Happy Juneteenth! I'm sorry I'm late.

Less than 10 years ago I first heard of Juneteenth and have been trying to learn more about it since.  Because I feel such a huge gap in my education, I can identify with this guy.

Yes, fact checkers have found this guy in Ohio, who told them,

"I hope it lets people know that it's OK

to change your opinion

when you're presented with new evidence

that clearly shows you were wrong.”

Today a Facebook friend posted these lines - and gave me permission to share.  Thank you, Ryan DjRhino Flemming. 

On this day in 1865, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and read General Order No. 3, announcing and enforcing the freedom of enslaved people in Texas.

While President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation more than two years earlier on January 1, 1863, its enforcement depended upon the presence of Union troops. As Union forces advanced into formerly Confederate territory, freedom was not only proclaimed—it was secured. For many enslaved people in Texas, that moment finally arrived on June 19, 1865.

For those who had lived under the bondage of slavery, this was a day of profound joy and significance. In the years that followed, they commemorated the occasion as “Juneteenth,” and over time that celebration spread throughout the nation.

Nearly every major movement has a defining moment that comes to symbolize the larger story. Juneteenth has become such a moment in the story of slavery’s end in the United States. It represents the day when the promise that all people are created equal moved closer to becoming a reality for all Americans.

We remember Juneteenth not to celebrate the fact that slavery once existed in our nation, but to celebrate that it was brought to an end. We honor those who endured its cruelty, those who fought against it, and those who sacrificed to secure freedom for others. We also celebrate the truth that every person is created in the image of God and is therefore worthy of dignity, justice, and respect.

Happy Juneteenth!

 

I am a person

 It was an event for American Christians to raise awareness about other cultures. When my friend arrived wearing a burka I introduced her to the group and invited her to share a few words.

...

Hello.

I am a foreigner living in America. I have lived here for four years.

I’m a wife and a mother-to-be. I work very hard to help support my family.  

I am religious.  My beliefs are a very important part of my life.  I try to serve my God but it is not easy.

Sometimes it is hard to live in America. At times people don’t understand me. Often people avoid me and don’t want to get to know me. I think that maybe they are afraid…

But what they don’t understand is that I am a person.

Yes, all lives matter

I don’t remember my exact reaction, but when I first began hearing the phrase Black Lives Matter, I’m quite sure that I felt immediate assent and tenderness about the declaration, highly sensitive person that I am.  However that same sensitivity may have also triggered an instinctive response like “Of course, they do.  All lives matter.”

Later, when I began hearing push-back about that reaction, I was confused and tried to understand some of the nuance.  As I pondered the hope behind the Black Lives Matter movement, I quickly began to realize that it was much more complex than I imagined.  As far as I can tell, there is no intended implication in that phrase about “other lives not mattering” - but only about Black lives who so often have NOT mattered to the rest of us.

Slowly I began to comprehend that the phrase “ALL lives matter” feels diminishing to Black people because it can seem as if the speaker wants to continue to ignore Black lives - particularly if the retort “ALL lives matter” is spit out angrily - or sarcastically.  It can become an ugly competition about which lives matter the most.   

Eventually, I came upon a rather absurd scenario that somehow helped me.

Suppose my house catches afire and is soon burning out of control.  Fire fighters arrive quickly to put out the fire…  until one of my neighbors marches into the street to block their progress - shouting “ALL homes matter” - and demanding that the firemen spray the roofs of every single house on the street instead of focusing on mine that is already engulfed in flame.  Not only would it seem like my neighbor did not care about my situation, but he might well be responsible for further damage.  I had to think about that for a minute.

This is a ridiculous example; right?

But… 

I have gradually come to understand that this movement is about an entire group of people who have lived realities that imply they don’t really matter to white folks.  

Finally here is a slogan and a movement that says otherwise.  

Finally they might have a chance to be treated fairly.

