Women’s March Kern County

Photo by Kimberly Kirchmer

The 2019 Women’s March had been on my calendar for months. January 19^th I would rush from my Writers of Kern meeting to find Judy at Mill Creek Park so we could show our support and raise our voices for the March’s unity values, alongside a few thousand other Kern County residents. It had been an exhilarating event in 2018, and we expected more of the same. 

I’d paid no attention to the conversation and controversy on the national Women’s March scene. Then, on the day before the March, one friend texted me to say she had some misgivings, didn’t know if she could participate in light of what was going on. Within moments, an email arrived from a friend in another state who said essentially the same thing. Those notes woke me up and sent us searching for information.

Articles about charges of anti-Semitism within the national leadership, ties between Tamika Mallory and Louis Farrakhan, and the YouTube video of “The View” segment with two of the Women’s March leaders surfaced. Judy and I dug in, reading, watching, discussing, trying to figure out what was going on. 

Sure, there were issues on the national level, attitudes that could be adjusted, problems that needed to be worked out. But we live in Bakersfield, where, among our local leadership, none of those issues had cropped up. 

The Women’s March Kern County committee members are our friends and colleagues. We knew their values and principles. We witnessed how long and hard they’d worked. And we could not let them and our community down. 

So we marched. Chanted along with thousands—women, men, kids, youth, future leaders—from all walks of life and all there for the same reasons. Cheered the speakers and entertainers. Met up with friends—old and new, and friends-to-be. Enjoyed the camaraderie of this purposeful gathering. Became buoyed up to continue voicing our choices, hopes, and demands for a better community and country. 

Did you attend a Women’s March this year? Why or why not? If so, what was it like and how did you feel about it?

~ xoA ~

Action is the Antidote

“Call to Action!”

When those three words pop up in an email or a Facebook post, I am ready to devour the message and see what I can do. Taking action means I am doing something positive to help reduce or erase a problem or situation. Taking action means I am not helpless or powerless.

Last weekend, I got up from my computer and took action, marching with Inaugurate Compassion, a group that was organized and galvanized on Facebook.  Our march was a “Peaceful action of compassionate solidarity with the causes and communities under duress in the emerging political climate.”

It took place in downtown Bakersfield from a parking lot on L Street to the Liberty Bell in front of the courthouse. Approximately two hundred folks took part, all of us concerned about the welfare of our community and the impending forecast for the direction our nation is heading. Because of the solidarity shown and the speeches by spokespersons of compassionate community organizations, my heart was lightened and my spirits buoyed. I’d become filled with ideas of additional ways to take action.

Sometimes we forget it is still our country. WE, the people. As last Saturday’s rally crowd chanted, “The people, united, can never be divided.” We’ve believed that before. That’s how we got to be the United States of America.

It’s still true today. Activists, patriots, have never forgotten this even though many of the rest of us got comfy and sat back, rested on our own laurels and enjoyed the privileges others fought for on the front lines. I sure did.

Taking action is a good thing, an invigorating thing. We feel less helpless if we can DO something. So much is happening in our country and world we can’t sit still and complain or stick our heads in the sand. It’s our job as citizens to act.

What can I do, you ask? Help out with seniors, foster youth, homeless people, or your family members who may be struggling. Support businesses and products that reflect your values. Resist tyranny, the unrestrained exercise or abuse of power. Call and write your government representatives and officials --  local, state, and national –- and tell them what you, their constituent, want them to do. Voice your opinion in letters to the editor of your newspaper. Be a good neighbor. 

Get involved in your neighborhood school.  Your kids are grown or don’t live in your city? No matter; you will be living in the society run by those kids who are now in school. It’s in your best interest to help insure their academic success. Volunteer to read with kids, tutor in math, or share your life experience in a classroom.

Many things are out of our control. But we do have control over what we will do to help preserve our democracy and make our country and world places where every person has a chance to live and thrive.

