The Green Bowls

Tomorrow, May 8, is Mother's Day.

My mom has been gone for nearly 16 years, but every time I use one of her green mixing bowls, I am reminded of her. The bowls are not a set. Each bowl is a different shade of green, and each is a different size. But I still consider them a set.

I have no idea where the bowls came from, or how old they are. But I'm sure they are quite old.

But I treasure them all the same.

And today, of all days, I decided to make some chocolate chip cookies. I try to limit my consumption of sweets, so I don't bake as often as I would like. I enjoy baking more than cooking, but over the years I have greatly cut back on my baking. But how interesting that today I decided to get one of the bowls from the cabinet and use it to prepare cookie dough.

Is it coincidence that it was this day I decided to use one of the green mixing bowls to make cookies? I don't think so. I believe that something -- or someone -- led me to this decision. And let’s face it. It’s 91° outside – – not exactly a great day to have the oven going as I bake cookies.

Whatever the reason that today is the day I decided to bake, I am grateful for the memory of my mother.

Back to the 1850s

Welcome to the 1950s, women of America. Or is it the 1850s? Or maybe it's the 1750s.

The leaked draft decision of the US Supreme Court that appears likely to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision that has been in effect for close to 50 years is about to remove a woman’s right to decide if and when she is to give birth. How fortunate we women are to have this learned group of people, most of them old white men, to decide our future childbearing plans for us. Whatever would we do without them?

All of these so-called pro-life people are not pro life at all. They are nothing more than pro birth. They don’t care what happens to the women who are forced to give birth to children that may be the result of rape or incest. They don’t care about the children that may be born into lives of abuse or poverty. They don't care about the women who simply cannot afford to raise yet another child. Or maybe these women simply don't want to have children. Birth control is not 100 percent effective.

How many of these so-called 'right to life' people have ever fostered a child? How many have adopted a child? I am pro-choice, and I have an adopted daughter who is now a 28-year-old mother of a baby boy.

The bottom line is, it’s nobody’s damn business if and when a woman chooses to have a child. 

I made a decision many years ago when I got married that I did not want to have children. That was my decision. It was not made for me by a bunch of presumptuous people who thought they knew what was best for me. 

No judge or justice or religious leader should have anything to say about women’s reproductive choices. How about we start mandating vasectomies for men? How about if women whose husbands or boyfriends believe it’s OK to force a woman to give birth to a child, start denying sex to those men? Maybe when men start paying child support for each child they father from the child's birth through age 18 they will come to their senses. And I would love to know how many of the male Supreme Court justices have paid for abortions for their mistresses. The same goes for anti-choice politicians.

I don’t care what religion someone follows, or if people follow no religion at all. It’s not my concern. But person and no religious institution should be allowed to force me and others to live according to their religious beliefs. If you think abortion is a sin or an affront to God or whatever, fine. Don’t have an abortion. But keep your religion out of our law-making process. And judges at any level are supposed to keep their personal beliefs and biases out of our judicial system. Religion has no place in American laws, nor does it belong in schools. Religion should be private.

Abortion is a deeply personal matter, or at least it should be. The government and religious institutions should have nothing to say about a woman’s personal health care decision. 

Whenever a 'pro-life' person is asked to state a reason to oppose abortion that is not based on religion, nobody can come with anything. Religion and government should be -- are supposed be to - separate. We should not permit any legislation that is based on or invokes any religion. Religion needs to get out of the legal arena and it needs to get out of government. 

And spare me the BS about 'my body, my choice' when it comes to the horrendous imposition that comes from mask mandates to help prevent the spread of a disease that has killed millions of people. But it's apparently OK to disregard that sentiment when it comes to women's reproductive choices. If it’s your body your decision, it should be 'my body, my choice' when it comes to whether or not to have a child.

If the anti-abortion argument were really about the children, there would be free, universal pre-natal care. There would be free, universal health care for both mother and baby. There would be free, universal child care. There would be free, universal college. But the anti-choice crowd has shown time and again that it is only pro-birth. Once the child is born, mother and baby are on there own.

I am not of childbearing age, but that doesn’t mean I’m any less disgusted by so far successful efforts in several states to control women’s bodies. Where will the ultra-right wingers stop? There already are mutterings about working to make gay marriage illegal? How about outlawing birth control, as the Catholic Church would prefer? Or what about interracial marriages? Will women no longer be allowed to get a credit card or buy a car without a man's signature?  We are on a very slippery slope if the court's thinking about overturning Roe v Wade comes to pass.

Women, it's time to rise up and object in the strongest possible ways to protect the advances we have achieved over the past decades. Women are just as capable -- or more so -- than men. We are not second-class citizens. 

