A VISUAL POST OF THE PAST FEW YEARS

It has been years since I have written.  It seems like a lifetime.  Things have changed in so many ways.  I am thankful most of them have been for the good. I am blessed with good friends and family to help through those that were difficult.  
John passed away on December 28, 2017. His funeral service and just about every photo ever taken of him is online on my Facebook page.  I am directing you there if you want to seek it out.  Let's just say I am thankful, so thankful that it was fast.  I can't write anymore about it. 

I'm going to do this in pictures.  They are random...over the past several years.  I will comment on them so you can see where they are from.  Enjoy.  

Beautiful photo of the Coleman Bridge in Gloucester
.  Heading there for our 50th Class of 1970 Reunion in May.

A memory from 2006 when we celebrated Mardi Gras
with about 75 TCW friends to help rebuild after
Hurricane Katrina.  

The following photos are of my desk.  It's the center
of the universe for TCW.  Yes, I know where EVERYTHING is!

  I keep so many momentos around my desk.  Good energy!

Olive rosary from Palestine.  I have a whole cabinet
shelf of gifts and precious things from the people I
love there.  N A B L U S, Palestine 

P.S.  I made the bear with the MardiGras bead

The daffodils bloomed WAY too soon this year.  I brought some in from
the yard.  This is a beautiful photo from Gloucester, VA.  I wrote a
song about the DAFFODILS to have sung at our 50th reunion
with Mike Ward.  

This is Brandon from Petersburg Public Schools.  There was
an incredible grassroots meeting held in a church basement
last week pulling all the neighborhoods from the 1990s
back into an association - PAN (Petersburg Assn of Neighborhoods)
I was invited to participate and speak since TCW was so involved with them

 Me last weekend at the DRIFTING event organized by my
son-in-law.  Drifting is fast car driving on a very curvy track.
It is an international sport...definitely NOT Nascar!
I rode with BEN driving......WHOAAAAA!!!!

This is Nancy Wein, founder of
RPIP - Richmonders for Peace in Israel & Palestine
We saw an incredible documentary last week taken
in Hebron.  This group meets once a  month and are
so supportive of our Palestinian campers

Just a little sample of DRIFTING.  

My son-in-law Ben at the track.

yea, drifting!

The snow was so beautiful in February.  This is
the trip down our driveway one morning.  

An old friend I found when making phone calls to locate folks
for our 50th reunion.  Randall Beaver was my SCA advisor and very'
instrumental in who I am now.  Always encouraging...always saying yes
I love him dearly.  So glad I found him!!

Our Palestinian teen team from NABLUS for Workcamp 2019.
Beautiful people I love very  much.  

VCU RAM basketball suspended along with many other activities
around the world because of the CORONA VIRUS.

Just a reminder of the empowering things that go on
during workcamp..Power in PINK!!

Al showed me how to take a selfie.  The only way I
could push the buttons was laying back.  Oh boy. 
Didn't mean for it to be "come hither":)  Funny!

Just a photo of my vehicle after my accident about 4 years ago.
I am thankful for airbags and the good ol' boy that pulled threw me his
hunting knife so I could cut the seatbelt before he pulled me thru the windshield. 

My sweet sweet friend, Mohammed Ihsan.  We walked into
the class reunions the past few times.  He passed away last
year from pancreatic cancer.  I have stones from the old GHS
rubble to take to put on his footstone.  I will be going soon.  

Yes, this is happening MARCH 28th.  I have always wanted to
jump from a plane and I'm excited.  Photos and video will be
posted here! 

New rubber ID bracelets arrived for this summer's camp!

My favorite flower because it reminds me of so many good
things.  I will post the lyrics to the song DAFFODILS that
I wrote.  I guess this is the time to mention that I have begun writing
songs for the first time in over 30 years.  Also playing the piano.  It's so
therapeutic and feels so good!  Just finish a song about a Pburg resident
I met and a little girl from Allie's office.  Allie now works at a non-profit
in their Interpreter Services  along with Refugees & Immigration.  It is
heartbreaking.  The prompter for all this writing.  My old friend, DAVID KING,
who started my career in music in the 1990s.  He says I have "risen from the dead"

The hands of the youth and young adults are good hands to be in.