 “It falls to each of us to be those anxious, jealous guardians of our democracy; to embrace the joyous task we’ve been given to continually try to improve this great nation of ours.  Because for all our outward differences, we all share the same proud title:  Citizen.” Barack Obama, in his farewell address to the American people, January 10, 2017.

We are all responsible. What can you do? One resource I find helpful is Wall-of-Us. 

~ xoA ~

Keeping Connections

On this New Year’s Eve, I am reflective. I am grateful. I have my family, my health, my friends. I am comfortable and cared for, buoyed by the many connections I have with the people in my life. These are the folks who help stir the feelings of happiness, love, and completeness in my bones. They are my mainstays.

A favorite exercise I often present in self-care workshops is “Categories of Connectedness.” It’s an excellent vehicle for bringing forth the many ways and reasons we connect with others and for recognizing those for whom we are grateful.

The act of placing the names of important folks in our lives within the categories is illuminating as we see who fulfills certain roles for us. We have our confidants, intellectual stretchers, models, mentors, health watchers, “chicken soup” folks, and fun and adventure people. Some names appear in multiple categories. Some categories may be vacant -- for now.

• Confidants -- those whom we can tell anything in the world about us and trust our words will go nowhere
• Intellectual Stretchers -- those whose actions, words, and deeds propel us to think and grow
•  Models -- the folks about whom we say or think, “I want to be just like them.”
• Mentors -- the ones who take us under their wings, guide us or pave the way for us
•  Health watchers -- those who remind us to make our appointments for physicals or mammograms, provide us with healthy recipes and choices, or research the medications the doctor prescribed. They are also our workout buddies.
• “Chicken Soup” folks -- the ones who we turn to in time of crisis and know we will leave them feeling all the better.
•  Fun and Adventure souls -- those whom we count on for a laughs and excitement or new, enjoyable experiences

Who are the people you have in each category? If there are empty spots, your mission is to seek and watch and allow someone in to occupy that category.

On whose lists would your name appear? These are the folks who look to you to satisfy a much-needed role in their lives.

Each of these dear family members or friends is a reason for our being. We are gifts to each other and all in this together. Let us stay connected or reconnect in 2016 for a healthy, happy, gratitude-filled year. Make that call or write an email or a letter. Soon.

With love and gratitude for each of you and looking forward to a happy, healthy, uplifting new year,

~ xoA ~

So Others May Eat

The older, mostly-female crowd emerged from the dim passageway into the light of the courtyard of La Parroquia, the parish church of San Miguel de Allende. Some shuffled in, some walked with canes, some held onto the arms of friends and daughters. These deeply-weathered, elderly women and men are among those perched daily on steps or street sidewalks, selling small sacks of pepitas or gum or little items as a way to help their families survive. 

Many had walked miles to be at the Wednesday lunch provided by So Others May Eat (S.O.M.E.) As they passed through the courtyard, already set up with colorful, cloth-covered tables, we and the other volunteers of the day greeted them. 

Judy and I continued our job of chopping bagged romaine lettuce into shreds; it would garnish the soup. Several other volunteers lined the walkway, shaking hands, smiling, and welcoming the folks. Bypassing the tables, they filed into one of the rooms that opened onto the courtyard for prayers and songs.

 We helpers continued with our prep work. This day, two men slathered bean paste on halved bolillos then topped them with chopped tomatoes and cheese.

Another person cut limes in half and set one in each blue plastic bowl along with a white spoon. The cooks carried large covered pots out to the work table. Lifting the wide lids, curious volunteers discovered a pasta soup in clear broth, Spanish rice, broccoli, mole sauce and stewed chicken feet. 

 

A young man who had been over-seeing the operation came out of the kitchen and served up one plate. This was the example so we could see the quantity and the plate presentation. 

