July 31 Thoughts While Sitting Outside with a Glass of Bailey's Irish Cream

I'm looking at an expanse of red mud in what used to be a pretty good looking garden here in the high desert of Utah. A big thunderstorm with heavy rain last night did a better job of dirt removal and moving than even the best heavy machinery. It did a pretty good job here, making it necessary for two of us to spend quite a while cleaning things up, using, of all things in the desert, a snow shovel to clear the mud off cement patios. However, the results three miles away in Kanab itself were even worse. Streets, parking lots, and yards were covered with thick red mud. Motel swimming pools resembled the red sea. Workers were out in force trying to clean up all the mess, in some places bringing in large tanker trucks full of water for the cleanup job. Water and mud oozed its way under doors in apartments, houses, motel rooms, and stores. Not pleasant.

Here are some pictures Fran Meadows took early this morning on her way to work.

 Yesterday I bought a book by Craig Childs called The Secret Knowledge of Water. Looking through it this morning, I discovered a chapter entitled "Flood at Kanab." I've always been quite a believer in synchronicity but that was just a little too much.

While looking out at the red mountains behind us tonight, I also thought of friends and former colleagues who have spent two to three days in Phoenix, Arizona demonstrating and participating in actions against Senate Bill 1070. Many of them were Unitarian Universalist ministers and lay people, and a large number were arrested for standing up for their beliefs and for the people who will be most affected by this insane Arizona law. I'm so glad that Federal Judge Bolton rescinded the worst parts of it. However, it still took affect yesterday. One friend emailed me tonight with her experiences overnight in jail. Although I'm still not entirely convinced I'd be brave enough to get arrested, I'm leaning more and more in that direction, realizing it's more important to stand up for something I believe in than just pretend it will go away or that someone else will do something about it. I feel so proud of everyone who participated and know that if at all possible I will count myself among them next time.
Lee Marie Sanchez, minister of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Anaheim, California, wrote this letter to her congregation about her experience in Phoenix.

Dear UUCA'ers ~

Dawn Usher and I were released from jail today

after spending about 30 hours in Joe Arapaio's

dungeon... otherwise named the Maricopa County

Jail. We were arrested after taking part in a

Civil Disobedience action at a huge intersection

outside of Arapaio's office at Cesar Chavez Park.

This experience is beyond words to describe it.

We began the morning by getting up at 2 am to

be at a prayer vigil with people who had been

praying and fasting for 104 days. We marched

to Trinity Episcopal Church for an huge interfaith

and very inspirational bilingual worship service.

Then we walked a couple more miles where we joined

with about 30 other protesters from Puente and

other local organizations but of which about half

who were Unitarian Universalists. Dawn and I had

taken hours of training the night before but nothing

could compare with what happened. We marched

in a solid square of human beings into the intersection

where we were met with police in riot gear. The

scene was like something out of a movie, with literally

thousands of supporters massed down the boulevard 

and hundreds of Phoenix police surrounding us, asking

us to move. We did not comply. The sound was really

deafening as after about a half hour of our peaceful,

but loud, chanting, singing and speaking, the police

moved in to tell us that we would be arrested.

I have to give the Phoenix police credit as they made

every effort to be polite and helpful as they unlinked

our arms and handcuffed us, taking all our valuables

and putting us into police vans.

We were taken to the the Maricopa Sheriff Jail and,

while I was given what I felt was some special attention

as I was wearing my clergy shirt and collar, I am an

older woman and I am white, not everyone was treated

this way. Some experienced rough and rude handling.

When we arrived we were taken out of the vans but

then placed back in as our UU Presient Peter Morales

and Susan Frederick-Gray, minister of the UU Church

of Phoenix, along with Puente people and other UU

ministers moved in to blocked the jail entrance. We

watched in horror as the sheriffs inside the belly of

the beast prepared in riot gear, shields at the ready,

and tear gas canisters in hand, scrambled to counter.

Everything broke loose, it was angry, crazy, chaos,

controlled by the overwhelming police force. Drums

were beating, people yelling...like a movie scene.

I will tell you more about the actual jail experience

later. For now, let me tell you it was horrendous.

We occupied several cells, mostly UU's by this time,

with men in some and women in about three. We had

the lights on for 24 hours, were watched by men and

women guards constantly, no clocks, not enough of

the cinder block seating for all of us. When we tried

to sleep it was without blankets or pillows right down

on the very hard, cold floor! Yes, on the floor, but

not everyone could even lay down, some stood. 

We were joined by several women from the general

jail population, as well as Puente women. We sang,

chanted, tried to share the cramped space, used an

open-to-view toilet and were constantly moved about

from cell to cell to disorient us. Our only food was

peanut butter, oranges, packaged cookies and a little

bottle of sugary drink.. NO cups for the water in

the sink. The 2 phones usually did not work and we

had no idea what time it was or what was happening.

We were "awoken" (those few who slept) at approx

2 am for our cells to be cleaned & we moved again.

That night the UU's and Puente and others held a

prayer vigil outside the jail and we could hear the

drum beats outside the thick walls. The next day

after hours more of "processing" we were released.

I hope never to experience such an inhumane and

humiliating experience again. Dawn and I now have

a police record, we have pleaded not guilty and have

an August court date to return to AZ. More later...

I thank you all for supporting this action and the

two of us and I hope our church action was a success.

Apparently, we had lots of press, CNN, local AZ and

even the OC Register. More pictures and YouTubes will

be available soon and I'll send some of them along.