I wish to be their advocate and ally.  But maybe first I need to understand the implications of what that might mean. Therefore I must keep asking questions and try to understand what life is like living in their shoes.

…

All my life I heard in Sunday School about the Samaritans.  

About how they were looked down on by the Jews.

It was simply a fact in their culture.

Maybe a bit like our history - when Blacks could not drink from the same water fountains as the whites.

We learned how religious leaders of that time were often asking Jesus questions to try to trip him up, to back him into a corner, and to get him in trouble.  On one of those occasions someone asked the question, “And who is my neighbor?” - maybe with a bit of arrogance.  

In response to the question, Jesus told a story and in the process made a Samaritan the hero of the story - a tactic that most likely pissed off the Scribes & Pharisees even more. 

But maybe, just maybe… his words got through to some of the listening crowd as they maybe realized how terribly Samaritans had been treated.  

Maybe a sweet Jewish Bubbe broke away from the crowd and walked over to Jesus.  

Maybe she straightened up to her full height as she tearfully declared: Samaritan Lives Matter.   

Maybe Jesus interrupted her and retorted, “Of course, they do.  All lives matter!”  After all, he had been preaching the message of love for everybody; right?

No?  

That’s not how the story goes? 

No. 

It is good for me to remind myself - again - what Jesus was doing.

Jesus knew very well that Samaritans were looked down upon. He was already doing something about it.  … he had elevated the Samaritan to hero status.  The example for religious leaders and everyone else. He was being an advocate for people who didn’t seem to matter.  Let that be a lesson to me!

… Jesus demonstrated that Samaritan Lives Matter - because society often treated them as if they didn’t.  Hence the need for repeated reminders that indeed they do.

(Excerpted from my book,  Beyond These Walls, pp. 106-107)

…

So many sides

So many angles

So many perspectives

So much to understand

So many ways to hurt each other

But so many opportunities to invest in each other

To care enough to really listen

To put myself in another’s shoes

And so I continue to listen and to learn.

I continue to admit my mistakes.

Because yes, all lives matter.

And because such things are not simple.

Juneteenth: Celebrating freedom

 Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865,

which is when enslaved Black people in Texas were told

that slavery had been abolished.

  …  

By the time enslaved people in Galveston, Texas,

were told by Union Major General Gordon Granger

that they were free on June 19, 1865,

they were some of the last enslaved people to be informed.

It had been two months since the Civil War ended.

 -Excerpted from dictionary.com

...

This week I’ve been bumping into things that remind me that for far too long in our country, Black lives have not mattered.  It is way past the time for that fact to be turned around.

My heart breaks about things that I do not understand, nor have even a smidge of control.  I cannot begin to comprehend all the factors that come together in the killing of a person of color - just because of that color.  I cannot imagine the fear that must be just below the surface for them.  I barely understand what Juneteenth is about, but I try to learn a little bit more each year. 

...

Of course, these issues are not simple nor are they limited to skin color.  I also fail to understand how we can send astronauts to live on the ISS, but we can’t figure out how to keep children safe in school.  Thinking about the conditions in Ukraine and Gaza just make me shudder.  

What can we do?

How should we feel?

What should we think?

Though my attempts feel terribly small, I have at least begun taking steps - to listen, to read, to recognize the huge gaps in my understanding and to start filling some of those gaps with learning and compassion and respect.

Four years ago my daughter penned these lines about starting to celebrate Juneteenth.   Her words are helping me.

My first Juneteenth

by Stacy Brown

My heart is heavy today.

This is my first Juneteenth.

I wasn't taught about this in school.

I didn't hear about this in church.

I didn't grow up discussing this with friends.

My ignorance wasn't all my fault,

but it's all my responsibility to fix it.

Someday I'll celebrate Juneteenth,

but this year I'm starting

with humbly and solemnly honoring it:

Mourning so many horrors, of past and present,

that white washed history has swept under the rug, 

acknowledging my own ignorance and bias,

and committing to doing whatever I can to do better going forward.

