It all started with a wedding. Did you know that the first blanket we ever bought was for a wedding gift? We knew about Basha, and I loved the blankets. But, we were living the student-life at the time; I wasn’t spending $4 on a coffee, much less $100 on a blanket — no matter how much I loved it!
“Do you even know what a big problem human trafficking is?” This is a question I was posed by someone I love, someone who knows me and what I do. But this was a rant borne, I think, of the powerlessness and overwhelm of learning more about the world; of being faced with the cruelty & despair of suffering; of coming to see — and really feel — the frustration that some people with money, power, & influence, continually wield it unjustly with no end or recourse in sight. Do I know what a big problem human trafficking is?Yes, it is a big problem. Yes, I am aware of it.
I love summer, and I think at least partly it’s because as a rebel (who resists expectations) I am nostalgic for the glory days of few obligations or responsibilities. I wrote about this last week… it’s a theme! And what is more leisurely than strolling the stacks at the library, then lazily reading on the hammock, couch, in a treehouse, on a blanket spread in the grass or on the sand. I seemed to have the luxury of endless hours of reading in my youth, though now that pleasure is mostly saved for holidays and Sunday afternoons.
We have 3 school-aged kids who are on summer holidays. I love summertime, and I’m feeling the tension of wanting to soak up every minute and maximize these fleeting times with my kids, with the day-to-day, continued needs of life. I want to play, adventure, create memories; I want to be with my kids to craft, explore, linger over board games, walk to get a cold treat. I also have responsibilities to work, to function, to plan, to keep the life-wheels in motion. Is this the lie, the false pressure of modern motherhood? That nagging insecurity — when I’m doing this, maybe I should be doing that; and visa versa?
The threat of technology to our humanness is no new fear (hello, Blade Runner! …actually: goodbye, you are a super boring movie 😆). But, there seems to be an acute crisis of our current cultural moment, as we relate to technology. Here is just a fraction of writings from the past month addressing this:
