Farewell y hasta luego!

Tomorrow morning I will wake up, pack my car and set off for the adventure of a lifetime. Mi prometido y yo are going in search of America. We have 9 weeks to drive in our Prius and discover the state of our nation today. What is the recession outside of the media and how is it impacting real people in the middle of the country? In the South? What is it like to be a newly arrived immigrant in Minneapolis? New Orleans? After this summer, I hope to have those and many more answers.

I will be continuing to blog all multi-culturally related events of the journey on Me Dije Porque... Stay tuned for additional blogs on American's best running trails and taco stands. :)

Thank you y muchas gracias a ustedes for reading and following this blog throughout the quarter. Espero que todo este bien en la vida. I hope that all goes well in your lives and that you have a great summer.
-BC

New Family Traditions

This weekend was spent with my best friend from college - who is about to become my brother-in-law. I was also hanging out with my new friend Jon - who is about to become my stepson. All this quality bonding time got me thinking about family in all the forms it takes. While last summer I lost my dad, I've just managed, in the last nine months to have gained a husband, a child, a brother and of course, all the in-laws I can possibly want! (6 children on one side of the family alone.)
When I was a kid I'd always walk by big families picnicking in the parks of Phoenix - twenty kids yellin' and running through the sprinklers, parents subtely sipping on spiked Cactus Coolers and I'd feel kinda sad. My nuclear family was only 4, everyone else lived all the way out in North Carolina.
Now I realize that family can be more universal. I can choose my family - or they can choose me and we can all proverbially picnic in the park together. It's a great feeling, and one that I definetely wanted to share.

Bi-lingual Dreams

Saludos a mi gente!

     Lately, I've been enjoying a strange mezcla of English and espanol in my dreams.  The characters will sometimes speak in English to me and I will answer back in Spanish, or, like last night, my "voiceover" narrator is projecting his official, wise voice, but in Spanish.

     I'm wondering if any or all of you second language learners have been able to manipulate this phenom into a learning experience, for example, by training your mind to go to less familiar territory and therefore gain vocabulary practice?

     When I was studying to be a cartoon writer in college, the best thing about the experience was that my dreams became like "Roger Rabbit," with animated and real-life bits included.  All kinds of crazy things happened, and one of the scariest portions of the dreamworld, mortality, became obsolete.  How can a cartoon die? (The Dip!  The Dip!!  Poor shoe...)

      I have also noticed that on days after this class, my dreams reflect the process of opening and closing windows.  I have discussed with others the strange effect that hypertexting and links have on the mind as well.  

      If the great ideas of progress stem from dreams, and what we do in real life effects dreams, what can we all be doing today to make the world a better place in the future?  See you in Dreamland...

Hoy es un dia muy especial para mi

One year ago today my dad, perfectly healthy, entered an operating room to undergo voluntary (but strongly suggested by the doctor) brain surgery. Although the tumor they removed was benign, it was too large and his brain collapsed on itself, paralyzing him during the surgery. He never regained his ability to swallow, speak or move his right side. Twenty-four days later, my dad died.

Last night marked one year since I'd heard his voice. Strangely, I was in a Bed, Bath & Beyond during the final "good luck, I love you" call before the operation. Today, I couldn't help but think of him and wish that somehow there was more language for grieving in English, more open channels of communication, more universal rituals in place in our American culture to better express my feelings.

I have always been drawn to Mexican culture, and one of the main reasons is the openess about death and dying. Lleve a mi hermanito a Calle Olvera el octubre pasado para ver la celebracion del Dia de los Muertos. It was cathartic for us both to witness others openly communicating with their loved ones not still here on Earth.

Having no real religion to subscribe to, I turn to the wisdom of great Buddhist thinkers, and the beauty of the setting sun. When I am really missing my dad, so badly that I start to cry, I make a point to walk out to the beach at sunset and say, "Hello, Dad." Sunset orange and Carolina blue were his favorite colors.