Today is my first Juneteenth.

It won't be my last.

Speaking up

I think I am a compassionate person - or at least I try to be. I think I have mostly goodwill in my heart toward people who are different than me.  But I realize that I'm kinda' clueless about what life is really like for them. I have never walked in their shoes but I have made feeble attempts to learn more about such things.  It is easy to see that in many cases, black lives do not matter and that is not okay with me.

A couple years ago I was challenged to read Black authors so I made a commitment to read and listen and learn.  I am finding so many writers from whom I can learn more about their reality. 

Jacalyn Wetzel is one of the many Black writers I've found and this is one of her everyday normal life stories.

I don't often speak up or share the things I'm reading.  Maybe I'm hesitant to get up on my soapbox.  But I am deeply troubled by the things that must be endured by so many - simply because of their skin color.

Maybe I could find the courage to speak up once in awhile.

My first Juneteenth

One of my first thoughts this morning was to ponder how to commemorate this day.

This date. This event of Juneteenth that I had not even heard of until we moved here three years ago.  I've learned so much in these three years - and even more in these last few weeks.  Mostly I've discovered that there is so,  SO much I don't know.

So I found myself making a commitment a few weeks ago - to learn.
I didn't even know where to start, but as soon as I began paying attention, the resources were suddenly coming at me from all directions!

So yes, today is important.
My daughter says it so well and is helping me.
Her words describe my heart - and so I am borrowing them and sharing them.
And I am joining her in honoring this day.
My first Juneteenth.

My first Juneteenth

by Stacy Brown

My heart is heavy today.

This is my first Juneteenth.

I wasn't taught about this in school.

I didn't hear about this in church.

I didn't grow up discussing this with friends.

My ignorance wasn't all my fault,

but it's all my responsibility to fix it.

Someday I'll celebrate Juneteenth,

but this year I'm starting

with humbly and solemnly honoring it:

Mourning so many horrors, of past and present,

that white washed history has swept under the rug, 

acknowledging my own ignorance and bias,

and committing to doing whatever I can to do better going forward.

Today is my first Juneteenth.

It won't be my last.

Thank you, thank you, Stacy, for giving voice to my heart.
But how does one honor such a momentous event?

The one instruction that keeps coming back to my mind... is to listen.
To really listen.
Listen and learn.
Read black authors
Hear black voices.

And so I am.
I have begun and I will continue.
One step at a time
One day at a time.
Starting on this day, my first Juneteenth...

GOODSTOCK '19

Fifty years ago was Woodstock.

This year we had the return of Goodstock - which had been held in our neighborhood from 2003 to 2012 and then disappeared for six years.  

Photo cred: Bob Sims

But this year we brought it back.  I say "we" because we as neighbors helped to make it happen.  I was honored to be involved with the neighborhood engagement team who worked for months planning and preparing for this special day.  It all came together this past weekend with absolutely PERFECT weather.   What fun to be part of the return of an iconic event.  

So what is GOODSTOCK?  It is a one-day music festival under the big top surrounded by a variety of vendors selling handmade candles and soaps and other art.  But mostly it's about the people.  Vendors, volunteers, all kinds of staff and crew, artists and musicians.  And neighbors.  Lots of neighbors.  'Twas a happy time.  A good time to live in Carriage Town.

Photo cred: Bob Sims

International Women's Day

(I wrote this piece in 2011, as this global event marked 100 years of celebration.)

...

International Women's Day is observed on this date every year as the focal point of the ongoing struggle and increasing successes of women worldwide for DIGNITY, EQUALITY, SAFETY, and SECURITY.

The name - International Women's Day - usually makes me think of several different things and causes me to feel grateful for many different women. 

