and

But "live simply that others may simply live [Mahatma Gandhi)" signifies more than the moral imperative that we share our excess with those less fortunate. By living simply and conscioulsy, we can ensure that others around the world do not endure sweatshop conditions, labor in pesticide-ridden fields, or are forced to clear-cut their rain forests so that we can have access to inexpensive food and other products. These are the people who sew the clothes that we browse on racks at Nordstrom; they work long hours for pennies, harvesting our produce and coffee. The majority of Americans don't see this connection; it's missing from the tags on our capri pants and our Folger's labels.
-living simply with children

Hunger and Poverty in America

the following is from a book called Living Simply With Children by Marie Sherlock.

Hunger and Poverty in America

Almost a billion people worldwide are considered undernourished. Over 30 million of those hungry people live right here in the “land of plenty.” Here are more sad statistics on hunger and poverty in America:

Nearly one in five American children lives in a “food insecure” household—meaning they may not know where their next meal is coming from.

Twelve million American kids live below the poverty line.

Child poverty is more widespread in the U.S. than in any other industrialized country.

A person working full-time at the federal minimum wage makes less than $11,000 a year. The average annual compensation of the thirty highest paid executives in the U.S. is $112.9 million.

The gap between rich and poor in America has been widening for three decades.

The ratio of the average CEO’s pay to the average U.S. blue-collar worker’s is 531 to 1, which means we have the greatest wage inequality of any developed nation.

Three-fifths of American workers earn less than what the Economic Policy Institute concludes is needed for a minimum “living wage.”

Almost 40 million Americans have no health insurance.

Messengers of Hope

you can view a short video (6 minutes 12 seconds) about Project Hope on youtube. Project Hope is a Palestinian/international organization of volunteers that works in the West Bank of Palestine.

the video is called Messengers of Hope and was posted by moomtastic.

here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfhPOuBygh0&mode=related&search=

check it out.

flyingears

the secret of poetry lies in treading the middle path between the reality and the vacuity of the world.
-Basho

flyingears

i'm sitting here tonight and i guess i just want to write something. i'm about a million miles away from many things.

i remember staying in the cabin on the white river and drinking wine. i hiked back behind that cabin through the snow. i found the skull of a dead cow elk. i walked up onto a clearing of tall grass and fallen trees and surprized two deer who stood and looked at me before turning and running into the pines.

i finished working at the nursery. i always like that. finishing work.....that feeling when you leave and the future is uncertain. sometimes things feel too certain and i'm thankful that sometimes things are not.

i wish that johnny cash had sung and recorded every ballad and folk song that i've ever heard or read.

if you want to be happy buy a bag of fresh peaches. take them and give them to people you encounter on the street. i'm not kidding. you will be happy.

the night is chilly and cloudy. this kind of night and this kind of day make me feel good. pancakes and black coffee.

there is a lot to learn.

i watched two birds flying.

flyingears

something simple to think about:

show up
pay attention
tell the truth
don't be attached to outcomes

this comes from, i think, Angeles Arrien, a cultural anthropologist (the fourfold way).

Men Who Took Food in Trash Get 6 Months
Saturday September 2, 2006 4:01 AM

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - Two men who took fruit and vegetables out of a garbage can have been sentenced to six months in jail.
Giles Charle, 24, of Sumersworth, N.H., and David Siller, 27, of Wayne, Pa., said the punishment was harsh and the only choice they had to avoid a felony on their records.

They were on their way to the Rainbow Family's annual gathering when they were arrested in June and charged with felony burglary and misdemeanor theft. Authorities said they took five cucumbers, four or five apricots, two bundles of asparagus spears and a handful of cherries from a garbage can at Sweet Pea Produce.

The two pleaded guilty to misdemeanor trespassing Wednesday and the felony charge was dropped.

``We didn't have any intention of committing a crime or doing anything wrong,'' Charle told the Steamboat Pilot & Today newspaper. ``We had just come in town and we were prepared to buy groceries from a store but everything was closed.''

Charle's mother, Shaune McCarthy Charle, called the jail sentence a joke. She said, ``It's really amazing and unbelievable how taking garbage out of a Dumpster became a felony.''

Thousands of people were in the Steamboat Springs area at the end of June and early July for the Rainbow Family gathering north of town. At times, the relationship between members of the nomadic group and authorities was tense and a number of citations were issued.