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Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Blossoms
The stone gives way to the river passing by, losing its sharp edges. The rose is only a rose for a few days before it drops its petals to enrich the earth.I am touched as I witness the processes of members of the No Blood for Oil 12. The news only reports a view of an action. There is much more going on behind the scenes.
Ellen just submitted the letter below to the Boulder Weekly. Many Americans appear to like a neat tied-up package. I am thankful for the open ending and intrigued by the mystery of how the NBFO12 experience will affect change. When one person changes, we all change.
Ellen's Letter:
The path of resistnce, once embarked upon, can take you to unexpected places- in my case, 10 days of fasting and jail for blocking the entrance to a recruitment station with 12 others in Lakewood. A Jefferson County jury found us guilty and your paper reported that some of us "opted for jail time". "Opted". That's not a word I would have chosen. "Called upon" seems more accurate. Called upon to protest the devastation ongoing in Irag. Called upon to show that not all Americans condone what is taking place in our name. Sometimes it seems that when our governments policies are so odious, so destructive of life, so much a betrayal of everything you believe in, that jailed in opposition seems the best place to be.
The war is far away. It is all to easy to deny it's existence as we go about our lives. We do not have bombs raining down on our homes or explosive devices planted in our streets. Our children are not dying for lack of clean water, food or medicine. Our morgues are not overflowing. The actions 12 of us took in blocking the recruitment station, in bringing the case to a jury, in going to jail and fasting reflect an invitation. If ordinary people such as ourselves can resist in such a way, anyone can. But it's a strange thing- you think that you are resisting to bring about an end to the war, maybe to be an inspiration to others, but you discover, as one of my activist brothers said, that is is for yourself and that you are changed in ways that are still unfolding.
posted by Carol at 7:57 AM
1 Comments:
When we started...we wanted our action on 11/18 to be one of education. To educate the Denver public on what our illegal war was doing to the Iraqi people..especially childern...
It is clear the real education was ours. We are still processing what we have learned...but all are committed to using it in making non-violence and open compassion common place.
Drew
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