tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89995378859116294732024-03-14T08:26:40.716-07:00Following Caribou TracksUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-4092602188068752592016-08-25T07:34:00.001-07:002016-09-28T07:44:24.267-07:00Review of Incoming: Veteran Writers on Returning Home<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://www.thestrategybridge.com/the-bridge/2016/8/24/reviewing-incoming-veteran-writers-on-returning-home" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLp6F7AuSkq-4eVFhsQsXOzFDcBi7KNA8VFf-gwryM7-O9n1X26Gn401UNnsQzm5y6XzLA9f9hSKvwBDXoMlQbA12FDzc54u3_g7HrxbgEhEccUn2jwwr4jwT5a8YYoyOq5Yppfcupn3M/s320/Untitled1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's an inspiring and succinct <a href="http://www.thestrategybridge.com/the-bridge/2016/8/24/reviewing-incoming-veteran-writers-on-returning-home" target="_blank">review</a> of <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Incoming-Veteran-Writers-Coming-Home/dp/0988368684" target="_blank">Incoming: Veteran Writers on Returning Home</a></i>, an anthology of homecoming stories, in which I have an essay called "Becoming a Veteran." </div>
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<a href="http://www.thestrategybridge.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArB-AGcarZfZzeetpPxppsbd5dVNwVw6vzuYdVIE24B8x9hUl00QhU28GN_MvDuq4O_KYCqXsd_cdAo6v6CR2AMfdUQLO8rZ6E3A1O2WqbhoMfrUjcwc8JKXr3Ba9nRj510QO2ITw2dY/s320/Untitled2.jpg" width="320" /></a><span id="goog_358149623"></span><span id="goog_358149624"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a>Even more gratifying, Dr. Kaurin in particular mentions my essay. <br />
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"Fourth, and connected to the aforementioned point, is the meaning of becoming a veteran and the bond of sister and brotherhood between veterans. One author relates a story of participating in the funeral of a veteran he did not know, but it wasn’t until this experience he identified as a veteran."<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-66986494213107957392016-03-01T16:30:00.000-08:002016-03-19T07:40:07.352-07:00"The Great Unknown" appears in Hippocampus Magazine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This is my first piece to be both written and published after completing my MFA. Thanks for reading.</div>
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<a href="http://www.hippocampusmagazine.com/category/march-2016/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK8viyCJF7NAWwuT29WZlE5vGHcvDBTFshHCOXvHtPHOMIJlvkEvennnPLkI7lZv2Z-M9gWALMsMNltHw-k50XdC0L1xbwNwsp2QS-qkoKDy5-GCRDYCrE9IuYpHP-8GiU4khE97iSviM/s320/Untitled.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.hippocampusmagazine.com/2016/03/the-great-unknown-by-samuel-chamberlain/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcjqtbv4gojgU9XcxExltUYsqV6ZXv_QklpQt65SbB08r-7xE8BXzwxnjpKgB1etHNrL-HdJB7zZ0SxJDm6o6ERKOLPpU0PMh-lzQ_E5S5vv5gW8m5gk0pTHfPXCkvprDRLPsqUIAosWw/s400/Untitled2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-31037421971324849192016-01-20T07:48:00.000-08:002016-03-19T07:49:08.425-07:00"Becoming a Veteran" in the anthology Incoming<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0988368684" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8zhsMVIVXM7jfpyLsM3XeydYLXXy47jdoacCugFwpqivnOJYKmTl69jUmOQdFXCZQrRVN3GuZON5pRorqiO71XtKeZLuJDvuFOS4S7SgFhyphenhyphenVZg5a7U5_YquMb10n6jU-JkP3blHR5Knk/s400/Incoming-cover.jpg" width="258" /></a></div>
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I wrote an essay about finally feeling like a veteran. The feeling wasn't something that happened as soon as I got home from Iraq, it took years, actually. It took leaving the Army and moving from Anchorage to Arctic Village, and the death of another veteran for me to understand my place in the heritage of comrades of armed foreign conflict. <div>
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That essay appears in this new anthology produced by an organization called <a href="http://www.sosayweallonline.com/" target="_blank">So Say We All</a>. I hope you'll order a copy. There are at least <a href="http://www.sosayweallonline.com/book-store/" target="_blank">twenty fantastic essays</a> in here about various <a href="http://www.incomingradio.org/" target="_blank">experiences of homecoming</a>. </div>
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Peace.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-68102435104851439012015-12-14T09:58:00.001-08:002015-12-14T09:58:41.210-08:00On Literacy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Sometime in 2012, well into my second year of teaching, I
read the book <a href="http://www.solution-tree.com/boys-in-poverty.html" target="_blank">Boys in Poverty: AFramework for Understanding Dropout.</a> This book connected what I saw
happening in my classroom with trends seen around the rest of the country. It
substantiated the importance of literacy, and in particular, the importance of
early education. And though the data is stark, at best, especially for
privileged folk, it should be motivating, not immobilizing.<br />
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Maybe it would be helpful to add context to where I was when
I read <i>Boys in Poverty</i>. My career at
that point was serving as a “Secondary Generalist Teacher” in a small
indigenous Alaska native community. There were approximately 22 students in my
classroom spanning grades 5 through 12. I say approximately because our school’s
population varied throughout the academic year. Kids get sent off to boarding
school and kids come back from boarding school. Our village was only accessible
by airplane—one flight arriving once a day. Often kids went to town with family
and could be gone a month or more. Often kids went to town and stayed with
family and didn’t come back. There were also kids around the village not
enrolled in school, especially older adolescents. Secondary generalist means
there was the potential for me to teach any subject. I was hired as a qualified
language arts and social studies teacher for grades 7-12. Upon arriving at the
school my first day in the fall of 2010, I was told I’d be teaching math and
implementing a new reading intervention program. Generalist means you teach
whatever the district tells you to. </div>
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<i>Boys in Poverty</i>
was published in 2011, so this data is now at least four years old, but I
imagine not much has changed. </div>
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<li>Nationally, about 70 percent of students graduate from high
school on time with a regular diploma, but little more than half of African
American and Hispanic students earn diplomas with peers.</li>
<li>Approximately two thousand high schools (about 14% of
American high schools) produce more than half of the nation’s dropouts. At
these “dropout factories,” the number of seniors enrolled is routinely 60% or
less than the number of freshman three years earlier. “Dropout factories”
produce 81% of all Native American dropouts, 73% of all African American dropouts,
and 66% of all Hispanic dropouts. </li>
<li>More than 1/3 of all dropouts occur in the 9<sup>th</sup>
grade.</li>
<li>Approximately 75% of state prison inmates did not complete
high school.</li>
<li>A male high school graduate with a D average is fourteen
times more likely to become incarcerated than a graduate with an A average.</li>
<li>Dropouts from the class of 2007 alone cost the nation nearly
$329 billion in lost wages, taxes, and productivity other their lifetimes.</li>
<li>Over the course of a lifetime, a high school dropout earns,
on average, about $260,000 less than a high school graduate.</li>
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There isn’t one way to prevent a student from dropping out.
The framework for understanding dropout is complicated and developmentally considers
physical, emotional, cognitive and social behavior as indicators, though many
studies link dropout to literacy. Proficient readers are less likely to dropout
and some research even shows that by the fourth grade the likelihood of a
student dropping out of high school can be determined merely by measuring
reading proficiency. Reading isn’t the only antecedent. There most certainly
are many other environmental concerns that affect a student’s success, but
literacy plays a big part. Literacy doesn’t begin in high school nor does it
begin in the fourth grade. Literacy begins before a student can even read,
before they can even communicate. Infants begin cataloguing vocabulary by the
time they’re 6 months old. They begin understanding math and logic almost
immediately after they’re born. Emotional regulation begins at about the 3-month
mark. Motor coordination is always developing. These are windows of
opportunity, beginnings of literacy that start very early and according to many
researchers, impact dropout. </div>
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So, what are we to do as future clergy? <a href="https://www.elca.org/Our-Work/Congregations-and-Synods/Schools" target="_blank">According to theELCA website</a>, Lutheran congregations and synods operate more than 1,500 early
education programs, elementary schools and secondary schools—the majority of
these being early childhood centers (preschool and kindergarten). I’m curious
what the demographics are. I’m curious about the socio-economic status of the
student’s parents. I’m curious if we’re talking all day, day care style
programming, or curriculum that emphasizes literacy. Public schools have
mandated curriculum and nation wide testing, which private schools don’t. For
better or worse, private schools have the liberty of autonomy. </div>
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When you get to your congregation what are you going to do
with your church’s pre-school? Is it the first item on the list of budget items
that can be cut? Is it stuck in the recesses of your building, someplace you
rarely visit? Do you have a preschool because you’ve always had a preschool, or
do you have a preschool because its part of the mission of your church, and a
way of serving the community? How many families in the neighborhood around your
church have children not enrolled in early childhood education? </div>
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While public school is freely available, largely funded by
property taxes, preschool is not usually free. Unless a child is part of a
special education program (SPED/IEP) they wouldn’t be authorized public
preschool (often called “Head Start”). Could your church start a sponsorship
program? Those young professionals in the congregation that don’t have children
yet. Or those older couples with older children no longer in school. Create a
scholarship program supporting families in your church’s community who can’t
afford to send their kids to preschool. Empowering individuals through early
childhood literacy could be the single most effective way of combating racial
and social inequities in our country right now. </div>
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Post five in a series of five posts for a class at Luther Seminary this semester: "Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. in Dialogue with Public Theology Today."</i></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-3053055160556443252015-11-13T09:12:00.000-08:002015-11-13T09:12:00.364-08:00What Makes a Hero?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Why don't soldiers like being called heroes?<br />
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Is there such thing as glory in war?<br />
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Where does this archetype originate and why is it still so prevalent in society?<br />
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What happens when you thank a veteran for their service?<br />
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This twenty minute mini-documentary from BBC is well worth the watch.<br />
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<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34770629" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_WFPeEQF57TJdkP24NJiseCbJKNwWyepRd0aDgMaNFSn1CluAGH4vCGsNcKy_JXyudNOQP8gyIycemdGz4B8Ne2BQ0HyzY1hdawHEq2w7n4zeKMo2vmq0-oSyNVn2PskDb4V1kKYQpAY/s400/_86444831_navycross-lewwalt.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Click the image or follow this link: </div>
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<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34770629">http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34770629</a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-35361076892729335782015-11-11T15:45:00.002-08:002015-11-13T09:12:31.707-08:00On Armistice Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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How did we go from commemorating
the cessation of one of the worst wars ever to discount products at the local
mini market, free passes to a local movie theater, and a plethora of adoration
poured upon individuals that claim they “were just doing their job?” </div>
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Armistice Day: the eleventh hour of
the eleventh day of the eleventh month, 1918, for all intents and purposes, it
was the end of World War I. The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">war to
end all wars</i>. The Great War. Over 38 million casualties. Nearly 2/3 of all European
‘military age males’ either killed or maimed beyond the ability to procreate.
And thus the recurring remembrance of Armistice Day was not for the dead, nor
the living, but for peace. What we now call Veteran’s Day in the United States
falls on the same day as the old Armistice Day, though it was originally a
commemoration of peace, of the end of the ugliness that scoured itself across
Europe and swept up most of the western World. But in 1954 the United States
grew Armistice Day into Veteran’s Day, expounding recognition for millions of
World War II and Korean War veterans. </div>
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What happened to the original
intent? Is it still there somewhere? I’m not arguing for a dismantling of
Veteran’s Day. Nor am I wishing to make my own disillusionment contagious so
that civilians become cynical of the respect they have for Veteran’s on
November 11<sup>th</sup>. </div>
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I’m curious how remembrance of
peace evolved into admiration for Veteran’s, which now seems to manifest itself
in nearly exponential adoration lurking within the proclamation, “Thank you for
your service.” It’s not the ‘thanks’ bestowed upon the Veteran that degrades or
detracts from the intent of the holiday, but when the ‘thanks’ over shadows the
‘service,’ because it is the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">service</i>
originally responsible for the holiday. I think the complication is the
disconnect between the civilian and the soldier. Many soldiers don’t want
thanks, and have few words to respond with when they receive thanks. While the
latter part of the proclamation, the mention of service, is something vivid for
the veteran but vague for the civilian. And so it’s the service that the
civilian might not understand. The countless hours spent on guard duty, the
vivid memories of carrying body bags to a landing zone to be picked up by a
medevac helicopter, the sound an incoming mortar or rocket, the sound of
outgoing artillery, the sound of gunfire in crowded streets, the sound of
gunfire in open fertile farm country, the mixing of cigar smoke with diesel exhaust
none of which mask the body order of 130 degree heat and smell of fear after an
IED explodes and oily opaque smoke still wafts the air. Memories are on the
forefront of a Veteran’s mind and a day that risks’ idolizing their service
corrupts the recognition of peace which originated on November 11<sup>th</sup>
and the peace which the veteran hopes for in their heart. </div>
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And so I’m wondering how we got to
become a nation that unequivocally supports veterans while participatory rates
of military service, even in a time of war, continue to dwindle? And when we so
easily support our veterans through proclamation, do we risk committing
idolatry? When we glorify our veterans as heroes, sharing proclamation and
praising a popular phrase do we turn them into idols? </div>
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This is a time when fewer individuals
are volunteering for our nation’s military, and particularly, during the last
decade’s bout with war, less than 1% of our population participated in armed
conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet we’ve continued to love and adore the
soldier. Maybe our nation has a preoccupation with the glorified soldier
archetype, which we idolize, and in doing so completely miss the nuance of the
individual. But it’s the individual you need to know on this day. Not
necessarily what they went through. But get to know the peace they seek after
war. </div>
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So if thanking a soldier for their
service creates momentary recognition of lifelong burdens the veteran will
always bear, what do you do? Don’t not talk to the veteran and don’t be afraid
of the veteran. Instead of echoing a line we’ve all heard, ask us how we’re
doing. Challenge us to a conversation. Listen us into free speech. Be genuinely
interested in what we’re up to. Create a space for relationship and opportunity—not
adoration. And if you have no idea what else to say, share the peace. Say,
“peace be with you dear veteran, on this day in particular.”</div>
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<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Post four in a series of five posts for a class at Luther Seminary this semester: "Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. in Dialogue with Public Theology Today."</i></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-33979131977863260552015-11-10T13:18:00.002-08:002015-11-10T13:18:47.761-08:00Brian Turner on Incoming<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
If you're not familiar with <a href="https://youtu.be/LguxNDdyky8" target="_blank">the poet Brian Turner</a>, take 20 minutes and listen to this podcast from last Friday. <a href="http://www.sosayweallonline.com/" target="_blank">So Say We All</a> is a literary non-profit from San Diego promoting the lives of Vets through their series "<a href="http://www.incomingradio.org/" target="_blank">Incoming</a>."<br />
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Stay tuned because at some point a collection of redeployment/reintegration essays will be released. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-88388439572130319932015-11-02T08:30:00.000-08:002015-11-03T09:01:58.913-08:00On Being an "Upstander"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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In July 1931 <a href="http://www.startribune.com/july-16-1931-angry-white-mob-surrounds-minneapolis-home/283979011/" target="_blank">Arthur and Edith Lee</a>
purchased a home in the <a href="http://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/14000391.htm" target="_blank">Field Neighborhood</a> of <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/4600+Columbus+Ave+S,+Minneapolis,+MN+55407/@44.9196839,-93.2726289,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x87f627d3837dfce5:0xec9e37d3e46b566a" target="_blank">south Minneapolis</a>. Arthur was a
veteran of World War I and had a job working for the United States Postal
Service. Over a decade since the Great War ended, I imagine Mr. Lee living each
day within a comfortable routine. Taking care of his property. Like most
soldiers, I imagine he had the skills and the wherewithal to complete most of
the little projects necessary with being a homeowner. After seeing something as
ugly as a war and risking one’s life on foreign soil, I imagine what Arthur
enjoyed most was coming home and spending time with Edith and their young
daughter. Unfortunately, the Lee’s only lived in this south Minneapolis neighborhood a short
while because five years prior a covenant had been drafted and signed by other
homeowners prohibiting blacks from moving into this neighborhood. </div>
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I’ve owned three houses so far in
my life. I’ve been blessed not only with opportunity and prosperity, but a
heritage of economic stability. And though I didn’t grow up with a silver
spoon, my wife and I have been fiscally blessed because of the freedoms white
landowners have always had in this country. </div>
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<br /></div>
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While driving home from class last
Friday, I heard <a href="http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/10/30/mpr_news_presents" target="_blank">Judge LaDoris Cordell’s lecture</a> given to students at the
University of Minnesota—<a href="http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/10/30/mpr_news_presents" target="_blank">replayed twice on MPR</a>—and I now better understand the
closed doors African Americans have faced over the course of several
generations. After listening to the lecture I see why the current frustrations
in places like Ferguson and Baltimore, which have caused rioting and outcry, is
an oppression that dates back, and repeats itself, over several generations. Among so many other issues, it can trace origins to neighborhood covenants that prohibited “blacks” from
“moving in,” to legislative zoning systematically planned
out to create inhospitable ghettos, to bigoted
politicians in the 19-teens, 1930’s, and 1960’s who 'red lined' the cities to
quarantine African Americans into less desirable areas of town, places that
lacked opportunity, places that lacked infrastructure for healthy living,
places where home ownership wasn’t an option.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/10/30/mpr_news_presents" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0nW5dEGZFJxBBBT7tKHxXZE3SF_iMlANonMRiOS-9y5C6zGJIa3qx7ve4uABSjhpNs1dsnNV1lEMPOoiC3QDTYcQaVm1xA_wFYIi1nRNzV7RedQysPjfvBz68R1kpKBh2H-sRjD-qGE/s400/risky+business.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
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Reflecting back on my adolescent
years, I know I was raised in a cloud of suburban, lower-middle class entitlement. Then
as a 14-year old I made a series of bad decisions and wound up in juvenile
court. After being sentenced to a chunk of mandatory community service hours,
my pastor set me up at the local homeless shelter, which our church regularly
supported. Up until a few years ago, when I started working with homeless youth
in Fairbanks, Alaska, I hadn’t really reflected on the importance those first
community service hours had on me. I ended up completing the hours sooner than
planned, and stuck around helping at the shelter until my high school years
overwhelmed me with other jobs and social events. In 2006 and 2007 I spent fifteen months in Iraq. My platoon of 25 was made up of all men, mostly under
the age of 25, mostly from the lower end of the socio-economic scale and racially and ethnically diverse. As the
sole officer in the platoon, I was the only one with, and required to have a
college degree. Though we were young, we were all highly trained and heavily
armed, spending nearly every day of that deployment “outside the wire”
supporting the American mission in the Middle East. After surviving the war,
there was little more I wanted than to come home and enjoy freedom. The
first months after returning I felt naked without my rifle, frequently jerking
for it as if it were a ghost whose presence was still felt. And though it’s
been nearly eight years since I came home, the war’s something I think about
daily. But my thinking occurs within the safety and freedom of my own home. I’m
blessed to have a home that has become a place of healing and relaxation, a
home to take pride in and invest myself in through small projects and tasks.
Owning a home brings clarity and focus. Going about a task and seeing it to
fruition not only is a way of caring for my own well being, but also expresses
responsibility and security for my family. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I can’t imagine <a href="http://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2011/07/victims-1931-racial-incident-be-honored-ceremony-s-minneapolis" target="_blank">what Arthur Lee must have felt </a>when nearly 4,000 people congregated nightly in front of his home and tried to persuade him to flee. 4,000 people that had stood behind this country through his service
in the trenches in Europe now told him he had no right to live where he wanted
to live. If we call this history, if we paint this as a picture of the past, we
run the risk not only of forgetting, but also of allowing it to happen again.
In <a href="http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/10/30/mpr_news_presents" target="_blank">her lecture, Judge LaDorris Crodell</a> says there are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bystanders</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">upstanders</i>.
The bystanders stand by. They throw up their hands and say ‘what difference can
I make.’ They don’t necessarily participate in the hate and the bigotry and the
oppression, but they aren’t helping to fight it either. While an upstander is
someone who ‘stands up,’ ‘sings up,’ ‘lawyers up,’ and ‘speaks when silence is
easier.’ Someone who runs the risk of being ostracized for the justice they
proclaim. A bystander is passive. An upstander is active. How many community covenants still have repressive language that keeps people away? How many doctrines and charters are still out there oppressing in ways we allow to occur because we are bystanders? </div>
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When I was a child I did childish
things and was sentenced to give back to my community. My works didn’t save me,
but they did get me out of a possible stint in detention and showed me other
ways of the world. My desire for more service became a charity, but charity
isn’t good enough. Charity is only giving a part of your self. Being an upstander for social justice
is giving all of your self. What I learned working with homeless teens in
Fairbanks is when I ate what they ate, shared their rejoices as well as their
sorrows, I was giving my whole self. I prayed for them and with them. As <a href="http://www.fairbanksyouthadvocates.org/" target="_blank">the name of our agency detailed</a>, I was being an <i>advocate</i>, working to be an
upstander.<br />
<br />
Being a bystander makes the world about <i>you</i>, a person who is
present, but doesn’t take part. <span style="line-height: 200%;">Being an upstander it can’t be about you, it
can only be about others. Judge Ladorris Cordell taught me to know history
because it shapes the present and inhibits the future. Know history because
it’s full of people that have bled, cried, and died writing it.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Post three in a series of five posts for a class at Luther Seminary this semester: "Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. in Dialogue with Public Theology Today."</i></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-69008426791866702972015-11-01T16:15:00.000-08:002015-11-04T10:20:13.310-08:00"Randolph" published in Verdad Magazine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wV67Exic9MohTmgORcsGyTmb0AEZd4PfJt0U-GZtAPjHysV9Tx3lCLz2s4pNwmMjvACeT-7wg9-XgARbj6U744LfMksfYgTJTHzI2H2lpocHQ76Kq2GILvLTqcf6RfNJVESAlC0HnC8/s1600/verdad+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wV67Exic9MohTmgORcsGyTmb0AEZd4PfJt0U-GZtAPjHysV9Tx3lCLz2s4pNwmMjvACeT-7wg9-XgARbj6U744LfMksfYgTJTHzI2H2lpocHQ76Kq2GILvLTqcf6RfNJVESAlC0HnC8/s320/verdad+cover.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I often wonder what the guys from my unit are doing. How they're faring. What they're feeling. Where they're at in the reconciliation process that takes a lifetime to complete after war. </div>
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<a href="http://verdadmagazine.org/vol19/fiction/chamberlain.html" target="_blank">"Randolph"</a> began with an autobiographical fiction character and a semi-autobiographical experience, set in a landscape to which I've always been drawn. This was the second story I wrote in my two years studying creative writing in Pacific University's MFA program. This story took me two years to write as I whittled away flab, excess, and needless sentences getting in the way of what I wanted to express: not all soldiers feel like heroes; not all soldiers come home proud; not all soldiers are brave, and often, their <i>anti-bravery</i> in all actuality took more courage than not. </div>
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Having <a href="http://verdadmagazine.org/vol19/contents.html" target="_blank">"Randolph"</a> published in Verdad is extra special because I share this issue with one of my teachers, <a href="http://verdadmagazine.org/vol19/fiction/long.html" target="_blank">David Long</a>. David was my first semester advisor. Working with him was like basic training. He was tough, real tough, but he taught me things about writing I'll never forget. One of my favorite shorts by David was published in a previous edition of Verdad, <a href="http://verdadmagazine.org/vol18/fiction/long#concrete.html" target="_blank">"Concrete."</a></div>
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This issue of Verdad also features poetry from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doug_Anderson_(poet)" target="_blank">Doug Anderson</a>. A Viet Nam War veteran and poet I deeply admire. His collection <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Moon-Reflected-Fire-Doug-Anderson/dp/188229503X" target="_blank">The Moon Reflected Fire</a></i> is an incredible witness of his war experience.</div>
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Enjoy. Thanks for reading: <a href="http://verdadmagazine.org/vol19/fiction/chamberlain.html">http://verdadmagazine.org/vol19/fiction/chamberlain.html</a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNgz04f3ayd9lEIKSzVuWSldGxd1vsq45rq6mLqw4yoRWfDJB9_tpdprFAd2PCqrii3VCfhyj1P_ul9ctDrhYsf6ZmVQP_bEbIf1Zo1rsAqVELbcJozguvam4I5cnAJc3RBo31fU4Sb2I/s1600/verdad+table+of+contents.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNgz04f3ayd9lEIKSzVuWSldGxd1vsq45rq6mLqw4yoRWfDJB9_tpdprFAd2PCqrii3VCfhyj1P_ul9ctDrhYsf6ZmVQP_bEbIf1Zo1rsAqVELbcJozguvam4I5cnAJc3RBo31fU4Sb2I/s320/verdad+table+of+contents.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbMFcWy_0h2_Dw0LA8jSc1DgxMB3i-vZdnQ09gaQa2hlzQHltaznObJM_eW8K4dC34MOnF1-TojBLejA4LV72bRvbFPh_LGoKfLGWzZYTxT4iHx2M40zVQVujhHP5yR2kk04Q2bo_N4o/s1600/randolph+cover+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbMFcWy_0h2_Dw0LA8jSc1DgxMB3i-vZdnQ09gaQa2hlzQHltaznObJM_eW8K4dC34MOnF1-TojBLejA4LV72bRvbFPh_LGoKfLGWzZYTxT4iHx2M40zVQVujhHP5yR2kk04Q2bo_N4o/s320/randolph+cover+photo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-73446865192255080902015-10-20T08:34:00.000-07:002015-10-20T08:34:08.178-07:00On Humility<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I’ve wanted to do something <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">great</i> for quite some time. I wanted to
be the savant, whose first novel gets published quickly, transcending eons of
success, labeled the next great American book. Similarly, in my work with
at-risk youth, I want to be recognized as the most talented and caring
individual ever to be called a teacher and social worker and quickly be considered for the next Nobel Peace Prize. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
My stories are about something
important: empathic explorations of veteran’s coping with life after war; they’re
relevant and have every right to be read by the world. Similarly, my work
helping the less fortunate is not only meaningful to me, but also necessary for
the good of society. I see myself deserving greatness and should be arriving
shortly. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This past Sunday, my pastor
preached on Mark 10:35-45. This is the passage where James and John declare
they want to sit at the right hand and left hand of Jesus, in his glory. I
think I can relate to these guys. I think understand what they’re asking. I
imagine myself demanding the same closeness to Christ, asking for it with the
same hint of righteousness. It’s not that I want to be the best or desire recognition, I just want to do something <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">great</i>,
do the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">goodest</i> good and anything
less, just isn’t good enough. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
The problem is what I’m missing in
the meantime. Jesus responds by saying “whoever wishes to be first among you
must be slave of all.” A slave is not only someone who serves, but serves
enduringly, tirelessly, with little recognition of their service. Someone who
understands the importance of every moment and doesn’t become blinded with
future glory. Someone who knows that each task at hand is not only required of
them, but a part of the something bigger. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I write stories not for an award
someday, but because each is an important story I want to tell. Each story is
an idea, an experience, a character and a world, much like our world, that
needs to be told. And though there may not be millions of people reading my
stories, it’s the few dozen (or less) actually engaged with them that matter.
Similarly, the youth I have helped thus far are as important, maybe even more
important, than the thousands I see myself potentially helping in the future.
It’s not about one instance of greatness that affects millions, but about doing
one thing for one person daily, hourly. If any level of greatness is possible
it must be lived regularly just as the servant serves and with no regard for
recognition. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Post two in a series of five posts for a class at Luther Seminary this semester: "Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. in Dialogue with Public Theology Today."</i></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-84696757027863881412015-09-28T09:05:00.002-07:002015-10-03T08:21:54.301-07:00On Solidarity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="line-height: 200%;">This past week a man slightly
hunched beneath the weight of his hulky white robes came sharing a gospel of
advice to our nation and some thought, “Not my Pope.” Easily discrediting his
wisdom, his science, and his humanity as dogmatic Catholicism, and defaulting
with the pigheaded--and quickly becoming cliché--, “I am not Catholic; I’m such
and such.”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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In his address to congress, the
Pope encouraged immigration reform and a welcoming support for the refuges of
war torn nations, abolishment of the death penalty, and spent the climax of his
address asking for environmental considerations to battle global climate
change. It’s easy to call these political issues and accuse the pontiff of
meddling in politics. It’s even easier to generalize these as catholic issues
and since nearly all politicians claim to be laity of one church or another,
allow issues to create more polarization between not only denominations but
also congressional officials. </div>
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<br /></div>
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From the Gospel of Mark, the ninth
chapter, “John said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in
your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’ But
Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name
will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is
for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because
you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.”</div>
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How can Christians doing deeds in
the name of Christ come together? How often do we try and intervene in the
midst of an “exorcism” and wind up just getting in the way of something good
happening—something Godly. We allow our naïve branding of denominations and
labeling of ideas to block the greater good that is happening. We partition
ourselves and let biases become burdens preventing concord and a means to work
together productively. </div>
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Jesus knew his disciples needed to
learn this lesson so that the kingdom of God would spread. When we see and hear
the promise of Christ spreading in all its acts and tongues, it is something to
lift up, something to rally behind, not divide by. We needn’t label it as a
Lutheran way, or a Methodist way, or a Presbyterian way, or a Catholic way,
because no one doing a deed in the name of Christ will speak evil of him. Not
only do we owe one another confirmation of our prevailing beliefs, but
affirmation we all serve a fraternal greater good. As the Pope distinctly said,
“We must move forward together, as one, in a renewed spirit of fraternity and
solidarity, cooperating generously for the common good.” </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7h2nzh4xrEtCIwvFZsaGZQfJZukKCqGvVuQG4pfKpfnPsfO0G1SB5k5sJCqAxeYRhAMF0qUthapdgMxfbwGuZJr0hx4rp7trQhj2I3HTW1DsGfpMnqvlIXcHlXX0of0aJUbiBgUW0Ev0/s1600/pope-in-Congress-Getty-640x480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7h2nzh4xrEtCIwvFZsaGZQfJZukKCqGvVuQG4pfKpfnPsfO0G1SB5k5sJCqAxeYRhAMF0qUthapdgMxfbwGuZJr0hx4rp7trQhj2I3HTW1DsGfpMnqvlIXcHlXX0of0aJUbiBgUW0Ev0/s320/pope-in-Congress-Getty-640x480.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i>Post one in a series of five posts for a class at Luther Seminary this semester: "Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. in Dialogue with Public Theology Today."</i><!--EndFragment--><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/oBM7DIeMsP0/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oBM7DIeMsP0?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-64798453604908161282015-09-16T21:14:00.004-07:002015-09-16T21:14:43.519-07:00Boxer Short on Vimeo<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://vimeo.com/134434405" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXcNVmiIkd2eBiR7FNfzGIcJCBzL3dKHnlpenR_ULfCOR4MJ530SW4kbUrMN8xW4O7zwZmce56MX8MMoE8o5JW9ZM0eczrg_ICYs0wk575XiL5rf52rTKabHXiSazSYYhb9DParQvW-Oo/s400/Untitled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Check out this "<a href="https://vimeo.com/134434405" target="_blank">Boxer Short</a>" about my summer bike ride to Forest Grove from Fairbanks. (<a href="https://vimeo.com/134434405">https://vimeo.com/134434405</a>)</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-37803815386268343962015-08-22T17:39:00.002-07:002015-08-22T18:32:16.600-07:00Retiring "11 Days in Homer"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Evolution is the process of development and diversification. Retirement is the act of ceasing to work, graduating to a state of freedom. I've decided to retire my current blog title and banner: "11 Days in Homer." This will be timely in that I've moved from Fairbanks, Alaska, to St. Paul, Minnesota, in order to continue further graduate studies. My <i>Eleven Days in Homer</i> were generative in that they sent me out upon a new trajectory of discovery. I hope that this blog will continue to evolve as I learn and grow.<br />
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Cheers to <i>Homer.</i> <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlHPwDBkVYdLV7cGwbAotWTAuXndZHZjwScuFtUw3SAW4b0gwOGpZCoGvDnjTSa6TcbeRJHoX-LzB4XJ2U0LxFvXRPAptbV3UBBCSErzw8zWnmctEvBqYBeotrwwYqpzoJ0VFN20SxXBs/s1600/11daysinhomer.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlHPwDBkVYdLV7cGwbAotWTAuXndZHZjwScuFtUw3SAW4b0gwOGpZCoGvDnjTSa6TcbeRJHoX-LzB4XJ2U0LxFvXRPAptbV3UBBCSErzw8zWnmctEvBqYBeotrwwYqpzoJ0VFN20SxXBs/s320/11daysinhomer.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Cheers to <i>Caribou. </i><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-19488674984112440582015-07-02T05:53:00.000-07:002015-07-04T05:56:05.717-07:00"Roe" published in Gravel Magazine<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-8EB4fwtjA9273X7LtHWRK0CzbbvJjfBdYUf5zXuNfmSDSKowtJLsrPk992or_3PldVFZSBftZUQBcMz3mMhulLm03VpY5KIaZMvdFD9ZPRX5M52wfH3xyHh9MjkcVlrV3LvVKuSXWQ/s1600/Untitled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF-8EB4fwtjA9273X7LtHWRK0CzbbvJjfBdYUf5zXuNfmSDSKowtJLsrPk992or_3PldVFZSBftZUQBcMz3mMhulLm03VpY5KIaZMvdFD9ZPRX5M52wfH3xyHh9MjkcVlrV3LvVKuSXWQ/s320/Untitled.jpg" width="320" /></a>A second story from my master's thesis has been published in a literary journal. <a href="http://www.gravelmag.com/samuel-chamberlain.html" target="_blank">"Roe"</a> appeared in <a href="http://www.gravelmag.com/" target="_blank">Gravel Magazine</a> on July 1st. Read it for <a href="http://www.gravelmag.com/samuel-chamberlain.html" target="_blank">FREE!</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFVRyxdDFRPCqOpJ5DVY6o8LHODTjHWLq9Co2OEf3eTa3eNx2Vi-nbhA66CU1izqp-V-ycLXHbewnWPiY49TYK1JCCy6bOe2_cr9bX53lHB5SZeDqKgQ7n4iouFRMhkKiEOZNod4VkQuc/s1600/roe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFVRyxdDFRPCqOpJ5DVY6o8LHODTjHWLq9Co2OEf3eTa3eNx2Vi-nbhA66CU1izqp-V-ycLXHbewnWPiY49TYK1JCCy6bOe2_cr9bX53lHB5SZeDqKgQ7n4iouFRMhkKiEOZNod4VkQuc/s400/roe.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-62093209047245509832015-06-28T19:44:00.003-07:002015-06-28T19:44:50.793-07:00"Why Alaskans..." Published Today in Fairbanks Daily News-Miner<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
My piece "<a href="http://www.newsminer.com/features/sundays/book_reviews/why-alaskans-should-read-the-alaska-quarterly-review/article_0191c1e2-1d29-11e5-8491-1f4fd570c146.html" target="_blank">Why Alaskans Should read the Alaska Quarterly Review</a>" has been published in the <a href="http://www.newsminer.com/features/sundays/book_reviews/why-alaskans-should-read-the-alaska-quarterly-review/article_0191c1e2-1d29-11e5-8491-1f4fd570c146.html" target="_blank">Fairbanks Daily News-Miner</a>. It can be found as a feature in the Sunday section.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QwSHdP00loBeC-M6NGt32VNmnsQSvIWliyw_9VpN6S-UoDGYE66aHHOj4qUZ6B7yI5lPqGW8Nf6VpatwLBdjnzzxCr4UqP-y6MADqINSNNP3CB5qt2al0kG-76oVA0T6_pYzHcxBUvE/s1600/Untitled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QwSHdP00loBeC-M6NGt32VNmnsQSvIWliyw_9VpN6S-UoDGYE66aHHOj4qUZ6B7yI5lPqGW8Nf6VpatwLBdjnzzxCr4UqP-y6MADqINSNNP3CB5qt2al0kG-76oVA0T6_pYzHcxBUvE/s400/Untitled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-37134308064178338572015-06-23T19:39:00.000-07:002015-06-28T19:39:43.969-07:00"Why Alaskans..." Mentioned in The Review Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmX48FoxZKD1sCJr-dCKy7m64PoJSviW3-b5d3fZtSA-_6dBBAbBZVmYCl8kUsn8-tJ-VHhfRea3bw8rOkoq4JOwNM5l0knQFtna2tLVkLGBqYV70Fe5zcuipupH7tnPugErMy1wcfasU/s1600/Gmail+-+Psycho+Lit+Mags+Qu%2527est-Ce+Que+C%2527est%2521+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmX48FoxZKD1sCJr-dCKy7m64PoJSviW3-b5d3fZtSA-_6dBBAbBZVmYCl8kUsn8-tJ-VHhfRea3bw8rOkoq4JOwNM5l0knQFtna2tLVkLGBqYV70Fe5zcuipupH7tnPugErMy1wcfasU/s320/Gmail+-+Psycho+Lit+Mags+Qu%2527est-Ce+Que+C%2527est%2521+copy.jpg" width="320" /></a>My piece "Why Alaskans Sound read the Alaskan Quarterly Review," recently published in the <a href="http://juneauempire.com/art/2015-06-17/why-alaskans-should-read-alaska-quarterly-review" target="_blank">Juneau Empire</a> and the <a href="http://www.newsminer.com/features/sundays/book_reviews/why-alaskans-should-read-the-alaska-quarterly-review/article_0191c1e2-1d29-11e5-8491-1f4fd570c146.html" target="_blank">Fairbanks Daily News-Miner</a>, has been mentioned on <a href="http://www.thereviewreview.net/" target="_blank">The Review Review</a>, a weekly e-mail newsletter for writers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljS-HLEeKlhMRQ_0UQYw3ZHLZv9rkXjYFfV-j4zC5Y4BssggBkquFzjBXrEr9pmnSuBSvoi_HqMX0lH0an-VCLPcYY4FR2Gp-Alqll7fdaEhgRVIqEkg1qXIucy-XsxWHaWfR3zh962A/s1600/Gmail+-+Psycho+Lit+Mags+Qu%2527est-Ce+Que+C%2527est%2521+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljS-HLEeKlhMRQ_0UQYw3ZHLZv9rkXjYFfV-j4zC5Y4BssggBkquFzjBXrEr9pmnSuBSvoi_HqMX0lH0an-VCLPcYY4FR2Gp-Alqll7fdaEhgRVIqEkg1qXIucy-XsxWHaWfR3zh962A/s320/Gmail+-+Psycho+Lit+Mags+Qu%2527est-Ce+Que+C%2527est%2521+copy.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-37194150697728043162015-06-22T11:31:00.001-07:002015-06-22T11:31:04.746-07:00"Riding to Work"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This piece about my bike trip was written by Pacific University staff and published to the <a href="http://www.pacificu.edu/about-us/news-events/riding-work-mfa-student-rides-bike-alaska-forest-grove" target="_blank">school's website</a>. Check it out.<br />
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<a href="http://www.pacificu.edu/about-us/news-events/riding-work-mfa-student-rides-bike-alaska-forest-grove" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48VGjvPxQyY-5jhsjpNX1sppzJC1Bs_TdL5aKNsikMwchkxF6EMYKc2JGYRGDb6iyt_rObQImf6pIJKufBTPB4cE0A9iY0Sxk1TVX5ws9zZIqJvjYlKfcJ-pQMvQhQ753X3EcwUdwkEQ/s400/Untitled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-67506404348926249222015-06-17T12:01:00.000-07:002015-06-17T12:56:00.582-07:00Why Alaskans Should Read Alaska Quarterly Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://juneauempire.com/art/2015-06-17/why-alaskans-should-read-alaska-quarterly-review" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcx2LaBtm4THlNT5M-J51q9EJ9dPRVp17zffkAuzWv_o-4MmhOcdLkoD4VaIKzNnkBgYZiqxorUGinNTl7rgaIaCCrdoADBSou46C_NmSbG3EPjvrWsCGf-45zertRz2DZyze2c-Gx1Wg/s400/Untitled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-56539647178588122722015-06-01T12:50:00.000-07:002015-06-17T15:47:41.751-07:00Read it for Free: "Road Construction" <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/road-construction/#.VYHOp866-mc" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4-UEqfuW33NyZPAYC6k3VGG7SDUctKjJtMoZsJtoi4Nwxptv-rWLk_0p05IbphBE8m1VTVPiwoBJX1LQ2YEzlwlk0t26nNNAKUoxcyz0EqRz0yDOLtVFLBfre3LufoowDt6Gi6twSJQ/s200/glenn-construct.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/" target="_blank">Line of Advance</a> has published my piece of short fiction, "<a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/road-construction/#.VYHOp866-mc" target="_blank">Road Construction</a>," on their homepage. Now you can read it for <a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/road-construction/#.VYHOp866-mc" target="_blank">free</a>!<br />
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<a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/road-construction/#.VYH45M66-mc" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpa4DrTg6NruBp__bEfPpo7Css1Yc62yOnH8N8wzD_uLAKxzur5kh6fkCVWCtdaAhCOiuh7a8jKcnV-NdEZqwJKJ4x7u-VPhiU6I6qMM4wnihO5LeRGyMkh5HK-p_8pE62iEf7CIs51gI/s320/Untitled2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-49207925079768438082015-05-27T12:45:00.000-07:002015-06-17T12:46:24.410-07:00"Road Construction" published in Line of Advance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of the seven stories from my graduate thesis has been published in Line of Advance. For only $5 you get some great veteran's writing. Check out "Road Construction" in Volume 4.<br />
