The election is over... Thank God!

The election is over.  The expected happened.  The sitting President's party typically loses Congress in the last two years of his term.  The American electorate is a bit fickle, but the real issue is the lack of real options to choose from and the lack of a real debate.  Where was the discussion of "climate change" and "immigration" and wars we continue to fight?  Where is the discussion of the issues really affecting people?  Instead we heard the same old negative rhetoric with the same talking points that lack any real nuanced discussion.    

The big issue NEVER discussed that leads such a great country to silliness every two years is “campaign finance reform!”  Very few elected representatives talk about this.  I get it.  The typical thinking on the Hill is that you do what you need to do to get elected and then you can do something.  But the problem then becomes our elections are turned into a “game” of electing representatives, rather than electing the person with the best ideas. 

People are already limited enough by the two-party system.  But now in order to be elected you have to raise hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, of dollars to even have a chance.  When will public campaigns without paid advertisements and multiple public forum debates occur?  America is better than this.  And now, we’ve gotten so used to the silliness of our elections and campaigns that the majority of eligible voters do not even vote! 

The system needs to change.  Too many people don’t care and are not given a reason to.  The negative campaigning and lack of real discussion of the issues has continued to make the American election an embarrassment to the world and not what they should be, which is a model of what a Republic could be.   

Neyla's Guatemalan Life...

Me and Mommy in Antigua

We’ve been in Guatemala now for about 3 months and we are really starting to settle in and enjoy the new experience.   We are making new and great friends and we’re discovering our new city and country.  I love our new country; however, I am going to attempt to write this blog from another person’s perspective: Neyla’s.  Unfortunately she is not quite old enough to blog, so I’m going to blog for her.  Here’s your chance to see Guate through Neyla’s eyes:

A few weeks before we left, mommy and daddy started telling me about what sounded like a new magical place that we were moving to: Guatemala!  It sounded so fun and I love just saying it, Wa-te-ma-da.  At least, that’s how I pronounce it.  Mommy and daddy keep taking me on planes all over and so far most of those places have been fun, so I was excited for a new adventure.  

Me and the Guatemalan boy playing
in the fountain in Antigua.  

Daddy left a few days early because mommy said he had to do something called work.  The day mommy and I left I said goodbye to grandma, grandpa and all my cousins and we headed to the airport.  It was not a very fun trip.  Mommy was trying to carry so many bags and me; and on top of that our flight got in 3 hours late to Watemada.  I was so sleepy when daddy met us at the airport and took us to our new home.  I fell asleep immediately and when I awoke I was in our new home with mommy.  

Our new home is so cool.  Mommy has made me not one, but two play rooms.  The first is my art room with all my paint and markers and fun paper.  The other room has a big box house, a play kitchen and my own personal penguin rug!  I love it!  Then upstairs is my bedroom which has a cool pink furry rug and butterfly and flower bedspread and fun flower wall stickers which Mommy let me put on myself.  The best though is all the books mommy gets me from the library.  We read together several times a day and I love it!  

The inside of the house is cool, but the best part is outside, where we have an awesome playground with swings and slides and a soccer field where mommy and I play futbol.  Most days we walk up the hill (I ride in the stroller) and go eat lunch with Daddy at work.  When we get there all of these scary teenagers approach me and make strange noises, I think they think I’m some sort of toy.  But it’s fun.  Each day we walk to the university where mommy and daddy buy me a quesadilla or a grilled cheese and I share a smoothie with mommy.  I love the smoothies!  They’re my favorite.  

Me in the sandbox at
Earthlodge!

Me at Earthlodge with Volcano Agua 
in the background.  

The day to day of my life is pretty packed with fun and exciting things.  First, each day mommy and I wake up and snuggle.  This usually takes anywhere from 5 - 30 minutes depending on how hungry I am.  Next, we’ll eat breakfast, nothing too fancy, usually just cereal and mommy drinks this black stuff called coffee, but she won’t let me have any.  Then if it is not raining, we’ll go to the park and swing, play soccer, do monkey bars or play in the little Neyla sized house.  Mommy is so much fun.  Then, usually the favorite part of my day, visiting daddy at school!  Each day mommy will put me in the stroller and chug up the hill to daddy’s school and we sneak up on him through the back door of his classroom.  We usually walk to buy some lunch and eat a family lunch together.  Then daddy plays catch with me and lets me make drawings for his classroom wall.  

Me, daddy, Papu and Grandma 
in Antigua...
Isn't that volcano in the back cool?

We have even travelled a bit!  On our first trip outside of the city we went to Antigua and mommy and daddy bought me a little Watematan horsey!  He’s so cute.  I slept with him for weeks afterwards.  We walked around the town a bit, actually daddy mostly carried me and I got to play in the water fountain at the center of town with another Watematan boy.  We had so much fun splashing about.  On the way home, I fell asleep in the car.  It’s hard for me to stay awake after such a fun day.

Daddy and I on the airplane
at IRTRA

Another weekend, we went with some friends up to Lake Atitlan.  I enjoyed the park at the restaurant we stopped at, but the boat ride to our hotel was a bit scary.  I’m used to riding large boats in Majuro, but this was a tiny boat with too many people.  I had to sit on Daddy’s lap and I could barely see Mommy.  We got a little wet, but when we got to our hotel, there was a fun doggy and some cool chairs made of tree trunks that I really enjoyed.  Our room was super cool, the beds had white tents over them and I love playing in them.  Sadly, mommy got sick that night and the next day Daddy and I went searching through the small town of San Marcos to find her some Ginger Ale.  After a difficult walk for daddy (not me I was on his shoulders) we finally found some and went back to see if mommy was feeling better.  She wasn’t, so daddy and I went hiking.  It was fun!  We saw birds and flowers and walked a long the lake.  I love hiking with daddy!  

Grandma and I napping...

A few weeks after that we went to a cool place called Earth Lodge.  Daddy went to play some golf, so that left me and mommy during the day to have tons of fun.  We hiked, read books, played on the park and I got to play with a few other kiddos.  It was a fun weekend.  We spent so much time just playing and relaxing, so it was basically like every other day for me, but with a great view.  

Mommy, daddy and I at the
Kite Festival 

Then mommy said that daddy had a long weekend and we were going to do something really really fun. I didn't know what that meant, but I was excited! They took me on Sunday morning to a place called IRTRA. It was a magical land of clown, and rides and shows and all around kid fun! It was awesome. I went on a train, a magic bus, I drove a truck and even went on a ferris wheel. The best was the airplane that daddy took me on, at first I was a little scared, but eventually I grew to love it! It was such a fun day with mommy and daddy!

Last weekend was the best!  Grandma and grandpa came to visit us and I had so much fun with them!  We went to Antigua, played in parks, went swimming and snuggled a lot.  Now that they’re gone, I miss them, but it’ll be Christmas soon and I’ll get to see them and Santa!  

Yesterday we went to see the most giant kites ever and it was so much fun!  I made new friends like Dennis!  He’s my new favorite friend.  The kites were huge, I didn’t know that they made kites so big.  There were so many people around cheering and eating and having fun.  Daddy says that this is a Mayan tradition of flying the kites to be closer to one's ancestors who have passed on.  But I loved the bright colors and the excitement.  I hope we go again next year!

I always fall asleep on car rides home.  But that
Apple juice was mmmmmm  good!  

Overall, I love being able to spend so much time with mommy and I love how much the sun shines here!  

Loving Guatemala, Missing Majuro...

My first three weeks in Guatemala have been nothing short of amazing.  The weather is perfect every single day.  The nature is breath-taking.  The people are warm and welcoming.  My colleages are incredibly helpful and warm.  The work climate is positive and focused on the kids.  The kids are fun and engaging.  The ability to travel virtually every weekend to beautiful locations is intriguing.  In short, I love it. 

                

That is not to say that Guatemala City is some heaven on Earth, in fact, far from it.  The traffic is something that cannot be described.  There are no left turn here and every road is one way.  Often, to get to a store a block away you would have to drive two miles around a ravine and following the one way roads.  On campus, the nature is amazing and the air smells like a Florida morning in spring, but the city as a whole is smoggy.  There are seemingly no emission standards for cars, or if there are, nobody bothers to get them checked.  Crime is a major issue here.  It’s not rampant, but you have to be aware of where you are and if it is wise to be walking in that location.  We are very fortunate to live in an area where there are many places that one can walk safely.  The wealth gap here is startling.  There are some extremely wealthy and so many living in squalor. 

                

I am still learning so much about this country and its people, but so far I love it.  Having said that, I also miss my friends, colleagues and students from Majuro last year.  I wish all of them nothing but the best… and just because I am loving Guatemala doesn’t mean I’m not missing Majuro.  

