Some trees for Snakey

2007-07-29T22:26:15Z

I should have known--Snakey is a tree lover!!! (I think I saw her lonnnngggggg sister edging up a huge trunk last week in Congaree State Park)

The following trees are from NYC--the deep snowy ones are from Feb. 13, 2006--the biggest snowfall in Central Park history. And the rest are about a month later as the snow was melting. The one with leaves was taken later in the spring in Union Square.

The Spirit of Dumbledore

2007-07-26T04:14:56Z

"Muthu ndi muthu nga munwe." This is the Venda translation of the proverb that expresses the African understanding of human interconnectedness. The English is something like, "A person is a person through another (person). In Zulu it is called "ubuntu."

It means my identity is always connected to the identity of others. I'm someone's daughter. I'm someone's sister or cousin. I'm someone's parent. I'm someone's spouse. I'm someone's friend.

If on this very day, Nelson Mandela were to travel to his home village to preside over any sort of occasion, the person giving his introduction would start by introducing him as his parents' son first and foremost. His accomplishments and awards would come afterward and mostly have significance because they give his family something to be proud of--a sense of meaning and purpose to share with him.

This innate sense of interconnection is a key reason that the miracle of the creation of the new South Africa was possible. Put simply as I am able--black South Africans knew that seeking retribution against their white oppressors in the end would harm themselves and the generations to follow as much as it would their enemies. Many people understand that their own healing is intricately intertwined with the healing of all South Africans together.

As the first white person to move back to an all black area after the forced removals over 30 years ago (invited by a church parish)--I experienced this generous, close to miraculous, willingness to connect on a day to day basis. Many, many people knew who I was by word of mouth. They went out of their way to greet and welcome me everywhere I went.

Never once in three and a half years did I feel anything but a spirit of openness, hopefulness and friendship. At times --especially after the Iraq war started--people would ask me about politics and international relations--but always in a thoughtful and polite way. How you talk to people--how you treat people--matters.

The result of this is that, even as a recognizable representative of the oppressing group, I was accepted as a human being and a friend.   I was received as someone who could make a contribution to the building up of South Africa--alongside new friends--who then invited me into their families.

I found out who I was for the first time:  a part of something greater than myself--not because I earned it, not because I deserved it, not because of a name or a position--but because I am.

And this interconnection, this innate sense of belonging cannot be taken away. If it is not earned--it cannot be spent or exhausted. It just is.

And Dumbledore understood this. His one path of seeking interdependence with all magical beings was a path that was then opened up to the entire wizarding world. Every life that he touched who received him--was changed.

Like a stone dropped into a still pond--Dumbledore's spirit of mutual respect and care moved outward into ever widening circles and created possiblities for every magical being and creature. One being at a time.

Weakness and mistakes cannot change the fact that a person is still a part of others. Accomplishments and victories mean nothing if they are not shared. And no one person is all one or the other. For better or for worse--we are still part of one another.

There is so much more about ubuntu as expressed in HP that I would like to ponder. Jo and her willingness to share her knowledge of the WW with us all has deepened my sense of the power of love and forgiveness more than I could have ever wished for. And as we all catch up with our DH reading and processing together--I'd love to hear how the interconnections we share on both sides of the brick wall have touched you too!

janiebheartsdd

Some trees for Snakey

The Spirit of Dumbledore