Everyone has a treasure, that if an emergency were to break out, they'd grab and take with them. Although I have no problem throwing out paper, and am not a collector by any means, my treasure is a keepsake box, that holds a bundle of cards and letters that I've been given over the years. Some might label this as sentimental, I think it's an affirmation of my life and of something joyful; it's a boost to get mail and it's an act of caring when someone reaches out.
I remember the old days when we wrote letters to relatives and friends in distant lands, when we phoned the ones nearby to keep in touch.
A few days ago waiting for my bangs to be trimmed at a hair salon, as a father was called to get his hair-cut, he departed handing his six year-old his cell phone, instructing him to use it as a toy. Meanwhile, educational blocks that the salon provided that were age-appropriate to inspire a child's intellectual development sat in the corner gathering dust. As a child I went to the beauty shop with my mother. In those days children's toys were not provided, only at a Doctors office would you find children's books; but I was rarely bored, I relied on my imagination to keep me occupied and intrigued.
An opportunity to use your imagination, to sit with yourself and just be, or read the words of others; little of that today exists, because everyone is on the social network craze.
I signed up half-heartedly on Facebook and haven't done a thing with it. Out of the loop, I recognize the "convenience" of social networking but at my core, I believe it to be more of a hindrance to our future than a progressive step. Its privacy policies are confusing to most and it allows for information to be exposed in a number of ways. I think that's over-sharing and sheer self-display. Mark Zuckerberg who is the face behind Facebook has a film coming out next week, with an unauthorized version of him. He's known not to give interviews, we''ll see how he handles the exposure.
We are only Facebook's infancy stages, wait another fifteen years when it creates a massive amount of lonely, overweight and socially inept people who will grapple with how to make "real" friends, meet singles and see how the birth rate plummets.
Nor can I bring myself to finding out about new births through friends’ Facebook pages; or of people moving homes when the backgrounds of those pictures change.
No need for greeting cards, how about a poke instead – “Happy birthday, how are you?” No need to go to a birthday party any more – just have my friends upload grainy photographs from a wild party of one, captured on a cell phone camera, so that I could check them out and “be there.” No need to come to my parties either, I’ll just post pictures of myself on my Facebook page, blowing out twenty-nine candles on a supermarket cake, with only me in attendance.
Despite all this “social” networking, it must feel lonely out in Facebookland. Why is our culture obsessed with networking ourselves into obscurity? To feel guilty when you phone someone and get the real person as if you disturbed them; instead of voice mail is now becoming a common human reaction.
Who would rather be sitting with their spouse on the same sofa and texting each other instead of conversing? I see it all the time in restaurants and at parties, so why not at home? We may get some peace and quiet (other than for those tic-tic sounds of keyboards or phone pads). And in fifteen years from now, our vocal chords wasted away and we will have ended up with a poor vocabulary populated with “Hi5, OMG, LOL, ” and other acronyms that I am trying hard to tune out.
In these days of cheap long-distance phone calls and free video conferencing, I think we need the face-to-face more than the face-book. I wonder when the tide will change; when our minds will yearn for imagination, when we have to re-learn to spell correctly, when our sore thumbs will ache for a rest, our vocal chords thirst for exercise, and our souls hunger for the presence of other souls to remind us that we exist, and are defined, only in relation to one another.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooupzNgybEo
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
El Grito de Dolores (Cry of Dolores)
By an amazing historical coincidence, this year, 2010 is both a centennial and bicentennial for Mexico. In Mexico, Independence Day, September 16 and Revolution Day, November 20, are both important patriotic celebrations. This year is extraordinary because it marks both the bicentennial of what became the Mexican independence movement in 1810, and the centennial of the start of the Mexican Revolution in 1910.
The dual anniversaries provide an opportunity to reflect upon the complex and intriguing history of Mexico. And who knows, perhaps even learn lessons for the future.
The bicentennial celebrates the independence of Mexico from Spain in the early 19th century. The uprising that became the Mexican independence movement began on the night of September 15, in 1810. That night, Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo gathered the people in the Zócalo, or the main plaza, where he rang a bell calling the people to action. This occurred in the central Mexican town of Dolores, Guanajuato, now referred to as Dolores Hidalgo.
Hidalgo was executed in 1811, but the struggle continued. Eventually, Mexico became independent from Spain in 1821. And here lies another historical coincidence, since 300 years earlier, in 1521 was the year in which the Aztec Empire fell and Spanish rule began.
The Mexican War of Independence is not to be confused with the Mexican Revolution, which occurred a century later.
The Revolution began on as an uprising to overthrow President and longtime dictator, Porfirio Diaz, on November 20, 1910. After Diaz was driven out of the country in 1911, revolutionary factions fought each other in a bloody civil war. The Revolution lasted from 1910 to 1920.
One of the most concrete results of the Revolution was the current Mexican Constitution, drafted in 1917. Both Independence Day in September and Revolution Day in November are popular observances celebrated annually.
Since this year is both a bicentennial and centennial, in Mexico a number of observances are taking place. Current president Felipe Calderon has declared the entire year of 2010, as the Año de la Patria or Year of the Nation.
Presently, there are cultural, artistic and educational programs aplenty. There are conferences, historical commemorations, artistic exhibitions, and radio shows. Large digital countdown clocks have been installed in cities across Mexico. Major media companies Televisa and TV Azteca compete with each other to produce programming related in some way to the bicentennial and the centennial.
Motorists traveling in many parts of the country can see Ruta 2010, posted signs on the highway with routes that commemorate and follow military movements and historical figures in the Independence and Revolutionary periods. For the curious traveler, this is a fascinating way to map out the country and see where historical events took place.