Guatemala City: First Impressions

First 24 hours in Guatemala

            It has now been almost 24 hours since I arrived in Guatemala City to start my new life in Latin America.  Sadly, Janae and Neyla won’t arrive until Monday night, so I am all alone for the time being.  On a positive note, that gives me time to get our house ready for their arrival and to learn the lay of the land a bit.

            Upon landing and driving from the airport to my new house my very first impression was that it was strikingly similar to other Latin American cities that I have visited.  The streets were crowded and crazy with a sort of organized chaos, adverts in Spanish were all around and street vendors were plentiful.  It was however much more vibrant and beautiful than I imagined.  From what the average American hears about Guatemala in the news I was not sure what to expect, but that first hour was pleasantly surprising to me. 

            Next I arrived at our new home in the La Hoya condo complex.  There was a very secure guardhouse out front with armed guards and a steel reinforced gate, but that is to be expected in virtually any Latin American city.  The green row homes had beautifully manicured gardens and a nice park that I’m sure Neyla will enjoy.  The home itself is incredibly spacious, in fact, I’m not sure what we’re going to do with all the space, so many of you need to come visit!  The style of home here is very different than most homes in Chicago mostly due to the almost perfect climate year round in Guatemala City.  There are several outdoor spaces to be enjoyed and a ton of large sliding doors that invite the natural light and air into your home.  I have to say that it is quite a beautiful to live.  I am very excited to spend the next few years of our lives in this house.  However, there is one downside that I am going to have to do something about.  The shower in the master bedroom is made for a person who is about 5’6’… and as many of you know I am a bit taller than that.

            After settling in I was able to Skype with Neyla and Janae in order to tell them my first impressions and to see their beautiful faces.  I did this on the school’s campus that I will be teaching at and to say that the campus is naturally beautiful is an extreme understatement.  It is wooded, surrounded with gardens and smells like a spring morning in Florida with citrus smells.  After a quick look around the campus I headed off with my new boss for a beer and dinner. 

            We stopped at his place for a minute and had a beer on his back patio and rooftop.  It was the absolute best view I have ever seen in my life!  His house is located on top of a hill and from the rooftop you can see all of Guatemala City and the surrounding volcanoes.  As we were up there the sun was beginning to drop behind the mountains to the west and there was a thunderstorm off to the north of the city.  I think he has gotten accustomed to the amazing view, but I was left with my jaw on the ground. 

            From there we went to dinner in La Cayala, a newer part of the city that reminded me of a very clean and well-kept European town.  The neighborhood had a beautiful Church and center that reminded me of the Spanish steps in Rome.  Beautiful shops, cafes, bars and restaurants surrounded the cobblestone streets.  We settled on a sort of modern sports bar and the food was tasty and relatively inexpensive for such a nice establishment.  My boss commented that this was quite expensive for Guate (as the locals call the city), but believe me it was quite reasonable compared to Chicago restaurants.  The bartender served us the local favorite beer and even gave us a few pints on the house after finding out it was my first night in Guate. 

            It was a great first day here.  I can’t wait for Janae and Neyla to join me!

Embracing Nuance

Too often in the political and geo-political discussions taking place in America and around the world nuance is tragically lost.  A politician or guest on a news program will voice their opinion and be labeled: Anti-American, Anti-Israeli, Anti-Muslim, racist or in favor of something that nobody is in favor of.  Nuance must be embraced if we are to get anywhere toward solving the most complicated issues facing the world.

When Hitler committed his many atrocities, people who were not in favor of these horrific policies were not anti-German or pro-Jewish, they were simply disgusted at how one group of human beings could subject another to such torturous treatment.  The current Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Gaza is similar.  It is wholly unhelpful to view this conflict without great nuance. 

Just because someone has objected to the Israeli government attacking schools and hospitals does not mean that they are Pro-Hamas.  What the Israeli’s are doing is wrong.  They should not be subjecting Palestinian civilians to this sort of everyday living, but at the same time the same can be said about Hamas and the daily threats that Israeli civilians have to live under.  The silent majority are being tragically silenced by the media in America only focusing on Hamas and the too hawkish Israeli government.

I hope and pray for a better discussion to ensue.  Before a peaceful solution can be orchestrated a more balanced, empathetic and nuanced conversation must take place.   

Way Out There

There is a land out in the middle of the vast Pacific.

A land of beauty and majesty like you’ve never seen.

A land that is defined by the ocean and lagoon.

A land where you can throw a rock across the country.

Out there, way out there is a land you’ve never heard of.

A land where Yokwe is a way of life.

A land where the sharks and dolphins and turtles surround you.

