A Saga

He was an adventurer, searching for love and the meaning of life. She was an activist, struggling for justice while trying to find who she was. When they met, amidst politics, music, and Jesus, they could not stand each other. Yet the force that sought to keep them apart would be the force that ultimately brought them together..........

So begins the story of Maria D'Amato and Sebastian Orsolini. Theirs would be a story that no one would ever forget......

Stay tuned...........

My experience with the Cherokees

I went to Cherokee Nation, North Carolina, land of the Eastern Band Cherokees, for my spring break as an alternative break. For those who don't know, at my school, alternative breaks are a wonderful opportunity for students to combine service with a chance to learn about a culture or situation (such as DC's education system) that we may not be familiar with. For Spring Break this year, trips were offered to El Salvador (to witness the elections), Northern Ireland (to learn about religious tolerance and peace building) and staying in DC (to learn about the educational system and the challenges it faces).

To be honest, I didn't intend to go away at first. I thought I would just stay and take the chance to work, make some more money than I normally would. I thought I would until I found out about the trip to Cherokee.

My main reason for going was the opportunity I would lose by not going. This opportunity was the chance to learn about the Cherokee people, their customs, their culture. You see, even though the Native Americans were the first people in this country, all I really learned about them was : a) they ate with the Pilgrims on Thanksgiving (that's what they told us in elementary school anyway), b) Said settlers then proceeded to kill them all, c) Andrew Jackson signed the Order of Indian Removal, forcing them to leave, d) something vague about mission schools, and e) they had a lot of casinos. Sadly, we never really learned about their government, culture, spirituality, or even that they were just like any of the rest of us (even in movies, all you really see of them are medicine men and chiefs, saying "How?" all the time and beating on drums).

They never told us that tribal governments were sovereign lands of their own, subject only to the US federal government. They never told us that they were never allowed to try non-natives in a tribal court. They told us about sweat lodges and vision quests, but they never told us about the significance of the two acts or even which tribes practiced them for which reasons (Cherokees for physical healing, Lakota for spiritual and physical). They never told us how our government had a hand in sterilizing Lakota women in South Dakota (at least this example, written in Lakota Woman by Mary Crow Dog), how they also had a hand in instituting mission schools, which further victimized Native Americans as children. They told us about George Gist, who came up with the Cherokee alphabet, but never told us the language was making a comeback through immersion schools. They told us how Andrew Jackson forced the Cherokees out but never about those who stayed behind. We heard about casinos, but never the fact that the money generated from that builds more industry and sends kids to college. Furthermore, we heard about all the problems faced on reservations, with alcoholism, diabetes, sexual assault, but we never heard about the overall strength and vitality of a people, determined to have their culture survive despite the generations of odds against them.

These are not a dying people. Sure, their rituals may be borrowed, to make up for the ones that were lost. Sure, many of them are not purely Cherokee anymore but are a mix of different backgrounds (as are we all. I may identify culturally as Italian American while ethnically, I'm only a quarter Italian). Sure, reservations and boundaries have their own problems (as do all states, cities, and towns), but we never hear about the successes (new businesses, immersion schools, opportunities for college grads to make a difference within their communities). We hear about tribes being victimized by the government, we never hear about the Native Americans rising to power in order to help change that.

These (and many others) were the first people here. They did not die out with the influx of smallpox and Europeans. These were a people that, despite every obstacle, survived and work to maintain their culture. Even today, they still fight for their rights, whether it's the right to ceremony or to govern their own lands. But they are not weak. They are not obselete, outdated, only good for a nice Thanksgiving story, gambling and feather headdresses (Eddie Izzard, "I love all this!). These are the people who had shown us the way when we first came here, who had given us things like a deep respect for women and nature and the necessity to always maintain peace and a sense of brotherhood, even in war. We do not honor them through pity. We honor them through memory and through acknowledging their dignity and rights as people, regardless of identity. They are a people, not just a chapter in a history book. It would serve us well to remember that, and to pass that along to our children.

Random Thoughts at 6:30 AM

So, I woke up early this morning, to review some last minute things for my midterms today (eek, two of them!) and I just had a few thoughts.

1. Economy: Believe it or not, I've actually been told that as a college student, I shouldn't worry about the economy. Hold the phone, my ability to finish up here (I know I could go somewhere else, but I came here for a reason and the reason was to finish!), my ability to get financial aid, my ability to either get a job or join the Peace Corps (which had funding cut), are reasons I "shouldn't worry"?  Really? I may not have full time employment but the economy is EVERYONE'S concern, not just post-college, working adults.

2. Why I could never be a politician: after reading about the stresses faced by President Truman and by Stalin during the Cold War, I know I could never do that. Hell, I freak out over exams, forget about nuclear missiles pointed in my direction!  Yay, security dilemma! (you can tell that last part was sarcasm, right?) 