Meditation

As finals time approaches for my teacher and student friends alike, I must pause to offer some advice - take time to meditate.

It is my understanding that meditation might be defined as "clearing the mind and body of worry and stress."  In the interest of creating a better environment for you and your loved ones, I offer my (limited) knowledge of how this kind of clarity and peace might be achieved.

1.  Sit still in a comfortable place and close your eyes.  Breathe deeply and try to imagine your mind as a giant chalkboard.  Visualize all of your stresses by writing simple sentences on the chalkboard.  When they are all listed, begin to slowly erase them, line by line until the chalkboard of your mind is clean.

2.  Sit comfortably in a favorite spot and pick an object of beauty on which to concentrate.  Breathe deeply and let your mind wander as you focus on the object.  Notice its size, shape, texture, color.  Imagine what it would be like to touch, smell or taste it.  By the time you have fully engaged with the object, your mind should be free (or at least distracted) from worry!

3.  Take a nice long run (away from traffic) and let your mind wonder.  As you're running, imagine wrapping up a worry, tying a bow around the box, and then chucking the box out beside or behind you.  By the time you are through, all your worries should be safely left behind.  You will be ready to start your day.

Many studies show that stress can be a major contributor to illness.  It has even been linked to an increased breast cancer risk for women.  So, whether these strategies work for you or not, take time in your day to relax.  Let go.  Feel better.

-B.C.

Where All are Welcome

I spent last Saturday night in Dodgertown - where more than one sign informed me that "All are Welcome."  As I looked around at the extremely diverse crowd I was reminded again how much sports can unite people.  

As a born and bred Phoenician I have loyalty issues rooting for the Lakers (Go SUNS Go!), but I went away to college long before the DiamondBacks were established, so I have no qualms about rooting for my new hometown team.

When traveling, I highly recommend discovering the local favorite team and stopping in a neighborhood bar for some friendly chit chat about the players, the history of the franchise, even the game itself.  It worked wonders for me in New Zealand and allowed conversations with craggy old beer drinkers who were more than happy to discuss the finer points of their country's rugby rules.

While religion and politics can often divide people, sports talk - even the most heated rivalries - give people a chance to approach strangers and bond over something that, for me, is much less superficial than smog, traffic or the weather.  

When you're a sports fan, you wear your team, and to an extent, your heart on your sleeve.  Everyone knows when you're going to be up (big victory!  buzzer beater!) or down (slump, the Rival emerges Victorious).  I guess the point for me has always been that you are daring to stand up and root for something, along with thousands of strangers and friends all over the world.  

Hope to see you in Dodgertown soon...

B.C.

An unexpected key

During the MesoAmerican conference last weekend, I learned that MesoAmerican societies put a premium on literacy.

The Mayans had such complex syllabic glyphs that it has taken linguist experts over 100 years to crack the code.  For further information on this quest, there is an amazing documentary called "Breaking the Maya Code" which is available through Night Fire Films.

After the Spanish arrived, all of the MesoAmerican scribes were forced by the Catholic church to give up their old glyphic writing in favor of the English Roman alphabet - which they did, just using more recognizable letters to continue writing in their own language.

What does all this ancient history have to do with today?  Many times I hear ESL teachers in public high schools complaining that Hispanic students seem to suffer from not growing up in an environment which values learning, specifically literacy.  However, it is culturally untrue!  If the same tough kids who are painting their Low Riders with Mayan temple depictions are reminded that their ancestors were not just fearless warriors, but also literate artists and thinkers, it might make a real difference in their attitude.

It is the Spanish Conquistadores and Friars who, sadly, burned MesoAmerican books in an attempt to crush the "devil worship".  They had every reason to keep the Native peoples illiterate and powerless against Spanish government and rule.  

Perhaps with more emphasis placed on the scholarly aspect of their ancestors, urban Chicano students might take reading, and school, more seriously.  They might begin to realize that acquiring knowledge in and of itself is an act of rebellion.