Our life is frittered away by detail.

Simplicity,

simplicity,

simplicity!

-- Henry David Thoreau, Walden

Travel the Globe

Mott Community College is hosting their annual International Week with special events every day this week, 
March 26-30.  

The kick-off event on Monday morning was titled “Travel the Globe.”

Students from at least a dozen countries lined the hallway with tables displaying photos and information from their respective cultures.  

They shared stories and answered questions about their people and their history. Some of them even offered morsels of their country’s typical foods.

Although I see these students now and then at our English conversation group, this was a special time to be able to focus more on each of them individually and to learn more about their homeland.

  

Rather than simply watching news stories from these countries on the evening news, this was a chance to talk with them in person and see their pictures and hear their own stories. 

Indeed, I shed some tears with the Syrian women as we talked about the destruction of the beautiful historic buildings in Aleppo.

This event was the culmination of class assignments for the students and they did a great job.  







It was cool to see the double-sided aspect of their work. 

On the one hand they had to work hard to put together a presentation in a language not their own involving art, photography, and layout but also to practice their English speaking skills in understanding and answering a wide array of questions.

On the other hand it was an opportunity for them to celebrate their own home culture and to share it with others.

I was impressed with both aspects of their work.  
Good job, students!  
AND great job, Miss Debra!

...

Every day this week holds yet more International events:

Tuesday
Clínica de migrantes” film screening: 11a.m. & 6p.m. in the Regional Technology Center room 1005

This documentary goes beyond the politicized rhetoric to show the faces of real people in the middle of the immigration debate.

Wednesday
 Lecture and discussions with Fulbright Scholar Jianjun Wang: Center for Teaching & Learning 11a.m.

Fulbright Scholar Jianjun Wang’s keynote address in the Trustee Scholar room (located next to the Event Center). The title of the discussion is: “Owen Lattimore's Mongol Journeys and Mongolian Region - US Relations”

“Prince Among Slaves” lecture, film screening, and discussion: Gorman Auditorium (room 1201) 3p.m. 

Thursday
 “China Cultural Fair”: 12– 3p.m. in the MCC Event Center

Travel throughout China and experience the culture and beauty it has to offer without leaving campus! 

Friday
 “Foreign Languages Talent Show”: 6p.m. at the Mott Memorial Building Auditorium room 1130

Over 20 student performances all in various foreign languages. Talents range from singing and dancing to instrumentals and acting. 

So many helpers

Pretty much any day is a good day to remember bits of neighborly wisdom from Mister Rogers, but maybe especially on his birthday.

“When I was a boy

and I would see scary things in the news,

my mother would say to me,

“Look for the helpers.

You will always find people who are helping.”

To this day, especially in times of “disaster,”

I remember my mother’s words

and I am always comforted

by realizing that there are still so many helpers

–

so many caring people in this world.” 

-Fred “Mister” Rogers

On this his 90th birthday and the 50th anniversary of his neighborhood, I am grateful for this bit of perspective.  In fact, it has only been in recent years that I've learned enough about him to become a fan of his persona and his philosophy. While this little tidbit was meant by his mother to comfort a child, I have to admit it has helped me in these last few years of "scary things on the news."

It comforts me to know there are still so many helpers.

So many caring people in this world.

But it also challenges me to be one of them.

To not give up, but to keep caring and keep helping.

International Women's Day

In recent years I’ve chosen to observe International Women’s Day by celebrating women I know from around the world as well as other amazing women who are working to make the world a better place…  because that was all I knew to commemorate the day.

But THIS YEAR it was my privilege to celebrate WITH phenomenal women from all over the world at our local event co-sponsored by the International Center of Greater Flint. 

We enjoyed flavors of the world, we heard successful International women discuss the challenges in their lives and careers here in mid-Michigan and we were entertained by the Kuungana African Drum/Dance Company.  ’Twas an interesting and inspiring evening.

I am so happy to be in a place where I can now participate in such wonderful festivities - and am especially grateful that they are not isolated events for me.  In the last few months I have met people from more than 20 countries and often bump into them on campus, around town and get to hang out with some of them regularly.  What an incredible privilege!

The possession trap

Many of our friends have been hearing me (us) talk for the last eight years about our downsizing journey.  And what a journey it has been!  A huge process.  

It took time. 

It took energy and great effort.  

It took diligence and determination.

It took sacrifice.

There were lots of starts and stops.

Two steps forward and three steps back.

Slow progress

Baby steps

And we’re still not done - nor will we be.  

It’s all about phases.  

What works for this phase?

What is needed for this season of life?

We finished many of those phases and have started new ones.

We moved into smaller spaces and then even smaller.

After we sold the tree farm, we rented a small storage unit to keep selected things - not knowing what we might need or want in the future.  At that time we had no idea whether we might ever own property again or where we might end up.

...

And now here we are.

We did decide to settle down again in one spot.

We did buy another house.

And we are happy for the things that we kept.  

Well, MOST of them. ... Okay; I admit that there are still lots of things to get rid of - but they are mostly in the form of boxes that I must still sort through.  In terms of furnishings, we are pretty happy about what we kept.

In fact, I cannot count the times when we’ve shaken our heads in wonderment about how well things fit in to our new circumstances.  Over and over we marvel about something - like that cabinet Bob built when we were first married.  It was custom-designed to fill a specific gap in the old kitchen in Grandpa Frank’s farmhouse that we rented that year.  We built our own house a year later and that cupboard served us well until Bob built the regular kitchen cabinets into that huge kitchen.  A few years later it became a changing table in the nursery.  I think it became an office cabinet for a few years and I’ve lost track of what else.  …  Well, we kept that cabinet and it is once again a much-needed kitchen cabinet filling an important gap.

So many other versatile pieces have ended up being “just right” in the new/old place.  Mostly other cabinets that Bob has built through the years.  

In the early years he built me a beautiful lighted curio cabinet with glass doors.  A couple times in our moves to smaller places, it served other purposes as well - mostly for books as I recall. 

There was the era of taking down old barns and reclaiming the wood for other purposes - like tables, shelves, cabinets and even cabins.  After careful calculations, he used some of that barn wood to build a cabinet the perfect size and shape for our cherished big brown dishes.  

He really did build many, many different cabinets.   And no, we didn’t keep ALL of them. Our daughters are now using several of them.  

At any rate, as we have settled in and set up housekeeping once again, we have been amazed at how few things we need to purchase.  Basically just something to sit on - a love seat and matching chair.  And we did not mind - because I don’t think we had ever purchased new furniture before - in our entire lives!  We had always been blessed with hand-me-downs which served us well through foster kids and decades of youth parties.  We were grateful for every couch and chair that was given to us through the years and we pretty much wore them into the ground - so even if we hadn’t downsized them, it would have been time to replace them anyway. 

And, speaking of something to sit on...  
We did keep the rocking chair my mom rocked me in and later I rocked my daughters and eventually my grand-kids.  I am so glad that it survived the downsizing.

...

Sure enough; here we are.

Settling in again and putting down roots.
We love our old house in the city.

This morning I posted a lovely picture from our porch on Facebook.  
A friend posted this comment:  

"So tell me...
"What’s it like to get rid of all your clutter/stuff, travel and then settle back down?
"Have you managed to not fall into the "possession trap" again?"

That’s a fair question.

In fact, it is a great question.

My first response was that feeling of gratitude as I suddenly remembered how many of those things have worked out so well.  

And then lots of thoughts and feelings began scampering through my head. 

And then I thought maybe I would write about it.  

So I did.
And you've just read my answer. 
Well, part of it...
Yes, we have managed very well - maybe better than we might have guessed.

We also realize that we have changed.  We now appreciate simplicity so much more and we are committed to keeping our lives and our house free from clutter.

But that's another story...
Stay tuned.