3. My future: Even though I'm not premed anymore, I still dream of doing something with maternal/child health care. Actually, I just accepted a volunteer receptionist position at a pregnancy center in my area, for about 4-8 hours per week, figuring I could at least see one aspect of this, to get my foot in the door, so to speak.  That's why my chosen field is International Development, since health plays such a vital role in development and I could do something with that. I'm also training to become a doula (as soon as I get my hands on the books and talk to some doulas in my area).  I figured, in a bad economy, I might as well have some marketable skill besides waitressing, interning (when I get one) and receptionist skills and it might as well be in something I've always been interested in. We'll see where that leads.

4. Fear: I always worry about things, I'm always afraid of things. I worry about being able to pay for school next year, about finding a roommate willing to share an apartment next year, about finding an internship this summer, finding something to do after this next year and a half is over. But I'm realizing that this fear isn't necessary. Whatever happens, God is in control, I can only do as much as I can. But I feel that if I wasn't meant to be here, it wouldn't have worked out thus far. Hell, I managed to land a good job in a bad economy! I have to trust that whatever happens, it was meant to happen and that there's a reason for it. I'm finally starting to learn that.

5. International pen pals: I always wanted one as a kid. I ended up with two: a child I sponsor in Central America and a Peace Corps friend in West Africa.  One has me writing in Spanish, which is good, I can always use more, and the other is constantly reminding me of my own dreams through the fulfillment of his.  They both have some interesting things to teach me. And both are changing so much.

6. One sight of beauty: Picture the Capitol dome at sunset, illuminated by shades of pink and purple.  What a sight. I tried to get a pic on my phone, but I've got serious uploading to do before that can happen. I saw it while walking past the Senate Office Building, politicians rushing to get home, and I was filled with peace and purpose. Heh, I work on the Hill too, just not in the way people would expect. 

Dreams

Dreams. They change, take form, come true, or are destroyed. At the same time, they're what keep life worth living. 

My dreams have changed, some have died, only to come back more beautiful and mature than ever before. Some have come true all ready, while some will be here my whole life. 

What are my dreams now? 

Paris has come true for me.  While I long to return to continental Europe, it's not with the intense longing that has been fulfilled by my visit.  

Mexico, then Kenya are my next hopefuls. Dreams I've had since the age of five, one that may be fulfilled next year, thanks to the wonders of language immersion. The other, we shall see but I have a feeling that it is soon to follow.

I still dream of going into maternal/child healthcare. I have been flirting with the idea of working as a doula, assisting women in delivery and during the post partum period. Nothing serious yet, just took a free online course in breastfeeding and have been reading the books.  If my mind has not changed within a few weeks, I'll buy the certification packet and take it one step at a time. That way I could get non-medical experience and see if I still want to follow that path. Also, in this economy, extra money and skill sets could not be more useful. And if I still love it, then I get the MPH in maternal/child health education. 

I still dream of travel. Peace Corps is in my plans.

Something I've never really admitted: I really do dream of getting married and having a family. Two kids, maybe three, probably not many more, at least one being adopted. I dream of a boy named Dante and a girl named Anaïs. A spouse who's just as crazy, wild and excited by life as I am. A place in the NY/NJ area, near NYC.  Paella perpetually on my stove, people always over, wine, tea, and coffee always served, always Friday and always five after five.  

I'm seeing friends with new rings sparkling from their left hands, showing the beginnings of new dreams. I'm seeing friends embark on new journeys, literal and symbolic, leaving behind the lives of adolescents and college kids to take their place as adults. 

Cinderella says that a dream is a wish your heart makes.  I believe dreams are more than just wishes. They're the sparks that kindle the flames to our desires. The flames are then fanned by are actions, driving us to strive for something greater than ourselves and ultimately find fulfillment.

I pray your fires stay well kindled and burn bright, tonight and for the rest of your lives. 

Freedom of Speech or Freedom of Comfort?

I will never understand why those who claim the title of "liberal" and the label of "tolerance" can act so hypocritical in the name of "feelings".

Don't get me wrong, I myself lean left on many issues, so this is not a condemnation of all who lean left of center. However, recent events on campus and a debate on campus and government policies regarding free speech and hate speech have made me think. 

Let me say that racism, sexism, ageism, etc are all evils. I believe all of it was wrong. As for having epithets hurled at you, I've had people associate me with Nazism just for the fact that I'm Catholic. That hurts. Bigotry sucks. As for whether an institution can regulate speech codes, I do believe that codes of civility should be enforced by private institutions.  I am not referring to any of that.