A land that doesn’t have much time.

Way far off there is a land, you may have heard of it.

A land with a Spanish, German and Japanese past.

A land of copra and bob and breadfruit.

A land of diversity and poverty.

This land can barely be seen on any map of the world.

It is a land far from the modern urban landscapes.

It is a land of concrete jungles and majestic outer islands.

It is a land searching for a future.

Off in the middle of the vast Pacific are a people.

A people called Ri-Majol.

A people with a noble and distinguished past.

A people with ancestors who braved the depths of blue water.

Here there are a people whose love for their people is unsurpassed.

A people looking for justice.

A people who live in the present.

A people who are torn between the modern and manit.

This beautiful land and people will last.

They are fighters and navigators and impoverished.

They will not stand for the desperation and depravity.

They will go down in the legends as courageous and not entitled. 

The Marshall Islands can not be defined in any other way but by its people.

The present looks dim;

With trash, corruption and lacking healthcare, money and accountability.

But I’ve met its people.

The Ri-Majol are a strong people. 

A people that capture your heart.

I’ve seen a generation that will make The Marshall Islands

A respected and independent people who will rise to the challenge they face.  

Missing in Majuro

I desperately miss my wife and daughter .  It has been hard to be without my two favorite people on the planet.  However, I am so thankful for having people around to help avoid the inevitable loneliness and be as jubilant as I possibly can without Janae and Neyla. 

Today is a majestic Saturday morning in Majuro.  The sun is shining, the wind is gentle and the natural music of the waves settle my soul.  I sit alone thinking, dreaming, imagining and I am appreciative for so many people in my life. 

First, my students.  My 8^th graders this year are an amazing and fantastic bunch of young Marshallese kids.  I am so bullish on the future of this tiny and beautiful country after having spent one year with this group of brilliant and passionate students.  In many ways they are typical teenagers, but I have gotten to know them to a point that I believe epic greatness awaits their future.  I see future political leaders, business leaders, community organizers, journalists, and other dedicated individuals to changing the Marshall Islands into an efficient and dynamic Pacific country in the near future.  I see this country becoming an authentic leader with moral standing based on action and not just rhetoric with this generation leading. 

Second, my basketball team.  The average age of my “high school” basketball team is 14 years old and half of my team are actually middle school students.  We routinely play against teams who are mostly juniors and seniors.  Essentially we are boys playing against young men.  Amazingly, we worked our tails off and achieved 3^rd place in the Island High School tournament.  How you may ask did we achieve such a difficult task?  The team was dedicated to learning the proper way to play basketball and to supporting each other against teams that were taller, faster and stronger.  They inspired me.  I am so proud of their achievements this year and so happy that I was part of this season with them.  The future is bright for COOP basketball. 

Third, my friends.  There are so many people whose friendship I greatly value in Majuro, too many to mention here.  But I will specifically mention three individuals who have always been amazing friends and colleagues to me.  I affectionately refer to these three as Danny LapLap, K-Cupp and 2ski. 

Danny LapLap was my first true friend here in Majuro. When I arrived in this small and isolated country he helped me figure this place out and navigate my way through such a different culture from my own.  Our shared love of basketball and conversation continually gave us the opportunity to bond and form a friendship that will never end. 

K-Cupp was one of Janae’s best friends here in Majuro, and I feel proud to call her a close friend as well as a huge part of our Majuro family.  There is nobody that Neyla will miss from Majuro more than K-Cupp.  Neyla affectionately called her “Ka.”  Ka would always jambo (walking exploration) with Neyla and would graciously watch Neyla when Janae and I needed a night out.  Ka was and is a great big sister or aunt-like figure for Neyla in a place where we were far from family.  Ka is one of the kindest and compassionate people I have ever met and she has greatly helped me to not be “down in the dumps” without my two girls being here. 

2ski is the little brother that I never had.  He is one of those people that you meet and instantly there is a connection and trust that authentic relationships require.  I am proud to call him a brother and life long friend.  When I leave Majuro I will desperately miss him.  He is one of those people that could make friends with a light post and I feel fortunate that of all the people he could be a close friend with that he has chosen to befriend and trust me.

I can’t wait to see Janae and Neyla again in just two short weeks.  But I will greatly miss Majuro.  This is the most bitter-sweet moment of my entire life.  I will miss the Marshall Islands incredibly.  Those who I have mentioned here have been instrumental in my keeping my sanity over the past few weeks and I will miss them the most.   I love the old cliché, “this is not goodbye, but see you later.”