I’m thinking. . .

I’ve been mulling something over and I thought I’d share in hope of getting some feedback. I’ve become very interested in the Kony 2012 video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc). The cause of the invisible children is one that I’ve followed for some time. In high school my sister and I attempted to create a rally in Concord, NH to protest the crimes that were taking place in the Congo. My friendship with African immigrants and refugees gave me a perspective into the happenings of Africa that I had otherwise been unaware of.  My sister ended up marrying a Rwandan man and they are very active with the African community and hope to one day move back to Central Africa (which I oppose vehemently cause that would mean my beautiful niece and new nephew would be sooo far from me) But for me life played on and I lost some of the activist spirit that had been growing in high school. To be honest I’m not a true activist. I am interested easily but lose interest with realization of the difficulties that come with opposing any large power. I’m self centered and near sighted both things that make social activism difficult to maintain.

Despite these shortcomings I do still want to attempt to “rage against the dying of the light”. What I’ve been thinking is I want to take part in this movement Invisible Children is presenting the world. The video produced is compelling and touching. The cause is noble and highly important. The opportunity for people of the world to come together and work towards a common cause (a good cause).

Here’s what I’m thinking though, what can I do? I can buy a kit, put up posters raise awareness. All for the over arching cause of justice for these people and the other causes as well. But I can do more, maybe not for the issues in Africa but for the issues here. For every action I take to support the Kony 2012 I challenge myself to be an activist in my own community. There are a variety of issues that I am personally aware of; homelessness is on the rise, there are major cuts happening in the public mental health sector of NH, VOICES a local organization advocates for domestic violence victims.

The list goes on, each one of our interests could some how be correlated with activism or service projects. To truly change our world we need to change how we operate in our settings. We can try to change the setting or environment we can do many many things but the quickest most efficient conduit of change is our very own beings. That leads me to a whole lecture on not underestimating the power of our selves, we are pulsing energy filled fantastic creatures. Don’t get me started, I digress, This week I’m gonna explore my options and find somewhere locally, it may be a formal organization it may not, that I can focus some of my energy for the good of my world. And in effect, transform it.

“What is the meaning of life? To be happy and useful.” – Tenzin Gyatso (14th Dalai Lama)

whining for desires on a silver platter

I have a spare minute or so and I really should be working on my scholarship applications but during class today I got thinking and I want to share what was on my mind.
Higher education. I’m working on my second year of college, after a deferral, a change of major and a transfer I am finally on the path to what I hope will be my life’s career. I enjoy school. I like to study because I love to learn. I just feel good in the academic world, it speaks to me of opportunity, of new windows I’ve never seen out of and so on and so forth. So as I’m sitting in my 6:30-9 pm lecture the professor begins covering logistics and such, then he reaches for a marker to write on the white board. There is none, luckily he brought his own in his briefcase. . .Hold on, my thousands of dollars in tuition and student fees can’t provide a white board marker? What about the rest of my classmate’s then? I know our money is not going to pay his salary. . . The lights are flickering above the stained carpet so I don’t think the funds are going into maintenance of these buildings.
Then that got me thinking. Higher education huh? what an interesting system I find myself in. I’m taking a health class where they are focusing on balance of stress, diet etc. Yet I wonder how I can seriously be expected to balance anything with two jobs in an attempt to keep up with tuition or 5 classes in order to stay on track to graduate anywhere near the alloted time before my financial aid runs out. Or nutrition? How can students balance their bodies when the food offered on campus is processed and added on to until it can hardly be called food anymore. I’m not the only one experiencing these things though, of course not. My friend who also attends a public NH university was talking to me about her schedule and how she needs to find more things to fluff up her resume. She needs an internship along with her full class load, and she should probably have a job just to have some money. Oh and our GPA’s need to stay above a certain number or our funding and desirability will be threatened. Then to put the icing on it all I read a report that says the salary differences between a bachelor degree holder and someone without a degree is almost null and void because of the loans that college students graduate with.
Its tough. Its like rolling a rock up hill or punching underwater. I want my degree though. I want to take these classes and learn all this stuff. Never mind the social aspect of being educated versus not. I don’t want to make millions, I don’t have plans that I’ll run people over to fulfill. I just want to do this thing that I’ve been told to do, so I can work doing what I want to do. I have this sneaking suspicion I’m just in a game played by something much bigger than me.

What to do…what to do

People pick up hobbies for a variety or reasons. Simple interest, extra time that needs to be spent somehow or attempts to calm themselves after stressful work situations or lower their blood pressure. These hobbies are anything from music to bird watching or bug collecting, perhaps playing chess or actively following a sports team. Anything and everything can become a hobby for a person. A respite from the daily grind, something that does not need to be complete or worked on but rather is enjoyable to spend time on. No time limits, no supervisors no expectations other than your own. Sometimes people may find themselves in a blasé attitude about life. “There is nothing new under the sun” ( Ecc. 1:9) is often quoted in complaint about the humdrum in and outs of life that often turn grey after weeks of routine.

A perfect remedy for such a situation is a new hobby, a new interest to delve into, simply for the pleasure it brings. I think we give too little credit to simple pleasure/enjoyment. I use the word pleasure and all sorts of negative connotations pop into my brain. I don’t mean the destructive pleasure of drugs, partying, whatever else I mean to say constructive enjoyment that can sustain and is not harmful within itself. I digress. . . I often find myself feeling like I need to accomplish something. Anything just to feel as if my time was spent wisely. Finding a constructive and personally interesting activity is an outlet for stress and emotions that might be channeled wrongly otherwise.

There are a variety of things stored away in my brain that interest me but I just never had the time for. At times I try to tap into these hidden interests and begin to snoop around to see what I can learn or what I can do. Once I tried to teach myself piano. I was thrilled with listening to classical piano pieces and even blues melodies drifting from that set of black and white keys. I borrowed my sisters key board and set my mind to learn how to manipulate these pieces of ivory into some sort of music. While that particular interest did not last long for a few weeks i was wrapped up into the world of basic piano lessons and learning the art of music. The complaints about my drumming the C-scale over and over finally got to me and I eventually tucked away my piano for maybe a different day.

Then I decided the run down lawn/landscape of my parents house needed some work. I headed outside with a rake to get those leaves still left over from autumn and suddenly I discovered I was enjoying the yard work that I had always avoided. A simple interest had changed into something of a past time. Often avoiding homework or other “productive” ways to spend my time I find myself outside testing the soil to see what will grow. Or scheming to build a couple of benches to accompany our new fire pit. Instead of just wasting time or spending time I feel as if I am investing time into making something beautiful.

Fiddling around with these different interests of mine lent me perspective into myself that I found valuable. I was personally rewarded by becoming involved in something that was personally rewarding just for the sake of being rewarding! Whatever your interest is, pursue it, search and discover it. There is plenty of time for work and commitments but at times it is nice to close the textbooks or shut off the TV and use your mind and all your senses to enjoy your time. You never know what you may learn, you might find that others have similar interests.