We’d only heard about this luncheon the weekend before from our friend and former San Miguel neighbor, Pam. The owners of The Spa-Hotel Casa del Misionero, who sponsor this benefit lunch, have been doing it each Wednesday since 1989 with the help of volunteers. So, on our last full day in our beloved San Miguel, we’d walked over to La Parroquia to see how we could be of service.

While we stood ready to help when the serving began, more people came in and sat at the tables. They seemed to know where to land because, as Pam explained, there is a seating protocol that’s strictly followed. The eldest sit at the first table, which is one of several that are beneath a shady, roofed area; they are served first. The rest also sit according to age, with the youngest in the uncovered section at the end of the courtyard. 

After the lengthy ceremony ended and everyone was finally seated, the group sang one or two more songs. Then, a blessing was said, signaling the volunteers into action filling cups with tea. Judy began ladling soup into bowls held by another volunteer who added the lettuce garnish. Two runners delivered and served the filled bowls to the eager diners.

I scrambled to ready more bowls and find extra spoons when it looked as though we were about to run out. An extra table had been set up to accommodate the overflow of people who needed to be fed.

High-pitched laughter and multiple conversations filled the air, creating a carefree atmosphere. What a difference nourishing food, moments of respite, and genuine caring make.

Hearts warmed, Judy and I both felt grateful for the opportunity to help even a little.

Giving back feels good. I would love to read your story of giving back. So, feel free to share it in the comments section, in an email, or on Facebook.

~ xoA ~

Harvest Lunch

We stood in line for veggies. In my younger days, when I was cultivating a close personal relationship with at least twenty-five of Baskin-Robbins’s 31 Flavors, never did I imagine eagerly awaiting a luncheon harvested from the gardens of friends and neighbors. But, the annual Harvest Lunch in Coos Bay is irresistible. It’s a perfect introduction to some vegetables that folks may never have tasted -- or ones they might feel hesitant to cook at home. 

For seven years now, the Southwest Community Garden Association and Chef Jardin Kazaar of Black Market Gourmet have cooked up a bounteous vegetable feast that’s worth standing in line to get.

Master gardeners provide the produce from their community garden plots and from their own home gardens as well. Kristen and Jardin Kazaar and their staff prep all the food and transport it, along with their portable grill and other catering gear, and orchestrate the whole event.

Patrons pour out of downtown offices and businesses, hustling to Ladybug Landing, the site of the original community garden in this area. Today, four additional community gardens thrive in nearby towns throughout Coos County. 

 Walking down our hill to the garden, Judy and I found our friend Karen (who is also one of the community garden founders) greeting everyone. A number of our buddies already had gathered. About half had just worked out together at the fitness center’s morning classes. For some of us, it was the chance to get together with folks whom we’d not yet seen this summer.

We helped ourselves to homegrown leaf lettuce with cherry tomatoes, drizzling Black Market Gourmet’s delicious, from-scratch raspberry vinaigrette over the top. Next, a marinated salad of yellow squash, cucumbers, and tomatoes awaited. We made our way down the line, where Jessica and Chef Jardin heaped our plates with rice and curry and a stir-fried vegetable mélange containing an assortment of greens, eggplant, squash, onions, green beans, and whatever else the master gardeners had harvested. It was colorful, gorgeous and delicious! And, healthy.

This event is one more opportunity for community bonding. We get to take in the lovely fall garden surroundings and soak up the beauty and peacefulness of the garden. One thing I loved was seeing all the people seated on bales of hay amongst the raised beds in the garden proper, visiting and eating.

Designated “runners” dashed in to pick up lunch for their co-workers. These angels swooped in and carted away stacks of take out cartons. Someone in line said, “We’ve been waiting all year for this!”

But, it wasn’t all veggies. Dessert was a mixture of freshly-picked berries cascading over a yummy, local vanilla ice cream. (Eat your heart out, Baskin-Robbins!). It was a perfect ending to the Harvest Lunch of 2012.

Now we wait, already anticipating next year.

~ xoA ~