Tomorrow we need to keep collecting our gear which

was all over as we were not allowed to have ANYTHING

in the jail. There are more actions planned. Right now

as I type this Dawn & I are completely exhausted after

2 days with no sleep and a terrible jail experience, 

but our feelings of deep commitment along with the

friends we made with women of many colors & faiths

has left us with a feeling that nothing will ever again...

~ Standing on the Side of Love, feeling an overwhelming

sense of gratitude, & with more stories to tell about our

shared experiences, with love & !Si se puede! Lee Marie

Go here for all the late-breaking stuff happening now!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Standing-on-the-Side-of-Love/87377228013

and here for what was in the OC Register!

http://www.ocregister.com/news/phoenix-260006-arrested-civil.html 

Forgiveness

 For the past few days, I've been reading an excellent book by Paul Rogat Loeb,  Soul of a Citizen: Living with Conviction in a Cynical Time. It looks like I have an older copy because in searching for the Amazon webpage, I found the subtitle is now "Living with Conviction in Challenging Times." Interesting. 

Several years ago my youngest daughter gave me one of Loeb's other books, The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen's Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear. The title was more prophetic than I believe she knew at the time.


However, this blog entry won't be any kind of book review. No, I found two very meaningful quotes in Soul of a Citizen that I'd like to share. The first is from one of my favorite authors, Catholic theologian Henri Nouwen: "To forgive another person from the heart is an act of liberation. We set that person free from the negative bonds that exist between us. We say, 'I no longer hold offense against you.' But there is more. We also free ourselves from the burden of being the 'offended one.' The great temptation is to cling in anger to our enemies and then define ourselves as being offended and wounded by them. Forgiveness, therefore, liberates not only the other but also ourselves. It is the way to freedom of the children of God."


The second quote is from Doris Donnelly: "Without forgiveness, hurts grow unchecked and we recycle failures, resentments, bitterness, and mistrust in our lives. With forgiveness, hurts are acknowledged and healed, and we are able to break a mindless cycle of retaliation by saying that the decisions of human life, even when they turn out badly are not beyond repair."


Strong stuff - and particularly meaningful for me at this time.

Water

I've been having thoughts about water today.

It's been very hot here in Kanab, Utah for about a month now, up into the mid- and high 90s. However, the humidity is low so it's almost bearable with enough air conditioning---and cold drinks. 

Marcie and Jim never go anywhere without a large supply of bottled water in the back of their car. They pass it out to anyone who needs it or would like it.

Other places, such as parts of Oklahoma, aren't so lucky. There the heat index, a combination of high temperatures and high humidity, is around 116 degrees today. Some people have air conditioned vehicles, work places, and homes, while many others have to do without. 

Ron Robinson in Turley, Oklahoma  writes "...extreme Heat Alert so we have turned A Third Place Community Center into a Cooling Station. Free Water, AC, and all our other services--food pantry, clothing, computers, TV, library, etc. Now off to see about setting up water station at the main bus stops here that have no shelter from elements. If you can drop off ice or water or lemonade, etc. much appreciated." Ron also pointed out that, as a heart patient, he has a car with A/C, cold juice and water available, A/C at the center and at home, but not all heart patients, especially in that area where life expectancy is significantly reduced, have access to those things.

Crystal Cheryl in Okmulgee, Oklahoma "...took some iced tea out to the city tree trimmers working in this heat -- sweet, lots of ice -- on a tray with real glasses. They [the workers] were resting in the shade on my back lawn and their faces lit up with big smiles when I came out with the cold drinks. Boy, did that make my day! Living in the blisssssss .... ♥ I think Ron inspired me. And I actually had to wrestle with myself. Had only a little ice made, and only half a pitcher of tea that I had just made -- was tempted to keep the tasty treat for myself. Such silly inner struggles with selfishness."

In the deserts of San Diego County in California, hundreds of people attempt to cross the border from Mexico for various reasons. They find hostility that extends to laws prohibiting others from providing food or water.

In March, before leaving for Utah for seven months, I volunteered for part of a day with Water Station, a group in San Diego County that places and regularly replenishes supplies of water at about 200 spots around the desert and other places people cross during blistering  summer heat. Many of those sites can only be reached by high clearance 4WD vehicles. No matter what your stand about illegal immigrants, they cannot die for lack of water.

 Do you know individuals or groups who freely and unselfishly provide water and cold drinks to others with no requirements or fanfare? Please tell about them in the Comments section here.

A Perfect Day

Just a few evening observations after a very hot, windy day in Kanab, Utah. I've been sitting outside watching the sun set, enjoying a fairly large glass of Bailey's Irish Cream, savoring the creamy taste. The wind has died down just enough to make it very pleasant to watch the gentle rustling of the cottonwood trees. My Earth Day flag blows sideways in the breeze. The temperature is just about perfect-not too hot, just right. I read a little from a library book, Miriam's Kitchen, by Elizabeth Ehrlich about her growing understanding about the importance of preserving her Jewish roots. I think about all the shopping bags I've finished in the past few weeks, all of them now hanging in the front of my RV, awaiting new owners. I treasure all of the plants now doing well in our impossible garden in the high desert of Utah, composed of red, sandy dirt. Nothing except cactus would grow without copious quantities of purchased garden soil in large, black plastic pots. However, with daily early-morning watering, all the tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, lemon cucumbers, Swiss chard, radishes, Kentucky Wonder beans, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, and zucchini are thriving. Petunias of all colors: purple and white striped, white, pink, and purple show off in baskets. Tiny Portulaca flowers spring out from small aluminum and pewter containers. Hummingbirds and orioles drink enough nectar to make daily refilling of their feeders a necessity. Part of a day was spent in Hurricane doing needed shopping with good friends and their dog.


Life is definitely good.