The fireplace at Christmas time.  

My license plate

What I really try to do in life.  

This and the following few photos are from Blandford Cemetary in
Petersburg, VA.  I took them after some genealogical digging for
Randall Beaver on Ancestry and finding out that his gggrandfather is
one of few that there is a record on as being buried in the
crater there after the BATTLE OF THE CRATER  

Ahhhhhh Ranim.  Oh how we wished we could have
gone to her wedding in Jordan!  So beautiful!!!!

My babies :)

Back of the house during winter.

Ben's sister, ABBY was married this past December.  They
now live in southern California.  Spencer is in the Navy.

Edyth and I onstage MANY, MANY moons ago!  Thank God we
have both changed physically!  

My sweet Paul doing his thing in NYC.  So proud of him and all
the successes he is having!  He sang so beautifully at
John's service.  

BFF Lynn and her daughter Sid.  Lynn beat kidney cancer and
Sid was married this past fall!  My precious friends.

My brother Jon (on the left) receiving an award from NC schools.
He is one of their main architects! 

Of course, I had to put in a photo on the plight of Palestine.  This young
woman was trying to cross at one of the checkpoints to see her family.  She was
shot in the back by the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) .  There is video of them
kicking her phone out of her reach as she tried to call for help as she died.  It
a daily activity of this regime.  

My beautiful daughter in her kafia scarf.  So proud of her
and the people she is assisting.  She's fluent in French, speaks
Arabic and is embedded in Spanish in her office.  

This group of people are my heart.  This is part of the staff of TCW in
the summer.  Full of hugs, kisses and goofiness! 

My cousin Daniel in Woolwich, London, England.  He is another part
of my heart.  His apartment has a beautiful view of the Thames and
the ferries going by.  I can't wait to go see him again.  

Al and I are heading to this little hideaway in Nags Head next weekend
for 3 nights just to sit and look at the waves.  I'm not a summer sun beach
person, but LOVE sitting on the shore in the snuggly weather.  It's right next
to the fishing pier also!

This last two photos are from summer camps.  I only put two because
there is a plethora of them at www.tworkcamps.org online  

Well, this is a good chunk of visually catching up.  More in the next post.  

THE POOL IS GREEN

The pool is green.  The grass is grown.  There is still stuff in the "van".  WORKCAMP 2017 is complete, and was a wonderful happening.  I love having my family together in July.  This year Jenn was on staff with us.  Dinwiddie High School was our home this summer.  It was big.  The camp was big.  

So much is changing and has changed.  Allie now has a "part-time" job with CCC in Richmond, with Refugee Resettlement.  She was made for this job.  It is such a demanding job though emotionally and physically  Without good management, they bump along doing incredible things.  She is so gifted and is learning things about the system and herself each day.  

We had a wonderful girls day yesterday....Olde Towne Petersburg, food and shopping.  We are hoping to go down to NC in Sept to see Edyth play Mother Superior in "SISTER ACT".  

We have no hummingbirds this year because of a black snake.  It seems that the slithery creatures are out in full force this summer.  John even had his own experience at Dogwood Trace golf course the other day.  I doubt he will return there to play. 

Ranim came and spent a week with us in June.  She was visiting her aunt in California, so she caught a cheap night flight and came out to play with Allie, Ellen and I.  I'll put photos up next post.  

This post is basically to say, "Yes, I am still alive and on the internet!".  Hopefully I can start keeping up now!  

BACK TO MY REALITY CHECK

Back to my reality check.

I've been whining. 

-  I have been really puny the past couple months with the only thing I can say is the "yuck".  just haven't been able to kick it.  Everyone has it....it was just getting me down.  And now my family has the stuff!