The stakes are too high for each of us, and for our daughters and granddaughters, to sit quietly while others dictate our decisions.

Why Do I Bother?

This post has been a long time coming.

I write, and nobody reads what I write.

I post photographs from my travels, and if I'm lucky, 10 people will like an image, while other photographers get hundreds of likes.

I offer photographs for sale, yet I have sold only a handful of prints.

I offer beautiful photo calendars for sale, yet I'm lucky to sell fewer than a dozen.

So why do I bother?  All proceeds from calendar and photo sales go to charity, and I personally match all proceeds.

I am a good photographer. I am a good writer.

I spend a couple hundred of dollars every year on my photography Web site, which remains unvisited. I have chosen not to renew the page when its current term expires on June 3.

Why do I keep doing this when there is so little reward for me and for my chosen charity? Certainly I get a lot of satisfaction from writing and photography. And I guess from now on that will have to suffice.

Find Your Good and Do It

Find your good and do it.

Those encouraging words are from singer and humanitarian Jon Bon Jovi.

They are inspiring words, words that I hope more people will heed.

I saw a story on the national news recently about an innovative program in Nashville, TN, established by country singer Brad Paisley and his wife to help feed the city's hungry residents.

They have set up a non-profit called The Store (thestore.org) that allows anyone in need to shop for whatever groceries they need, no questions asked and no payment is needed. A simple form is all that is required. 

This program not only feeds people, but it also preserves their dignity by allowing them to shop in a small market, just as we shop for the groceries we want to purchase. And it avoids waste caused by giving people food they don't want, don't like, or won't eat. When The Store was forced to close during the height of the pandemic, groceries were delivered to the elderly by volunteers. I can't stand country music, but I love what Paisley and his wife Kimberly have done to help their city. 

Jon Bon Jovi is another musician who has stepped up to serve the residents of New Jersey. He and his wife currently own and operate non-profit community restaurants through their JBJ Soul Kitchen foundation. The restaurants serve both paying and in-need guests. The menu has no prices; guests can either make a donation (suggested minimum is $20) for their meals, or volunteer in the restaurant.

Celebrity Spanish chef Jose Andres and his World Central Kitchen (www.wck.org) provide chef-prepared meals to communities impacted by natural disasters and humanitarian crises. WCK is in Ukraine, distributing 300,000 hot meals each day to those impacted by war.

During the winter holidays, attention invariably turns to acts of kindness and generosity. Barrels and boxes for the collection of food donations appear in local grocery stores. Appeals for funds to feed the homeless start arriving in the mail. But hunger is a year-round thing. People need food every day of the year, not just during the holidays. 

I think it's great that Americans step up their donations to food banks, food pantries and soup kitchens at that time of year. And now, as the country struggles to move beyond the pandemic, But especially in this third year of pandemic, the need is greater than ever despite steps toward returning to normal.

Feeding the less fortunate is a cause I have supported for decades. I buy non-perishable food items such as soup, vegetables, peanut butter, cereal and pasta throughout the year. When items are on sale, I buy extras. When a food collection drive is announced, I have items ready to donate. 

May 14 will mark the return of the letter carriers' food collection drive in the U.S after being placed on hold for a couple of years due the pandemic. It's easy to donate: Simply place a bag of non-perishable food by your mail box, and your letter carrier will pick it up when your mail is delivered.

Most of us aren't chefs or celebrities, but there is always something we can do to help. We don't have to be wealthy to make a difference. If feeding the hungry isn't your thing, find what is. Perhaps it's helping children or animals or working to protect the wilderness. Maybe you can knit or crochet blankets for newborns in the hospital. Maybe you can foster a dog or cat until it's ready to be adopted. Maybe you have a special skill you can offer in service to others. I saw a story recently about a man who travels the country providing free haircuts to homeless and low-income people. 

As Bon Jovi said, "Find your good and  do it."

Killing Our Home

We humans, arguably the most intelligent and most highly evolved species to inhabit planet Earth, are destroying the only home available to us.

Consider these irrefutable facts:

Glaciers are melting.

Sea levels are rising. 

Drought is spreading and becoming more severe. 

Wildfires are decimating the western United States. 

Temperatures are higher than they have ever been. 

Hurricanes are proliferating. 

Much of the northeastern United States has been beset by massive flooding.

Air quality is poor in much of the country due to fires.

A deadly virus has killed millions of people around the world.

Rivers are running dry.

Some 16,306 species of animals and plants are facing extinction.

A broken pipeline off the coast of southern California spilled more than 144,000 gallons of crude oil into the Pacific Ocean.

The human population continues to increase, although the rate of growth is slowing.

