colds just seem to hang on and on.  We're hoping she gets feeling back to normal before she swims in the Region HS Swim finals this weekend.

Last week, I felt I was eyeball deep in "things-to-do" with more meetings than I had evenings for, and family things that needed attention.  I think that emotionally feels like what the tar pits must have physically felt like for the dinosaurs.  You know, "If I stop here, I may never get out of this," kind of feeling.  So we plow through and hope everything gets done.

A very wise and dear friend told me, after hearing about the schedule I was trying to keep for the next several weeks or so, that I needed to keep my calendars from this time in my life.  "Someday," she told me, "You will think you can't do it all, and when you look back at the calendar from now, you'll know you can."

She had a point.  I know I was busy when the kids were little.  I was out-of-my-mind-busy then.  But it w as a different kind of busy than I face now.  But even knowing the differences, I know I have been crazy-busy before and I got through it.  I can  do that again.

Deja Vu, All Over Again

This morning I was wiggling into my Strawberry Days golf shirt when from the kids' bathroom I heard a Bam, Bam,Bam!

I ran into the bathroom, and seeing legs and feet through the crack of the door and in the mirror's reflection, I gently opened the door and squeezed in to find The Girl in a pile on the floor right behind the door.

"Girl, Girl!" I called to her.  "Are you conscious, or are you out?!"

"ah, ow, huh, whoa."  She answered.

I think she was conscious, but still out of it.

Sure enough.  She had been putting in her contacts when she suddenly felt sick to her stomach, and then just as suddenly blacked out, bouncing her head off the edge of the tub on her way to the floor.  She has a nice lump on the back of her head.

Once I established that she neither would puke on me nor pass out again, I helped her gingerly back to bed, where she remained until about 1 PM today.

The entire ordeal this morning reminded me of a horrific chapter in my life, when I was just a year older than The Girl. 

Of course, I'll tell you.  I hoped you'd ask.

I was a junior in high school, and got up each day about 5 AM in order to get ready for school, and still make it to my early morning Seminary class at our church in town before the high school classes started. 

Seminary is a daily religion class for LDS high school aged kids where we studied a different book of scripture each year for four years.  One year is the Old Testament, followed by a year of New Testament, followed by a year of Book of Mormon studies and then a year of Church History including studying the Doctrine and Covenants.  Anyhoo.

Well, since it was a early class, I had the first shower shift in my family.  So about 5 AM I was in the shower.  And I was naked, as you generally are in the shower.  And the water was running at full blast, as that is the basic difference between a shower and a bath. Suddenly I felt myself getting woozy and before I could sit down, I blacked out.

All of this was reported to me later that morning, as I was still out of it for most of it.


Our best guess here, after the fact, is that on the way from a standing position in the shower, I twisted slightly and on the way down disturbed the location of my razor, and ended up landing on it, slicing open the back side of my upper thigh, just below my bum.

Now, the water is running, I am naked, and currently bleeding too.  Hearing the banging commotion, my mom leaps from bed and runs to the shower to see what in the world happened.  Seeing me konked out on the floor of the shower and bleeding from the upper thigh, lower bum, she shut off the water and proceeded to pass out herself.

This is a common family trait, come to find out.

But my mom has special black-out powers.  She also seizes when she passes out, like an epileptic.  She  looks like a little fish thrown to the river bank, gasping for air.  It is disturbing, especially when you are little girl.  I'm sure it isn't a trip to Disneyland for her, either.

Sure enough, she begins her fish-flopping seizure have now closed herself into the tiny portion of the bathroom that houses the toilet and the shower.  Her head is pushed into the back of the door and she is on the floor, unconscious, just outside of the shower.

My dad, hearing a secondary commotion, gets out of bed and comes to find us in a most unusual, and disadvantaged situation.  He can't get to us because the door is shut, and Mom is directly behind it.

Hearing my dad get up following the two previous banging bathroom events, my sister gets up and as she stood in the hallway, all sleepy, and dazed, asked if she should call 911.

Eventually, and somewhat miraculously, Dad got into the bathroom to save Mom, and apparently, to save me--naked and bleeding and wet. 

This is an episode where the telling of it ends as the beginning of the rescue. I just don't want to imagine my poor dad having to pull me out of the bathtub, like a naked, limp noodle.  Because, let's face it, I was never a noodle shaped girl.

Oh.  Just thinking of this is giving me some serious heartburn.  And this is 25 plus years later.  Yikes!!  Sorry Dad, in case I never told you.  And thank you for never, ever mentioning the naked part to me again.

The Girl was still in her pajamas this morning when I discovered her in the limp noodle situation.  If she'd been in the shower already, I might have followed my mom's example.  And we need only have one memorable situation like this per family, please.

Video Sunday

I wonder if there is a The Digging-est Dog version?!