InSpiritry

What Is the Idea That Is America?

That is exactly the question considered by author and pre-eminent foreign affairs expert Anne-Marie Slaughter in her new book, The Idea That Is America, whose title is based on a comment made by an Army Captain back from Iraq. Slaughter is Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and someone who writes and speaks extensively about foreign policy theory. (more…)

Today, six years post 9-11, there are stories to be told.

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A convoy of American soldiers rolls into town, again. They have shelled the buildings where insurgents may be hiding. Now they will go through neighborhoods, searching house to house, guns ready, kicking in doors, hoping no one is inside. They have lost dozens of buddies to the fighting. They are terrified. Sometimes their fight returns to the streets where everyone looks like an enemy and every package an IED. Their commander reminds them that their aim is to “make Iraq safe for democracy” and to “free the Iraqi people.”

These young men are certainly facing death every day, but what about the Iraqi people who lived in those towns and houses, the citizens who did not start this war? (more…)

 When We Raise Our Voices…

Last month, while attending the International Women’s Peace Conference in Dallas, I was reminded of the plight of women around the world. Inspired to be more proactive, I returned home to find an opportunity to do that. The Feminist Majority Foundation, a group I link to at my website, www.InSpiritry.com, was requesting for emails to be sent to the Iranian government regarding an imprisoned Iranian-American scholar, Dr. Haleh Esfandiari. It told how Dr. Esfandiari had traveled from the United States to visit her elderly mother and, while in Iran, was abducted and imprisoned. That evening I saw an Iranian propaganda videotape of the scholar as well as a public television interview with her husband and daughter begging for her release, claiming she had lost weight and seemed dejected. I was compelled to take action. Immediately, I sent an impassioned email to Iranian officials as requested.

That was a month ago. (more…)

A recent visit from my son, who is particularly insightful about human interactions, reminds me of the power of really listening–something families are often too busy or too bossy to do well. I have long known that family life, as well as spiritual living, calls us to seek to understand others. This past week, my son reminded me that we cannot do that if we are consumed by talking, studying, working, thinking, writing, playing, TV watching or even serving others.

The ability to suspend our personal agenda and offer our attention to someone else is, in fact, in itself a great personal act of service. When we really listen, when we offer our attention, we affirm the importance of the other person and their experiences and values. In that way, the unselfish act of listening is a first step towards of acknowledging the importance of the Greater Good. By listening, we admit, “It’s not just about me!” (more…)

 Looking at these photos from my family album, you might think, What’s the Story? I can assure you, there are several stories represented here — each of them a treasure!

While many of us were told stories as children, fewer and fewer families are making storytelling a tradition. Maybe it’s because we have lifestyles that don’t have room for evenings with grandparents or long family meals. Maybe it’s due to the insistence of technology as a source of communication in our lives: television, internet, cell phones.

Whatever the reason, when we lose our stories, we lose a lot!

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Think back to your childhood. What did you want to be when you grew up? A teacher? A fireman? An astronaut? A civil rights attorney? A United Nations ambassador? President of the United States?

Like so many little girls, I had ambitious ideas about growing up to be someone who would make a difference in the world…yes, to even be President of the United States.

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