-  We had waited for approval and were so excited about finding a home for WORKCAMP 2017 at Matoaca Middle School.  Then after waiting for the published approval and telling everyone where we were going to be based this summer, Chesterfield Schools said they didn't "realize" we were going to spend the night in the school and that we couldn't be there.  So, back to tap dancing to find a place for our band of gypsies this summer.  I'm not worried....it's just that it's really putting a damper on my ability to keep folks informed about logistics.....and we ALL KNOW how I like to keep people informed:)

-  Mice have come into my house from the cold and these are mutant mice. This is a fight that is going pretty easily in my favor.

 I hunkered down with our VICKS and box of tissues to watch a new HBO documentary yesterday.  

The Children...

HBO Official Trailer of "Cries From Syria"

 It is 2 hours long.  It documents the beginning history of Syria's fight for freedom.  It explains Asad, the regime, the Syrian Freedom Army, the intrusion of  Al Quaida and ISIS.  It shows the bravery of the White Helmets and the inhumanity of resin and chlorine gas.  It carries you through the Russian bombings which continue now.  It takes you on the journey of families and orphans through gunfire and barbwire and starvation and black seas that gobble up lives.

And how is this story told?  Through the voices and interviews of young men and women....and most of all. the sheer terrifying stories of the children.

A White Helmet rescuing babies from the rubble

It is compelling, and gruesome.  It is educational and devastating.  If you need clarity about what is happening there....what our role is there....and what our role is here in our country, I dare you to watch.  It is not easy, but if you REALLY want to know the difference between a terrorist and a refugee seeking safety, don't turn away. I plead with you to watch this award winning film....take it in.

I think the reason that I am so accute in my feelings about this is because I believe that Asad's slaughtering of his own people is only a breath away from being Netanyahu's final assault on the Palestinian people.  For some reason, it is easy for leaders to justify committing unfathomable torture when they believe God is on their side.  Please click on the links above to sample what you will see.
And in our country....
There was a documentary on The White Helmets that won an Academy Award.  These are young men that are bakers, tailors, businessmen that are the first to dig through the rubble to save the children. But guess what...they were not allowed into the U.S. to be celebrated at the awards. Our country refused them entry under the new travel ban.
Some of you say, "I just can't watch stuff like that on TV."  Well, this is an opportunity to buckle up and look truth in the eyes while sitting in the safety of your own home.
You will be a wreck when you have finished watching.....embrace it...and be thankful for your life.
I'm not asking you to fill every day with stories like this, but this is one for all to see if we are going to talk about refugees, and asylum and immigration and Muslims and bans and walls and...Russians...and....

NO WALLS

The weather was bitter and blustery in Washington DC early evening this past Wednesday.  It was much like the atmosphere inside the White House where Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel was spending quality time with our new POTUS.  There was chain link fencing around the big residence....bleacher frames still standing from the inaugural.  Another wall...this one cold and silver protecting the racist activities going on inside.
There was only about 100 of us bracing the cold. ALL the key players were there though.

Linda Sasour, well known Palestinian activitist was whisked in and out under death threats to her and her family.  She is probably most recently known for being one of the co-organizers of the Women's March on DC.  

Rabbi Weiss and a group from NKUSA (Neturei Karta Organization of Jews United Against Zionism)  Again, a group that stands firm in their interpretation of the Torah, and are ostracized for their beliefs.

 Rabbi Joseph Berman, leader of Jewish Voices for Peace.  Christian, Jewish and Muslim speakers alike were there to inspire and address the following main issues:
  -  NO to David Freidman being appointed Israeli Ambassador.  He is a settler...owns real estate in settlements
  -  NO to the continuouse building of SETTLEMENTS.
  -  NO to moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem giving the Palestinians no free movement to the embassy and again dismissing the part they play in the land.
  -  NO to the Muslim ban and registry in the U.S.