• Something about the wording always makes me think of "international women."  I am privileged to have many of them in my life - women from different countries, women who care about those from other countries, women who invest their lives for people around the world. 
• I also think of women who work tirelessly in serving other people and who make a difference in the world - and who make a difference in MY world.
• Then there are the women who have set examples for the rest of us in loosening gender restrictions.
• There are LOTS of women I think of that I appreciate for various reasons and who have touched my life in different ways.

The official reason for International Women's Day is to celebrate the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, and future.  That future part grabs my heart - when I think of the conditions faced by women around the world today that are unbelievably getting even worse.  I've faced enough obstacles and discouraging words as a woman to have had my heart tenderized a bit, but what I've experienced is nothing compared to what other women deal with all the time.

Poverty is probably the most obvious problem for women here and abroad.  Economic disparity is one of the most blatant crimes against women, but that's perhaps just the tip of the iceberg.  Recently we've been reminded of the sexual harassment and assault that women face regularly and where girls and women are forced into slavery and suffer unimaginable horrors - yes, even here in America. 

Now that I am a grandma, I wonder what the world will be like for my grand-daughter as she grows up. We will let her know that she has great value but what messages will she receive to the contrary?  Will she live to see things get better for women?  I cautiously hope that she will see equality for women on more and more levels in their lifetimes. 

There are things you and I can do to improve the plight of women - across the street and around the world.  Sometimes I just need to be reminded to look for those opportunities.  Let's not forget the ongoing struggle... of women worldwide for DIGNITY, EQUALITY, SAFETY, and SECURITY. 

And let me say again how grateful I am for the mighty women in my life!!! 

Colored leaves and cold weather

Cold-weather camping is a thing - for some people.

Maybe you are the hardy type who can handle discomfort.

Or maybe you have a heater in your tent or camper.

I know that I would NOT enjoy the tent version, but we have done a bit of cold-weather camping in our RV.  Two memories come to mind...

January 2015

We were living on Dauphin Island when the polar vortex dipped all the way south to the mouth of Mobile Bay causing great concern to the campground staff. They were unaccustomed to dealing with freezing temps and weren’t sure how to advise the campers - except to try to protect the shallow plumbing infrastructure through the campground.  Different ones of us tried different methods - some disconnecting and draining and some running water throughout the night - and most of us survived without damage.  Well, except one neighbor who was away for a few days… The next morning there were icicles hanging from the bottom of that trailer pretty much all the way around.  Yikes!

March 2016

Our second ice-camping adventure did damage our rig.  We had just arrived back in Michigan from 10 weeks in the Dominican Republic and were camping in our daughter’s yard when an ice storm hit.  We heard the ice hitting the roof but it was cozy inside and we did not think to retract our slider.  Daylight illuminated dozens of small tears in the awning over the slider.  Phooey!  Wish we had thought of that!

Fast forward to October 2018

Not necessarily seeking a cold-weather camping opportunity, but hoping we were prepared for whatever - we set out for a color tour to north Michigan.  The weather forecast motivated us to take warm blankets and quilts as well as extra layers of clothes.

By the way, this trip was not with the fifth-wheel trailer, but with the little old pickup camper, the mobile man cave - which the man had generously (if dubiously) invited me to share for a few days. Dubious because he wasn't quite sure there was room for two.  No electricity or running water, but it does have a nice little furnace.  With the area around Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes as our destination, off we went on our adventure.

In our travels we watch for things like hiking, history, scenery, and local culture. This trip did not disappoint. We enjoyed some of our favorite scenery and did find lots of beautiful colors,  And yes, we had a fun time despite a wintry mix of rain, sleet and snow along with heavy winds and very cold temps.

Most of the rain was during the night so we were able to do some hiking during the daytimes. We hiked to the beach near our campsite at D.H. Day campground and we stepped into the historic log cabin there. Adventure Bob showed me where he and his brothers had climbed up into the tower when they were little guys.  You can't do that anymore!

Speaking of the historical...  Glen Haven has always been a favorite spot - but is even better now with its restored historic buildings - the cannery, the general store, the blacksmith shop and the Sleeping Bear Inn. 

The old Coast Guard station nearby has been transformed into a maritime history museum.  Several of the buildings were open under the supervision of volunteers - yet another form of work-camping.   

And local culture...?

When in the area one simply must return to Art's Tavern in downtown Glen Arbor for a famous burger and some mac and cheese.

On the way north we had stopped at Cops and Doughnuts in Clare.  Oh, my; their doughnuts are amazing!


The return trip brought us right past the 13th Street Market which is now a full-service restaurant near Cadillac.  We were three for three on the local culture stops.

It was a good camping trip despite the weather.  It did get cold inside our little camper.  We were very glad for that little furnace AND for the extra layers.  We shivered and giggled and made the most of it…  until the fan started slowing down because the “house battery” was running out of power.  Oh, no!!!  Never fear; Adventure Bob figured out a way to re-charge the “house battery” from the truck engine via jumper cables.  And it worked!  We were able to find a place to buy another propane tank because we were using it faster than expected because of the frigid temps.  But we survived - with more fun camping memories in our pockets.

This week in my town

Why in the world did you move to Flint?

What is there to like about Flint?

We still get strange looks and comments and questions like these.

I’ve written about some of my answers to those questions here and there.  I mention things like culture and diversity and history and the arts.  This city is full of those things.  

Maybe I should just tell you about last week.  

It was quite a week.  Lots happening in Carriage Town Historical Neighborhood as well as downtown Flint. Lots of culture and diversity and history and the arts - but also a bit of celebrity.

Let’s start with Sunday...

We had invited a few new friends over for a cookout, but not quite as many as the previous week for another cookout to welcome International students.  That night 53 people showed up - people from a bunch of other countries and quite a few Americans.  

But this night was much more relaxed.  We had invited just a few and we had a lovely time together.

And yes, some celebs came to town this week - including  Michael Moore, Chris Hayes of MSNBC’s "All In" show, Miss Michigan, and the CEO of General Motors. 

Michael Moore had come back home and appeared at the Whiting with Dr. Mona for a screening of his new movie on Monday night.  On Tuesday Chris Hayes interviewed Michael Moore, Dan Kildee, Miss Michigan, Emily Sioma, and several of the "water warriors" during two different shows. 

The live show with Moore happened right here in Carriage Town at Factory Two.  The place was hopping with big white trucks, men in black suits, helicopters overhead, people standing in long security lines and over-flowing parking lots. 

On Wednesday those parking lots held an abundance of Corvettes and Cadillacs as well a long row of shiny Chevy trucks parked along Water Street for the gala event for General Motors big-wigs. 

This was also the week for the usual Friday Art Walk and the annual Hispanic Festival at the Farmers’ Market. 

What a lovely evening to stroll downtown browsing art work on display and listening to sidewalk musicians playing! 

At the market the leisurely stroll became a quest to find one’s way through the festival crowd.

Amazing food options

Mariachi music in a big tent

Beautiful people everywhere.

There has been yet another bit of excitement in Carriage Town.  For months we have been looking forward to new pedestrian bridges at the confluence where Swartz Creek joins the Flint River.  These bridges will “fill the gap” between the Flint River Trail to the north of the city and the Genesee Valley Trail to the west affecting far more than just our neighborhood.  Hikers and cyclists from all across the county will benefit from this new connection.

We’ve been watching the progress at the site and were excited when the first span of bridge arrived and was waiting on shore.  Could this be the week for the other bridge to arrive?  Sure enough; on Thursday it was spotted being transported across Corunna Road. By mid-Friday the final section was put into position and Saturday morning kayakers were paddling under the new bridge!  Learn more about Kayak Flint here and here.  

'Twas a busy and exciting week in the neighborhood.

Now we wait for the completion of the trail and the bridge approaches so we can ride across it.

AND we wait for SOMEbody to set up an ice cream shop somewhere in the neighborhood!