In honor of Ted Kennedy

"For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on,
the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."

Senator Ted Kennedy (22 February 1932 – 25 August 2009)

A statement in the eulogy delivered by President Obama:

"What we can do is to live out our lives as best we can with purpose, with love, and with joy. We can use each day to show those who are closest to us how much we care about them, and treat others with the kindness and respect that we wish for ourselves. We can learn from our mistakes and grow from our failures. And we can strive at all costs to make a better world, so that someday, if we are blessed with the chance to look back on our time here, we know that we spent it well; that we made a difference; that our fleeting presence had a lasting impact on the lives of others. This is how Ted Kennedy lived. This is his legacy."

When Death Comes

When it's over, I don't want to wonder

if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened,

or full of argument.

I don't want to end up simply having visited this world.

(Mary Oliver, When Death Comes)

Thomas Moore wrote that the soul "is not a thing, but a quality or a dimension of experiencing life and ourselves. It has to do with depth, value, relatedness, heart, and personal substance."

What personal substance do you bring to your interactions with people? What depth and value to do contribute to this world, such that you are not simply a visitor? I hope we never tire of reflecting on these questions. I also hope I never settle on one solid answer.

Soul Food

I absolutely chose the right graduate program. I'm so at home and so in the zone right now. I haven't even been to my first MA Community Leadership class yet and I can tell you it's going to rock my world.

Paul Rogat Loeb is something of an academic celebrity in the service-learning world. I've had his "Soul of a Citizen" on my shelf for nearly a decade. It's a seminal work in the field and to be taken seriously in any degree, you have to have at least a working understanding of this text. However, I had never sat down and read it cover to cover. Until now. It's one of the texts in my Exploring Communities class. The fact that I can read Loeb in an academic context, get credit for it, write papers on it, discuss it with others, makes me so happy I could scream.

It's a very interesting contrast to be reading Loeb and an endless stack of MBA texts at the same time. I love my MBA class - the theories and perspectives are dense and interesting and challenging - but when I read Loeb, I've come home.

From page 24: "Sadly, and ironically, in a country born of a democratic political revolution, the be American today is to be apolitical. Civic withdrawal has become our norm. To challenge this requires courage. It also requires creating a renewed definition of ourselves as citizens - something closer to the nation of active stakeholders that leaders like Thomas Jefferson had in mind." Um, I'm sorry. Is that Loeb or my blog speaking? Honestly. Reading this book is like hanging out with an old friend.

Speaking of, I need to get back to it. I'll leave you with this thought:

"In regard to cruelties committed in the name of a free society, some are guilty, while all are responsible." (Rabbi Abraham Heschel)

It's kind of like being pregnant

Only not really. But you know what I mean. When you're pregnant you can ride that excuse for a good 9 months, 12 if you play your cards right. Well, I'm going to ride grad school all the way to the finish line as far as excuses are concerned. For instance, WiFi.

I have been perfectly content to have a WiFi/cable/telephone free house. I made a work-life balance decision years ago. For me that meant no internet and no temptation to bring work home and pull 18 hour days. My blackberry was sufficient and though it was inconvenient at times to not be able to surf at home, whatever. Well...with mounds and mounds of coursework online, I have no choice at this point. I finally caved. Welcome to the 21st century, Self. I hooked me up some WiFi tonight. Word.


...and I immediately proceeded to waste my night away with hours of hulu. My WiFi did not lead me to check my course discussion boards. I did not log-on to my school email account. All I researched tonight was Dating in the Dark, More to Love, The Office, and Dr. Horrible (for the 1,382 time). I watched more 'television' tonight than I've watched all year. Oy.

The novelty of this crazy thing y'all call the internets better wear off soon; I gots major studyin to do.

Certainly seems easier...