If you've seen me over the last few weeks, you may notice that I'm looking a little tired. One reason that I'm sleepy is that I've been up late watching Universal Sports' coverage of the 2011 Track and Field World Championships in Daegu, South Korea. I LOVE watching sports, especially running races. In fact, I think that I enjoy spectating at least as much as I enjoy participating. I'm usually OK with watching a race once and then moving on. But I have to admit that there's one race from this year's championships that I keep coming back to: it's the womens' 1500m race. For those who didn't see it, I'll spare you the suspense - an American named Jenny Barringer Simpson won the race. But for me, it's not so much about who won, but how she won, and her response after winning. Check it out (Jenny's in navy blue):
The race positioning changes an amazing number of times during the 4-minute test. For much of the event, Jenny is closer to the back than the front. But this doesn't seem to get to her: with 200 meters to go, she makes her move, and manages, somehow, to summon strength, winning strength, and powers her way to the front. Her race smarts and confidence are clearly inspiring. But I have to tell you that what I love most of all is her response after she crosses the line - it's written all over her face - first disbelief...then relief... then Joy.
Have you had this kind of response, or felt this kind of joy, at some point during your life? Have you worked hard toward a goal, even one that seemed unattainable, and accomplished it? Have you faced something you weren't sure you could conquer and come out victorious on the other side? Or maybe you experienced joy welling up inside of you after learning something that changes everything. Maybe your "race" was a lot longer than 4 minutes; in fact, maybe you're in the middle of your race right now.
If you've had a moment like Jenny's, I'd love to hear all about it!
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
What Can We Do?
Over the last few weeks, I've noticed some news articles concerning the famine that is devastating parts of East Africa. I have to admit that it's really hard to click on the links and actually read the articles and study the photos. Looking intently, and allowing myself the space and emotional energy to sit in the truth of the suffering and misery of others, interrupts my thinking about fun things like a new school year, an upcoming activity, or a latest purchase. But once I dare to take a look, it's hard to turn away.
I have so many questions:
Why is this happening?
How would I handle this situation if I were in the shoes of one of these women in the pictures?
What can I do to help?
And what can we do together to bring aid to these people? For now, maybe helping means donating money or praying for rain. But perhaps we also need to take a look upstream and make some changes to keep this situation from becoming a more regular occurrence. I wonder how much our daily practices affect the climate, causing the drought that results in food shortages.
Below are the link to a set of photos from the Atlantic as well as a thought-provoking caption from one of the photos. Please feel free to comment with any reflections or ideas for ways that we can take action.
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/07/famine-in-east-africa/100115/
Since drought gripped the Horn of Africa, and especially since famine was declared in parts of Somalia, the international aid industry has swept in and out of refugee camps and remote hamlets in branded planes and snaking lines of white 4x4s. This humanitarian, diplomatic and media circus is necessary every time people go hungry in Africa, analysts say, because governments - both African and foreign - rarely respond early enough to looming catastrophes. Combine that with an often simplistic explanation of the causes of famine, and a growing band of aid critics say parts of Africa are doomed to a never-ending cycle of ignored early warnings, media appeals and emergency U.N. feeding - rather than a transition to lasting self-sufficiency.
I have so many questions:
Why is this happening?
How would I handle this situation if I were in the shoes of one of these women in the pictures?
What can I do to help?
And what can we do together to bring aid to these people? For now, maybe helping means donating money or praying for rain. But perhaps we also need to take a look upstream and make some changes to keep this situation from becoming a more regular occurrence. I wonder how much our daily practices affect the climate, causing the drought that results in food shortages.
Below are the link to a set of photos from the Atlantic as well as a thought-provoking caption from one of the photos. Please feel free to comment with any reflections or ideas for ways that we can take action.
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/07/famine-in-east-africa/100115/
Since drought gripped the Horn of Africa, and especially since famine was declared in parts of Somalia, the international aid industry has swept in and out of refugee camps and remote hamlets in branded planes and snaking lines of white 4x4s. This humanitarian, diplomatic and media circus is necessary every time people go hungry in Africa, analysts say, because governments - both African and foreign - rarely respond early enough to looming catastrophes. Combine that with an often simplistic explanation of the causes of famine, and a growing band of aid critics say parts of Africa are doomed to a never-ending cycle of ignored early warnings, media appeals and emergency U.N. feeding - rather than a transition to lasting self-sufficiency.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Remembering Rachel
By now, you've likely heard the story of 9-year-old Rachel Beckwith, who decided to forego birthday gifts, asking friends and family to donate money to charity:water. Read more about her story here.
As an update, her fundraising page shows that she's raised more than $850,000 at this point. This money will be used for clean water projects that will change the lives of thousands of people, even saving the lives of some. And her story has showcased the water crisis and the need for people to give generously to better the lives of others. It's inspiring to remember how one seemingly small decision made in love can have a long-lasting and life-changing impact.
As an update, her fundraising page shows that she's raised more than $850,000 at this point. This money will be used for clean water projects that will change the lives of thousands of people, even saving the lives of some. And her story has showcased the water crisis and the need for people to give generously to better the lives of others. It's inspiring to remember how one seemingly small decision made in love can have a long-lasting and life-changing impact.
