Good Friday

So I did a little bit of searching to find a bit of creative imagery to link to for Good Friday. One website I viewed had over 100 links to various Pietas - images of Mary holding the body of her son. It is a good reminder, this Good Friday, to recall that the Italian word pieta translates as "Compassion". There is no difference, in that language, between the singular and plural form of the word (as far as my limited knowledge of Italian goes). More than 100 pieces of art, all about one particular instance of compassion. In the busy-ness of a Friday, take some time today to meditate on compassion in your life, and in our common life...

A Good Friday meditation, How many Pietas, from Fr. Jim Hasse, SJ (follow the link for an image.):

How Many Pietas?

How many Pietas hang in my studio?
Dozens
How many are lost, painted over, given away?
Dozens
How many sold?
One, now in Jamaca

Why do I keep painting them?
I have to
My heart keeps suffering
Mothers keep embracing their dead children
Violence, war, executions, drugs, AIDs
Mothers die twice at least, sometimes more
I can only be present, weep, and paint.

Bilingual education

Newt Gingrich gave a speech on Saturday in which he equated American English with prosperity and other languages with the ghetto. This bias against bilingual education is not a new development in Newt-land, but there are so many layers of insult in this speech that I scarcely know where to begin. A few points to consider:

• Since when is English-language literacy the golden ticket? I know plenty of native English speakers, and speakers of English as a second language, who have found it anything but easy to maintain a decent standard of living.
  
• In most of the world, knowledge of multiple languages is an asset. This nation needs to do more to foster multilingualism, not less!
  
• non-native English speakers now outnumber native English speakers, 3 to 1.
• Check out your local literacy council, where long waiting lists often frustrate the desire of immigrants to learn English. Want immigrants to learn English? Sign up to be a tutor.
  
• And, by the way, be patient. Give it a generation or two...
• And take the time to educate yourself. It is arrogant to assume that bilingual education is a one-way transaction. Or that your own native culture is the only one that has something to offer.
  

"The world in which you were born is just one model of reality. Other cultures are not failed attempts at being you: they are unique manifestations of the human spirit."
- Wally Lamb

Update

Friends, thank you for your patience during this hiatus. I have spent the last couple of months getting caught back up on day-to-day business...and will be back to posting on a more frequent basis. I expect to make more frequent, shorter posts, and welcome your feedback!