Planet Earth is the only home we have. There may well be other habitable planets in the solar system, but we have no way to transport billions of people there. And there is no infrastructure available to support human life.

So while the naysayers mock and laugh at people such as teenager Greta Thunberg and others who are sounding the alarm, the danger is real. We are at the tipping point right now. If we don't take collective action to reduce climate change, it will be too late for all of us.

I'm an old lady, so I won't be around when the water is gone and the air is unfit to breathe. I won't be here when there are no food crops because there is no rain for the crops, and the bees vital to crop propagation are extinct. And I don't want to live in a world where there are no elephants, no tigers, no whales in the seas.

Today is Earth Day 2022. If humans are to survive the climate crisis, it’s going to take each and every one of us working together. But individual actions alone won't be enough. We need widespread, corporate involvement. We need a fundamental shift in the way we live, including a great reduction in the use of fossil fuels.

Change begins with us. I am now more conscious of my electricity consumption, and I make a greater effort to combine trips by car. Mass transit and walking are not an option as they were when I lived in California, where I could walk or ride my bicycle to the grocery store, or take the train to work. 

Each of us can do something. What will you do to help save the planet?

The World Is A Joke

Yes, the world is a joke ... but it isn't funny.

Superpower Russia has invaded Ukraine, an independent neighboring country that spent decades under oppressive Soviet domination, as the Russian megalomaniac president seeks to restore the country's domination of eastern Europe. Ukrainians, military and civilians alike, have done a remarkable job of fighting for their country against overwhelming forces.

A Russian athlete at the winter Olympics, who tested positive for a banned drug, was allowed to compete but not to win a medal. Apparently the pressure and the controversy affected her mentally, as she repeatedly fell during the competition, placing a distant fourth.

Truckers and others in Canada and elsewhere felt it was their right to interrupt commutes and international trade because they oppose vaccination and mask mandates. Boo hoo hoo.

Crime rates in the United States continue to skyrocket. 

Attacks on women's reproductive freedom are proliferating through more and more states. 

The threats to the American democratic form of government continue to bring us closer and closer to becoming an autocracy.

The number of states passing legislation designed to reduce voting rights for minority voters is growing.

We continue to treat the planet as if it will always be there, ready to support the human species despite being polluted, overpopulated and despoiled.

We continue to attack each other in the name of greed or religion or some other unimportant offense to our beliefs..

The state of Florida has rejected more than 40 percent of math textbooks because of its obsession with 'critical race theory.'

At least in the US, our former sense of community has been replaced by a prevailing 'what's in it for me?' attitude. Shoplifting, home invasions, car thefts and other crimes are skyrocketing. And we cannot overlook skyrocketing gun violence.

I don't like what this world, this country in particular, has become. 

Humans are supposedly the most advanced species on the planet. We need to start acting like it.

Raw Emotions

Never before has watching the news every day brought me to tears. 

But now it is extremely difficult to watch the stories of the destruction of Ukraine and the slaughter of its residents by the Russian military.

I’m not someone who weeps easily. This massacre in Ukraine has touched me deeply. I hate that the United States and its allies are standing by and watching this democratic country be destroyed. Yes, we have sent some weapons and humanitarian aid, but it is far from being enough.

I understand that no one wants to engage Russian troops and aircraft, potentially starting another world war or pushing Russia to use nuclear weapons. But something must be done to stop the bully Putin. Bullies don’t stop on their own. They stop only when they are stopped.

So many things, both good and bad, bring tears to the surface. Mostly these things are related to Ukraine. An image of someone rescuing dogs and cats abandoned when their humans fled the war. Learning that a mother's only son has died in defense of his country. Seeing the crush of Ukrainians at the Polish border, desperate to reach safety. Hearing that the Russians are targeting schools, hospitals and apartment buildings, as well as civilians fleeing the bombing of their neighborhoods. Knowing that the residents of city after city are quickly running out of food and water.

And then I read an uplifting story from Kenya about a group of grandmothers having a peaceful encounter with a massive bull elephant. Or reading about the morning antics of a previously horribly abused dog. And of course I am heartened by the incredible acts of bravery and compassion by Ukrainians and non-Ukrainians alike who are preparing meals, donating toys for refugee children and providing medical care.

All of these stories, as different as they can possibly be, touch my heart and bring tears to the surface. I cannot begin to image the suffering so many innocent people are enduring.

It isn't that I don't care about the suffering people. It's that I am helpless to do anything to ease their suffering, and my mind is being overwhelmed by the magnitude and the deliberateness of the suffering.

So I will continue to donate money each month to organizations working on the group to feed and care for those who have, quite literally, lost everything.