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<a href="http://www.lineofadvance.org/issues/volume-4/#.VYHOK866-mc" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNafN-S4fxNJH5CL26TYnt5d1FUtFTOW9RYvej0KSHqQYNXR2CRuJR7jS2duTEKzYWMwSJ7-wYRZeTfGfr1B3fgMuOBslKJ7Js-n4ML5_3QIACb4lhNIja55y5wflRFTjVOk5lf76Pj_A/s1600/Cover_41-225x300.jpg" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-24735684056275009552015-05-18T17:44:00.000-07:002015-06-18T06:48:48.745-07:004th Semester Reading List<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>Bass, Rick. <i>The Lives of Rocks: Stories</i>.</li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Brockmeier, Kevin. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Things
That Fall from the Sky</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li>Brown, Larry. <i>Facing
The Music: Stories</i>.</li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Boyle, T. Coraghessan. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Greasy Lake & Other Stories</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li>Carlson, Ron. <i>The
Hotel Eden: Stories</i>.</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.5in;">Davis, Sean. </span><i style="text-indent: -0.5in;">The Wax Bullet War: Chronicles of a Soldier
& Artist.</i></li>
<li>Driscoll, Jack. <i>Wanting
Only To Be Heard</i>.</li>
<li>Dubus, Andre. <i>Selected
Stories.</i></li>
<li>Fountain, Ben. <i>Brief
Encounters with Che Guevara.</i></li>
<li>Franklin, Tom. <i>Poachers</i>.</li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.5in;">Grossman, David. </span><i style="text-indent: -0.5in;">To
the End of the Land</i><span style="text-indent: -0.5in;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Klay, Phil. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Redeployment</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li>Lopez, Barry. <i>Resistance.</i></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">O'Brien, Tim. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">The Nuclear Age</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Pancake, Breece D'J. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Rash, Ron. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Burning Bright:
Stories</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Rash, Ron. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Nothing Gold Can Stay: Stories</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Salinger, J. D. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Nine Stories</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">. New York: Back Bay Books, 2001.</span></li>
<li>Salter, James. <i>Last
Night: Stories</i>.</li>
<li><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Wolff, Tobias. </span><i style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">In the
Garden of the North American Martyrs: A Collection of Short Stories</i><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">.</span></li>
</ol>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria;">Favorites:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Cambria;">Ron Rash is a new favorite. The stories in <i>Burning Bright</i> and <i>Nothing Gold Can Stay</i> are fantastic.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6KE6dUUH6b0wq6QH0DgKNTVCQQXGWGc_h0RIIhgSkbzLCnw9u1I6nHD8Shd3agE2igfuX6wfBI2UhshY2kMPkZ4g8tCWAcxZYkszeGdM4fQgVY5srDqopTIJobriyNOYQROWXLGSeayw/s1600/51u1Xmj1CDL._SY344_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6KE6dUUH6b0wq6QH0DgKNTVCQQXGWGc_h0RIIhgSkbzLCnw9u1I6nHD8Shd3agE2igfuX6wfBI2UhshY2kMPkZ4g8tCWAcxZYkszeGdM4fQgVY5srDqopTIJobriyNOYQROWXLGSeayw/s320/51u1Xmj1CDL._SY344_BO1%252C204%252C203%252C200_.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaVAOFSajqAN79NLeJxOAEjLwwxsLRMUz5O-e3o4WA3m_K-rpUWHV8s8Il7yhZHzjtqaq9gjYBTDIGBL74eZKrDnYoVnrBseRJrJMA1lUzlb3uWsW-NBWkGRFoAL2TlcDofR_6-jSJ_GA/s1600/1361958375625.cached.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaVAOFSajqAN79NLeJxOAEjLwwxsLRMUz5O-e3o4WA3m_K-rpUWHV8s8Il7yhZHzjtqaq9gjYBTDIGBL74eZKrDnYoVnrBseRJrJMA1lUzlb3uWsW-NBWkGRFoAL2TlcDofR_6-jSJ_GA/s1600/1361958375625.cached.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
This Tom Franklin book is a couple years old, but the stories of the south are rich and staunch.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYiWVXqZKPqo6UPAG9t1KQ0Cw4FcbMz7xaCRT9Yu6tmBWpeA1AbEMGamuI-lsiLjO-8aKMy3HcYefpaWbtTi-YFdKaQKkHccBI1bHUc99gaYtgAW_jLcuDoGsBRttVizHk_jugRDdB_g/s1600/07544555f8942ef81942973d6c77fcc1-w204%25401x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSYiWVXqZKPqo6UPAG9t1KQ0Cw4FcbMz7xaCRT9Yu6tmBWpeA1AbEMGamuI-lsiLjO-8aKMy3HcYefpaWbtTi-YFdKaQKkHccBI1bHUc99gaYtgAW_jLcuDoGsBRttVizHk_jugRDdB_g/s1600/07544555f8942ef81942973d6c77fcc1-w204%25401x.jpg" /></a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-77297760742733132272015-04-26T10:23:00.001-07:002015-04-26T10:25:00.961-07:00Where the Fault Lies<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Lora, serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 29px;">"For all the modern banter about America being a Christian nation, there is not, nor can there be a nation that follows the actual teachings of Jesus Christ. It would have no army, no police, and no one would own property." </span><br />
<br />
<br />
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From a <a href="http://www.consequencemagazine.org/book-reviews/where-the-fault-lies/" target="_blank">review</a> of Armstrong's latest book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fields-Blood-Religion-History-Violence/dp/0307957047" target="_blank">Fields of Blood</a>, by <a href="http://www.consequencemagazine.org/book-reviews/where-the-fault-lies/" target="_blank">John Coats in Consequence Magazine</a>. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB9enldIB1EnM3XIKABjILciy8ua86Xx106dmzAGqw03i0ogJip_af3bGla4Xp5hPHNPLFgiiZFiYRhnbapM6wdZu62X2JzdD_3o3TkByo-wJ23MTHCBEyntg8NA8w9sI_rGW-HSuAK_8/s1600/Unknown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB9enldIB1EnM3XIKABjILciy8ua86Xx106dmzAGqw03i0ogJip_af3bGla4Xp5hPHNPLFgiiZFiYRhnbapM6wdZu62X2JzdD_3o3TkByo-wJ23MTHCBEyntg8NA8w9sI_rGW-HSuAK_8/s1600/Unknown.jpg" height="320" width="215" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Lora, serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 29px;">“Somehow, we have to find ways of doing what religion—at its best—has done for centuries: build a sense of global community, cultivate a sense of reverence and ‘equanimity’ for all, and take responsibility for the suffering we see in the world. We are all, religious and secular alike, responsible for the current predicament of the world…The scapegoat ritual was an attempt to sever the community’s relationship with its misdeeds; it cannot be a solution for us today.”</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-62131298831284523732015-01-22T11:09:00.000-08:002015-01-22T11:09:49.880-08:00Revealing the Trauma of War<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/healing-soldiers/index.html" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF4QtShjON4PyyJk8DZ1_MNe7eppGGq048pCHL19TVTg6Vc5NMeq1hRivT7VdM2odNy6g-JsP2scyosxUotkNj61zgY3-5mYhnGaCf4SEI5VsgE89MCUTZwOol-ZrQMs1oPpK3YCwt5s/s1600/revealing+masks.jpg" height="195" width="400" /></a></div>