Refreshing
After an hour's-long morning run
After sitting in the strength-draining sun
After a year of responding to others' requests
The ocean's water cools us and comforts us
It wraps its long-reaching arms around us and urges us to rest...
And to have fun!
It's the source of joy...and hours of entertainment
Laughter, screaming, running, splashing
It commands us to play and to create
The water's rhythmic sounds calm this anxious heart
Its glimmering beauty elicits hope
Its abundance produces gratitude, welling up inside of me
I sit in wonder, allowing the refreshing tide to wash over me
Changing, renewing, recharging
Get Ready to Go Forth
Friday, July 22, 2011
Hot and Dry
It's hot and dry in central PA this week. Around here, there's been a lot of conversation about the weather, including the typical heat-related warnings: stay in air conditioning, drink water, avoid heavy activity outside, etc. We're lucky. For now, most of us have the luxury of "escaping" the weather's most severe impacts.
But in east Africa, where drought and famine are devastating millions, people aren't so lucky. For the hungry and thirsty, escape involves leaving home and traveling long distances, sometimes to a new country, in search of some relief. The pictures below depict some of this story. See the rest of the Reuters slideshow here.
But in east Africa, where drought and famine are devastating millions, people aren't so lucky. For the hungry and thirsty, escape involves leaving home and traveling long distances, sometimes to a new country, in search of some relief. The pictures below depict some of this story. See the rest of the Reuters slideshow here.
 |
| Newly-arrived refugees run away from a cloud of dust at the Dagahaley refugee camp in Dadaab, near Kenya's border with Somalia, July 16, 2011. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya |
 |
| People roll and drag water containers in Wajir in this recently taken handout photo released on July 21, 2011. REUTERS/Jakob Dall/Danish Red Cross/Handout |
Monday, July 18, 2011
Working Waste Into Water
We're living in a time when it's becoming more and more popular, even trendy, to live simply and waste less. Technological advances encourage us to rethink some of our traditional ways of dealing with life's challenges, including how we get water and what we do with our human waste.
So how do you feel about drinking urine?
If you think about our modern-day water cycle, where pee is typically flushed down a toilet, transported through pipes to a wastewater treatment plant, treated, and discharged to a waterway; and this treated water evaporates, condenses, precipitates, and travels to another waterway, where it is pumped to a water treatment plant, purified, and used for drinking water, we are drinking recycled urine. There's just a lot of time and space between flushing the toilet and turning the faucet. This distance - this disconnection - helps us feel comfortable; we don't feel like we're drinking waste.
But how do you feel about using a toilet that treats urine and changes it into drinking water? Would you be willing to drink it? Frank Rijsberman, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is dreaming of this and other out-of-the-box options to take care of the world's water supply and waste problems. You can read more his ideas at Pee-Cycling: Bill Gates Is Getting Creative with Human Waste.
A related article, titled The Water Cycle (with a Decidedly Human Twist), describes the technology and advantages of the Orange Country Groundwater Replenishment System (OCGRS), a facility that creates drinking water using sewage. OCGRS treats 70 million gallons of sewage every day, satisfying the needs of nearly 600,000 people in a water-strapped region. Bernadette Clavier of the Stanford Center for Social Innovation writes that "the real genius of the project lies in the fact that it has convinced the residents of one of the country’s richest counties that the toilet is a viable source of drinking water (albeit one with a $500 million plant standing between their toilets and their faucets)."
Perhaps viewing water as a precious and limited resource will help us to take some steps towards its preservation. Any of us can learn to turn off the water during showers and teeth brushing, flush the toilet less often, fix leaks or use collected rainwater for watering plants. Maybe this changed thinking will even help us to get over the yuck factor that keeps us from supporting new technologies.
So how do you feel about drinking urine?
If you think about our modern-day water cycle, where pee is typically flushed down a toilet, transported through pipes to a wastewater treatment plant, treated, and discharged to a waterway; and this treated water evaporates, condenses, precipitates, and travels to another waterway, where it is pumped to a water treatment plant, purified, and used for drinking water, we are drinking recycled urine. There's just a lot of time and space between flushing the toilet and turning the faucet. This distance - this disconnection - helps us feel comfortable; we don't feel like we're drinking waste.
But how do you feel about using a toilet that treats urine and changes it into drinking water? Would you be willing to drink it? Frank Rijsberman, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is dreaming of this and other out-of-the-box options to take care of the world's water supply and waste problems. You can read more his ideas at Pee-Cycling: Bill Gates Is Getting Creative with Human Waste.
A related article, titled The Water Cycle (with a Decidedly Human Twist), describes the technology and advantages of the Orange Country Groundwater Replenishment System (OCGRS), a facility that creates drinking water using sewage. OCGRS treats 70 million gallons of sewage every day, satisfying the needs of nearly 600,000 people in a water-strapped region. Bernadette Clavier of the Stanford Center for Social Innovation writes that "the real genius of the project lies in the fact that it has convinced the residents of one of the country’s richest counties that the toilet is a viable source of drinking water (albeit one with a $500 million plant standing between their toilets and their faucets)."
Perhaps viewing water as a precious and limited resource will help us to take some steps towards its preservation. Any of us can learn to turn off the water during showers and teeth brushing, flush the toilet less often, fix leaks or use collected rainwater for watering plants. Maybe this changed thinking will even help us to get over the yuck factor that keeps us from supporting new technologies.
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