Friend Kathy Drinkard & key speaker for SABEEL

  -  NO to Netanyahu and his Zionist government's aparthaid treatment of Palestinians.

  I have put a collection of videos of the speakers, photos and links to news articles at the end of the blog.  My daughter Allie shared in the experience with me.  She has such a wealth of knowledge, education and understanding of all the cultures, issues and workings of the groups and people participating in the events that we attend.  I love that she can so easily explain to me what is actually going on.  She is the "brains & understanding".  I am the "bull in the china shop":)
 We will continue to raise our voices. She and I dearly love many faces and families in Palestine.  It is not a political issue for us....it is personal!
 I quote someone I read on the internet the other day.  To me it just makes sense:
"The facts are so unbelievably simple:  Muslims are not terrorists, terrorists are terrorists.  Catholics are not pedophiles, pedophiles are pedophiles.  Christians are not far right homophobes, far right homophobes are far right homophobes.  We have NO right to judge or treat anyone differently, be it by race, religion or sexuality.  We are all genetically human so can we just start acting with some humanity?  Holy moley!"  

Click on any of the underlined links below for stories and news articles. I hope the links give you insight to the movement to free Palestine from the occupation.  It is true....there are lives at stake. "From Palestine to Mexico, all the walls have got to go!"

This is an article from the online news agency begun by two Jewish brothers,  MONDOWEISS. They interviewed Allie and I and there is also a picture.  

http://mondoweiss.net/2017/02/palestinians-advocates-netanyahu/

A worldwide organization of Christians leading the charge against racism and the treatment of Palestinians.
http://sabeel.org/

News article about the rallies
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2017/02/16/510764/Americans-protest-policies-of-Israel-Netanyahu-visits-DC

Web address of NKUSA - explaining the position of the Orthodox Jews present at rallies around the world
http://www.nkusa.org/AboutUs/index.cfm

I wish I was more computer literate, but I can't figure out how to get videos on here.  If you want to hear Linda Sasour and others, you can click on Alexina Portyrata's facebook page.  You can also try clicking on my FB page and under comments on this posting at #BuildMovementsNotWalls and then clicking on VIDEOS.  Sorry for my inability to geek:)

REFUGEES COMPARED TO WHAT???

 I read where someone was was comparing the fleeing refugees to people in the water after the sinking of the Titanic.  I don't even know how to understand that thinking! Today we have people who are planning to go to another country and "help" the refugees.  They know no Arabic or Greek.  They are going armed with their Bibles to "witness" to them.  They have had no classes in the history of what has happened to the suffering and their backgrounds  They do not know the names of any world leaders.

 Hundreds of well meaning Christians are arriving on foreign shores to evangelize where refugees have taken haven. This will be the next attrocity that these desperate families are set to face.  No, the Titanic was a pristine oceanliner filled with the globe's richest and most prestigious people wearing their diamonds and finery.  They were fleeing nothing.  They had been through no strife or killings.  They were not suffering from PTSD.  They had not seen much of their family killed in front of them.  They had not just buried their dead babies.

 Do not tell me that you are heading to a foreign shore if you voted for a president that has banned these hopeless people from our shores. If you have not educated yourself in their history and plight, DON'T GO!  If you have not demanded that they be allowed to come to our country for safe haven, DON'T GO!   If you do go, close your lips.  Say nothing.  Cry with them. Take them food, blankets, medicine, clothing, diapers and welcoming arms.  If you cannot do this without forcing them to hear your well meaning prayers, DON'T GO!  If you cannot resist the temptation to push your religious beliefs on an already religious people, then DON'T GO!

 I have purposely edited the pictures shown....they are far tame compared to the actual photos friends are sending me.  So, let this sink in.

It seems that my blog has taken a bit of a turn.  Because of the times, I am not sure that I can write about my pet Louie or my good life  On occasion I will use this as a forum to share what I have learned to be true....yes, researched or been given first hand information on what is going on.

Reality has hit....to quote Sinclair Lewis in 1935, "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross."