CJL- Banquet

Olympus was in charge of Banquet for first session. And as the program director, I was in charge. Banquet is the final dinner of a session during which we set up the dining hall differently, eat food that's a bit fancier, and commemorate the closing of the session.

Along with help from my friend, Laney, I decided on "Kentucky Derby" as the theme. So here are some photos of our decorations...

CJL - Intro

So I'm spending this summer at my beloved Camp Juliette Low. I began attending CJL when I was seven years old. I first went with a friend, but after that year, she stopped going. But I loved it so much that I continued to spend weeks there in the summers.

CJL was founded by Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts and an all-around fascinating, wonderful woman. Some points of interest about "Daisy," as she was known: At her wedding, a grain of rice became lodged in her ear, and when it was removed, she had lost most of her hearing in that ear, leaving her mostly deaf on that side. She began recruiting girls for the new scouting movement in and around Savannah and registered the first group of Girl Guides in 1912. CJL was founded in 1922 as a camp to train Girl Scout leaders, and while it is no longer affiliated with GSA, it remains true to her mission of training girls to lead, learn various skills, and grow.

Juliette Low Lodge

One thing I truly love about CJL is that not much has changed since its inception. Some tents now have light bulbs, but we still sleep in the outdoors. And the JL Lodge is the original structure and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Since I've been on staff, I have come to appreciate the way in which CJL fosters so many skills in our campers. By living in tents with other girls, separate from counselors, they learn to handle their own affairs. Girls learn numerous camp craft skills such as wood chopping, fire building, lashing, and so many others. And the campers learn that they can have fun without iPods, TV, and computers!

Some of my fellow staff members

My tent this summer

Bathroom. Fancy, right?

Numb

Recently I connected with a few girls in Greenville who are interested in making an effort towards fighting human trafficking/CSE in and around the upstate. Two girls, in particular, have started an organization called HTAC (Human Trafficking Awareness Coalition); the work that they plan to do is good, but in talking with them and considering how much exposure I have to the reality, statistics, and true stories of this issue, I realize how numb I have become to it. The accounts of girls duped into entering the commercial sex industry and the stories of their exploitation do not move me.

Perhaps my reaction (or lack thereof) is due to having heard these stories so many times. Or maybe it's just not what fires me up. I really hate when people say stuff like "Well, that's just not where my heart is." That's such a pathetic excuse. Just because something isn't particularly compelling for you doesn't mean you are exempt from caring. I think that type of rhetoric is all-to-common in modern Christian circles and is a way for people to feel that it's ok not to care or contribute. And because of that, I don't want to use that same lame excuse for myself. 

I am drawn to Latin America because I speak Spanish, but I do not want to ignore the rest of the world simply because I have a pension for Latin American current events. I do not care much about the environment (even though I recycle and wish that my car wasn't such a gas guzzler), but I don't think that means that I shouldn't care or shouldn't make a concerted effort towards being a better steward of the planet. 

Jesus has instructed us to plead for widows and care for orphans, but he doesn't qualify those commands by adding "if that's where your heart is." He just says to do it. Of course, I believe that having an "attraction" towards a certain issue or region is a gift from the Lord and part of His equipping us to serve Him and His people. But having a specific interest is not grounds for ignoring other places and subjects. And if something is important and dear to the Lord, shouldn't it be important to us as well?

To simplify all of this rambling, I will say that I guess I just don't want to be a hypocrite.

The Wanderer

Since Christmas I have been on-the-go. The majority of my weekends have been spent away from Greenville, and I have logged some serious miles on my car and in air travel. I catch flack from my Greenville friends about my frequent absences, and I understand their point; however, I really enjoy traveling and being a modern-day vagabond.

This past weekend I put about a thousand miles on my car: Greenville to Milledgeville, GA for my cousin's graduation; Milledgeville to Murrells Inlet for my nephew's baptism; and back to Greenville. On the way back from Murrells Inlet, I drove through parts of South Carolina that I had never seen before, and it was really cool. While driving through a giant pine forest, I passed a large clearing and realized that it was a giant federal prison. And soon after, I found myself driving alongside Shaw Air Force Base. Maybe all of the traveling I have done (not just in the past few months) has opened my eyes; or maybe it's that because my eyes have been opened that I so enjoy traveling. Whatever the case, freedom of movement is a gift and one that I value.