All 31 Mexican states and the Federal District have their own Bicentennial/Centennial committees.
This past June, the Mexican port of Veracruz played host to an international regatta with ships that sailed in a five month long voyage. The fleet included vessels from 12 nations, including Mexico and other Latin American nations, several of which are also celebrating bicentennials within the space of a few years. The U.S., Portugal and the Netherlands also participated.
The Mexican Bicentennial/Centennial is expanding beyond the nation's borders. There are exhibitions of art from different stages of Mexico's history in various foreign capitals. Mexican embassies and consulates are also hosting cultural events abroad.
All these events reflect on Mexico… not only as an occasion for euphoria and collective gaiety that all of society should participate in but also that the introduction of history and culture bring a new understanding of Mexico's past and unity for the future.
watch?v=1O7K9AwR6Vo&feature=related
The dual anniversaries provide an opportunity to reflect upon the complex and intriguing history of Mexico. And who knows, perhaps even learn lessons for the future.
The bicentennial celebrates the independence of Mexico from Spain in the early 19th century. The uprising that became the Mexican independence movement began on the night of September 15, in 1810. That night, Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo gathered the people in the Zócalo, or the main plaza, where he rang a bell calling the people to action. This occurred in the central Mexican town of Dolores, Guanajuato, now referred to as Dolores Hidalgo.
Hidalgo was executed in 1811, but the struggle continued. Eventually, Mexico became independent from Spain in 1821. And here lies another historical coincidence, since 300 years earlier, in 1521 was the year in which the Aztec Empire fell and Spanish rule began.
The Mexican War of Independence is not to be confused with the Mexican Revolution, which occurred a century later.
The Revolution began on as an uprising to overthrow President and longtime dictator, Porfirio Diaz, on November 20, 1910. After Diaz was driven out of the country in 1911, revolutionary factions fought each other in a bloody civil war. The Revolution lasted from 1910 to 1920.
One of the most concrete results of the Revolution was the current Mexican Constitution, drafted in 1917. Both Independence Day in September and Revolution Day in November are popular observances celebrated annually.
Since this year is both a bicentennial and centennial, in Mexico a number of observances are taking place. Current president Felipe Calderon has declared the entire year of 2010, as the Año de la Patria or Year of the Nation.
Presently, there are cultural, artistic and educational programs aplenty. There are conferences, historical commemorations, artistic exhibitions, and radio shows. Large digital countdown clocks have been installed in cities across Mexico. Major media companies Televisa and TV Azteca compete with each other to produce programming related in some way to the bicentennial and the centennial.
Motorists traveling in many parts of the country can see Ruta 2010, posted signs on the highway with routes that commemorate and follow military movements and historical figures in the Independence and Revolutionary periods. For the curious traveler, this is a fascinating way to map out the country and see where historical events took place.
All 31 Mexican states and the Federal District have their own Bicentennial/Centennial committees.
This past June, the Mexican port of Veracruz played host to an international regatta with ships that sailed in a five month long voyage. The fleet included vessels from 12 nations, including Mexico and other Latin American nations, several of which are also celebrating bicentennials within the space of a few years. The U.S., Portugal and the Netherlands also participated.
The Mexican Bicentennial/Centennial is expanding beyond the nation's borders. There are exhibitions of art from different stages of Mexico's history in various foreign capitals. Mexican embassies and consulates are also hosting cultural events abroad.
All these events reflect on Mexico… not only as an occasion for euphoria and collective gaiety that all of society should participate in but also that the introduction of history and culture bring a new understanding of Mexico's past and unity for the future.
watch?v=1O7K9AwR6Vo&feature=related
Monday, September 13, 2010
Mystique of the Forest
Anyone who saw the PBS documentary on Great Lodges of the National Parks knows the pioneering experience that being in nature will bring, its simplicity can enrapt wilderness lovers in a fervor of ecstasy that moves beyond transcendentalism.It can also have you examine and challenge the enormous conceit, carelessness and short-sightedness of mankind.
The show highlighted the awe-inspiring beauty of America’s national parks. As a two part series; I watched the first episode a few days ago that took viewers to the edge of a volcano in Hawaii, to the Alaskan wilderness, to an oasis in California’s Death Valley and to the rugged mountain peaks and pristine lakes of the Rockies, to Grand Teton. But the park I jotted down as a place I would want to visit is in the lush Pacific Northwest, Lake Quinault, nestled in the heart of the Olympic National Forest, a diverse and stunning environment with abundant meadows and glaciers. I suggest you visit Wikipedia to learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Quinault
The image of lakes and trees combined embody an atmosphere of a fairytale-like glow with mist rising off of the lakes. It took me back in time; of the spectacular beauty of the Alpine landscape. I’m not exaggerating when I say I could never describe the majestic quality of nature that I connected with in Germany, it went beyond words. But another tree-lover’s haven can be found in California, just north of San Francisco.
Muir Woods, named in honor of John Muir, the Scottish-born naturalist, a tireless adventurer and early advocate of wilderness preservation, particularly in the mountains of California, devoted most of his life to saving the great Western forests. As founder of the Sierra Club, he petitioned Congress to create a National Park Service that would protect the Yosemite Valley and create Sequoia National Park.
Muir Woods, is one of the last remaining ancient redwood forests. Most San Franciscans are enamored by their city as I was; but have to break away from all the noise, density and concrete. To spend a day hiking the trails their is to connect to nature with an unavoidable reverence – and imagine the infinite.
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