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More masks and stories at: <a href="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/healing-soldiers/index.html" target="_blank">Healing Soldiers</a> from National Geographic</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-67041312352161757142014-12-09T11:13:00.000-08:002015-01-22T11:26:29.898-08:00War Ink<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhvAkM0rAAehk71rZS0efB9bHMLO4wNev9yncTYno4Ezu5bwjbBnUtCZaQFOYPd4d_A02Ov66fTmVeaJeUigZ5tBCNRReC0-n1ZGnh6IP41FWgVdshtzOb6EAdwbuIZ-RwdKhW6vi94A/s1600/9c073b_8600e653fa224b8b81ec2ff19c03119a-1024x768.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMhvAkM0rAAehk71rZS0efB9bHMLO4wNev9yncTYno4Ezu5bwjbBnUtCZaQFOYPd4d_A02Ov66fTmVeaJeUigZ5tBCNRReC0-n1ZGnh6IP41FWgVdshtzOb6EAdwbuIZ-RwdKhW6vi94A/s1600/9c073b_8600e653fa224b8b81ec2ff19c03119a-1024x768.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Veterans revealing stories and witness of war through their tattoos. Check out the interactive website at: <a href="http://www.warink.org/">http://www.warink.org/</a><br />
<br />
Read the complete story here: <a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/art/war-ink-virtual-exhibit-tells-veterans-stories-tattoo-art/" target="_blank">War Ink on PBS</a><br />
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Watch the YouTube film:<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8999537885911629473.post-12511400308642333772014-12-03T10:18:00.000-08:002014-12-03T11:40:28.423-08:00Then & Now<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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"Remember My Forgotten Man" - Gold Diggers of 1933 </div>
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I don't know if he deserves a bit of sympathy<br />
Forget your sympathy, that's all right with me<br />
I was satisfied to drift along from day to day<br />
Till they came and took my man away<br />
<br />
Remember my forgotten man<br />
You put a rifle in his hand<br />
You sent him far away<br />
You shouted: "Hip-hooray!"<br />
But look at him today<br />
<br />
Remember my forgotten man<br />
You had him cultivate the land<br />
He walked behind the plow<br />
The sweat fell from his brow<br />
But look at him right now<br />
<br />
And once, he used to love me<br />
I was happy then<br />
He used to take care of me<br />
Won't you bring him back again?<br />
'Cause ever since the world began<br />
A woman's got to have a man<br />
Forgetting him, you see<br />
Means you're forgetting me<br />
Like my forgotten man<br />
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"Time To Go Home" - Michael Franti & Spearhead, <i>Yell Fire</i>, 2007</div>
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Those who start wars, never fight them <br />
And those who fight wars, they never like them <br />
And those who write laws, can recite them <br />
And those who fight laws, they live and die by them <br />
<br />
But I know its time <br />
Yes I know its time <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
<br />
Don't take our boys away <br />
Don't take our girls away <br />
Don't take our boys away <br />
Don't take our girls away <br />
<br />
Those who build walls are pretending <br />
That forever they can defend them <br />
Those who dam streams can build fountains <br />
Those of us who just let them run free <br />
Can move mountains <br />
<br />
But I know its time <br />
Yes I know its time <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
<br />
And I say, you whoooo <br />
You whoooo who who who, you whoooo who who who <br />
<br />
Doves fly by in the morning light <br />
Leaves fall down on a passer by <br />
Phone call comes and a mamma cries <br />
Tears stream down from a daddy's eyes<br />
Tears stream down from a daddy's eyes<br />
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<br />
But I know its time <br />
Yes I know its time <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home <br />
It's time to go home</div>
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"Light Up Ya Lighter" - Michael Franti & Spearhead, <i>Yell Fire</i>, 2007</div>
<br />
It never makes no sense<br />
It never makes no sense<br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
Armageddon is a deadly day<br />
Armageddon is a deadly way<br />
They comin for you everyday<br />
While senators on holiday<br />
<br />
The army recruiters in the parking lot<br />
Hustling kids there jugglin pot<br />
Listen, young man, listen to my plan<br />
Gonna make you money, gonna make you a man<br />
Bom bom here's what you get... an M-16 and a kevlar vest<br />
You might come home with one less leg but this thing will surely keep a bullet out your chest<br />
<br />
So, come on, come on, sign up, come on<br />
This one's nothing like Vietnam <br />
Except for the bullets, except for the bombs, except for the youth that's gone<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home <br />
Higher and higher<br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
Tell me, President, tell me if you will<br />
How many people does a smart bomb kill?<br />
How many of 'em do you think we got?<br />
The general says we never miss a shot<br />
And we never ever ever keep a body count<br />
We killin so efficiently, we can't keep count<br />
In the Afghan hills, the rebels still fightin <br />
Opium fields keep providin<br />
<br />
The best heroin that money can buy and<br />
Nobody knows where Osama been hidin<br />
The press confrences keep on lyin<br />
Like we don't know<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
Some say engine, engine number nine<br />
Machine guns on a New York transit line<br />
The war for oil is a war for the beast <br />
The war on terror is a war on peace<br />
Tellin you they're gonna protect you and <br />
Tellin you that they support the troops<br />
<br />
And don't let them fool you with their milk and honey<br />
No, they only want your money<br />
<br />
One step forward and two steps back<br />
One step forward and two steps back<br />
Why do veterans get no respect<br />
PTSD and a broken back<br />
<br />
Take a look at where your money's gone seen<br />
Take a look at what they spend it on<br />
No excuses, no illusions<br />
Light up ya lighter, bring it home<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
So we keep it on 'til ya comin' home<br />
Higher and higher <br />
Fire, fire, fire, light up ya lighter, fire, fire, fire<br />
<br />
Fire, fire, fire, yeah, you know, so light up ya lighter<br />
Fire, fire, fire, fire, no, light up ya lighter</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0