Our friends' dock in the Inlet

Murrells Inlet

The Inlet at night, with the crazy full moon

My "nephew"- big brother of the one baptized

La Pena de Muerte

The following is a portion of an email I recently sent to a friend after he addressed an article I posted to Facebook. The article was about Connecticut's recent abolition of the death penalty, to which I posted the tag: "You go, Connecticut!" I truly appreciate my friend's response and the conversation that has begun. So here's my take, largely inspired by the writings of my favorite modern-day prophet, Shane Claiborne (Gotta give credit where credit is due.):

With respect to the "eye for an eye" topic, such instructions given in the Hebrew scriptures were intended to limit retaliation, not encourage it. If someone poked your eye out, you could not then poke out both of his eyes. Or if someone broke your arm, you could not then break his arm and his leg. And then Jesus came along and turned even that upside down. In short, "turning the other cheek" was a means by which the persecuted could nonviolently demand equality.

But with respect to the death penalty/capital punishment and, along the same line, prisons...

I believe that God desires more than punitive justice. If we are called, as His people, to bring His kingdom to earth, then what place do prisons and the death penalty have? The U.S. has the largest prison-industrial complex in the history of civilization. In some ways, imprisonment is an alternative form of slavery: corporations can hire inmates and pay them less than minimum wage, all the while denying them the chance to experience redemption. Is this what the Kingdom of God looks like? 

But beyond that... If we seek to follow Jesus, how can we rejoice in (or advocate for) the death of anyone? 

It is a common attitude to think "Well, what about people who will never repent or have committed the most heinous crimes?" To that I would say "Are we saying that some people are beyond redemption? And if some people are beyond redemption, then what does that say about grace, reconciliation, and the power of Christ?" Much of the Bible was written by murderers who were given a second chance (David, Paul). Redemptive violence is a lie.

Jesus was directly questioned regarding the death penalty when He encountered a crowd ready to stone an adulterous woman. True: her crime was capital, and her execution was legal. But just because something is legal does not make it right.  

The early Christians were characterized by nonviolence; but that changed under Constantine. And that period gave rise to the violent military complex that dominates today and that is largely supported by professing Christians. How horribly ironic that we drop bombs and ignite electric chairs paid for with money that says "In God We Trust"! To those who see such contradictions, especially those who do not follow Christ, I wish we could say "This is not my Jesus."

Honestly, I used to support the death penalty...along with the military, exploitative economic policies, and some other things I no longer condone. These convictions are relatively new for me, but I hold them deeply. 

The crux of the matter

I do not align with any particular political party. And I honestly don't care that much about protecting the environment (Maybe that's awful.). But I can get really feisty over some issues (Commercial Sexual Exploitation; Human Trafficking; Israel's Occupation of Palestine; and the Military, in that I don't support it).

Sometimes what stokes my fire is not the issue itself but rather the widespread ignorance of such issues. I pride myself on being an informed citizen, and I have little-if any-patience with people who neglect to be informed or care about anything beyond their personal lives. No one can claim that it is too difficult to be informed. Up-to-date, legitimate news sources abound, and the invention of the smart phone enables people to quite literally carry around a computer with them at all times. 

This rant was spawned by a recent article about the prostitution scandal in Colombia involving U.S. Secret Service agents and military personnel (http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2012/04/20124174301070708.html). Upon revelation of the scandal, Representative Collins (R-Maine) expressed concern that the women in question might have been drug traffickers or spies who could have planted bugs. What an absurdity! She (and all of us) should be concerned that the women are likely victims of human trafficking and forced prostitution! She needs get a clue!

It is right that many have expressed outrage over the incident. But why should anyone be surprised about such actions committed by members of a society as sick as the military?

I do not write this to be callous or rude, but I do not care if any of the words in this post offend anyone. We all need to do a better job at recognizing that many of today's "issues" and hot topics are really not that important and that things important to the Lord and His will are often neglected. The possibility that Secret Service agents could have been bugged is not important. What is important is the fact that 27 million people in the world today are slaves and that our lifestyles and fucked-up priorities allow such atrocities to continue.

Nonconformist Women

In light of International Women's Day (yesterday) and a recent, ongoing conversation among my friends, I have some thoughts to share. Well, at least to put on this blog because I'm 99% no one reads this thing.

I feel that most girls believe that some personal characteristic (whether it be weight, hair color, mental illness, outspokenness, etc.) of theirs is a barrier to acceptance and/or earthly, romantic love. I am not entirely sure what I believe that is for me; but I absolutely criticize myself, blaming the way I am for my singleness. That it must be my fault, something I've done or haven't done, or some characteristic that I possess that should change.

Self-criticism- or dare I say it: self-hatred- is a real bitch, and we live in a fucked up society. Who could live up to the ideals set before us as women and girls? I sure can't. And while that's upsetting, I'm not sure that I would really want to. What a lame, boring world this would be if all women were the same!

The most precious women I know (my mom, my best friend, my best friend's godmother, and many others) are wonderful because they refuse to conform to some socially-constructed ideal or image. They are strong and make no apologies for that strength. They are beautiful yet do not look like robotic cover girls. They are talented, gifted women, and we would all be worse off without them living into their true selves.