What I am referring to is whether a campus could restrict people from meeting to discuss ideas that may not be so politically correct. I'm referring to whether groups should be allowed to hold rallies or pass out flyers containing such beliefs (such as a white supremacy group on campus, not advocating violence, but merely doing the same things any other group on campus would do). Let's go beyond campus, what about government? Does Sweden have the right to imprison a pastor, because he told his congregation that homosexual actions (not people, but actions) are sinful? Does Austria have the right to imprison someone for ten years, because they denied the Holocaust? Does Turkey have a right to exclude women from universities, because they choose to follow their faith and don a hijab?  

For college groups, the excuse is made, "Well, if we let some people espouse this idea, that means EVERYONE thinks like that!"  Really? So I guess our campus pro-life group, which is very small, targeted for ridicule and outright hated by others is that successful in getting everyone on their side? Or that I, as a pro-life person on a campus where that idea is not popular, am somehow dangerous to the masses because I express an opinion? Laughable. Furthermore, on a college campus, a place where intellect and reason are sacred and dissent is considered their God, isn't it somewhat hypocritical to praise dissent and then adamantly oppose it when it actually comes?

For democratic governments, the excuse is made that these ideas are "illiberal".  Let's see, liberal comes from the Latin liberalis which comes from the Latin liber which means "free man". Are we really free if we cannot voice contrary opinions, however bigoted or merely unpopular they might be? Are we free if we cannot observe practices that harm no one else, just because one group doesn't like it?

We have a right to free speech, not a right to comfort.  People are insensitive, heartless and cruel and everyone gets insulted.  Not to say harassment is right, that should be punished. But no one has a right to not be offended. If they did, no one would be allowed to speak at all.  

A Jewish poet once said that in a place where books were burned, people would be burned. I take that a step further. If ideas are crushed, one day people will be. I'd rather live in a country where people could express what they wanted, provided they don't incite violence, rather than a place where offending someone could cost you your rights.  As for popularity, let me end this by saying that one place where mob mentality took over cost the lives of over twelve million people, including many innocent children.  I dare anyone to tell me that is acceptable. 

Strange and Unlikely Coincidences......

When I was five, I said I would live in Kenya and Mexico, due to the fact that my kindergarten teacher would teach us a few words in Spanish and Swahili, thus fueling me with a lifelong love of languages. Well, here's what happened since then.


1. I ended up meeting a couple wonderful people who have a huge passion for Africa, especially Kenya (since they both studied there) and have shared a lot with me regarding that.

2. I may end up living in Mexico next summer.

3. My second language is Spanish.

4. I have a strong desire to go to Africa and to learn about it. I've had it for awhile and it's almost inexplicable.

5. My favorite things to drink are Kenyan coffee and chai (an Indian drink, but common in Kenya, due to the sizable Indian population).

6. I work in a Mexican restaurant and the people I speak the most Spanish with just happen to be Mexican (there are others of some type of Latin American descent who do speak Spanish, but I'm only starting to get comfortable speaking with them, they speak really fast and I can't keep up! lol).

7. The women's issues that speak strongly to me (besides pro-life) are either FGM (which 50% of Kenyan girls undergo :'() or femicide in Juarez, Mexico (which is only right across the border of the US. Scary).

But this one takes the cake:

8. Father could not say Mass last night, due to retreat, so he had one of his Dominican brothers come say Mass. Only this one happened to not only be from Kenya (and has spoken about the Church in Africa at school) but, when he gave me the keys to get snacks, I noticed that the keychain was designed like the Mexican flag and had Mexico written all over it.

Good people

One thing I've learned in life, from the age of three onward, is that nothing, not distance, not even death, can separate people from each other.

This is a lesson that came with many tears. At the age of three, I lost my grandmother (and yes, there are still memories and tears associated with that, though it was nearly 17 years ago). At the age of eight, I moved away, leaving behind a best friend. At the age of ten, I moved again, leaving behind another best friend. I graduated high school and moved again, leaving my family (which is hard, even if you enjoy your school and can't imagine living anywhere other than the city you're currently in). In the past year, I've seen friends graduate and move, two to Texas, one to Togo. I've seen friends study abroad in far away places and this year, many more of them will graduate. Soon, it will be my turn and I will leave, hopefully for a Third World nation in need of service.

At the same time, all of this made me appreciate people more. I realized that while on earth, nothing is secure. Not time, not money, not people, not even the fact that your heart is still beating. We've seen that with our economy in the past few years, with the precarious situation our country lies in. We see that with college kids, who go in knowing exactly what they want to do, only to have their worlds turned upside down as they realize it isn't what they thought it would be. We see that with friends and family who move away or pass away. But when it comes down to it, all we have is each other, regardless of how long or short that may be.

A dear friend of mine once said to me that God's greatest gift to us, after His Son, was people. I've come to believe that. I also believe that it isn't good for man to be alone. So I thank Him for people. All of them, good or bad. They all have something to teach me. And I will always love them for that.