First and least importantly (but told in this order as it was the order of events), I have a cold. I woke yesterday with a stuffy nose, sore throat and watering eyes, and I haven't managed do much more than move my pitiful self to the couch and wrap up in a fleece blanket. This morning I had hoped to wake feeling better since I allowed myself to rest all of Monday and attempted to nurse myself with soup, vitamins, water, tea, and rest, only.. I still feel gross. Bah! Frustrated with this, as the mound of tasks are piling up, I had a very big moment of self-pity..
Thankfully, however, empathy soon arose in my heart as I was grasping how horrid I feel with only a little bug-of-a-cold and how much worse the people whom I care for, that have cancer and thus chemo, must feel every day. This perspective or idea was presented to me by a dear friend whom is the mother of three. Lucy.. beautiful, wise Lucy. Once when her (and her equally inspiring husband, Ben's) eldest daughter Maddie hurt herself, they prayed with for her injury and then for all the other people in the world who were also injured and hurting. What an incredible way to recognize the reality that yes, "I am hurting, please heal me," but also, "please heal and comfort the many others who are hurting and to lift them up." How much do we take our functioning, enabled, healthy bodies for granted!?
I don't like having a cold, its true, but I am grateful for the boomerang effect it now has on re-exposing my heart to empathy, appreciation and inspiration while leaving behind a sorry moment of self-pity.
Secondly, as I was wrapped in the blanket on the couch sipping tea this morning, I picked up this boldly colored magazine entitled "Good" that my roommate had in the house. I had no idea what it was but it looked.. Good! :) I quickly discover that this is their first print. According to the cover it is "collection of the most important, exciting and innovating people, ideas, and projects making our world better. Some you have heard of, some you have not. But every one of them is changing the way we live."
Wow. After reading only 4 pages, I felt enlightened.. excited.. inspired that there are people in the world working hard to make a difference. I feel hopeful, I feel pulled to think outside of myself- which strangely feels so much more REAL!! You'd never guess but the first company they talk about is.. duhn duhn duhn.. Wal-Mart.. yes Wal-Mart and its sincere efforts in going green and reducing waste- shocking and hopeful!! There's a page about a project in place proving to enhance academic opportunities for children in Harlem!. There's even a tiny little blip explaining how a high school football team in New Orleans still doesn't have a football field after Katrina and how you can donate $100 to help them build their "field of dreams." And that's just the first four pages!
What a delightful, inspiring hope-giving magazine. Isn't this what the world should be reading? What would happen if we were all this inspired!? I highly, highly recommend you find this magazine and buy/read it. Or, join in at http://www.good.is !!
Lastly, just as I was getting really into this mag, my father sent me a link to this youtube video:
What a morning! Thanks to all of you who have been an inspiration to me.
Here's to bringing hope to the world.
Much love,
Laura
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Game Plan!
Let the countdown begin.. 17 days until departure for for Central America. I am nervous, scared, excited, and having a bout of some serious disbelief! Though I've always wanted to do this, I wasn't sure it ever would happen, so right now I'm kind of wandering around in a state of denial. :) I'm praying for peace, energy, and strength.. I have two days left of work at Hopkins (really going to miss the people I've met here.. patients, their families and my co-workers) and then.. I start the moving-and-moving-again process.
Here's the plan: drive to Iowa on Sunday the 20th. Fly to Houston on the 1st for a 24hr layover with Brother Dave and fam. Fly to El Salvador to stay with Raul and his fam for two weeks while attending language immersion school and all the excursions Raul and his family have planned! Meet friend Jillian from B'more in El Salvador (she's going for work at the same time I'm going to be there!!!!). Take a bus to Tegucigalpa (capital of Honduras) where someone from the ranch will pick me up. Jan 17th.. start orientation for a year of work at NPH! http://www.nph.org
That's all for now.. just sharing the game plan.
Laura
xo
Here's the plan: drive to Iowa on Sunday the 20th. Fly to Houston on the 1st for a 24hr layover with Brother Dave and fam. Fly to El Salvador to stay with Raul and his fam for two weeks while attending language immersion school and all the excursions Raul and his family have planned! Meet friend Jillian from B'more in El Salvador (she's going for work at the same time I'm going to be there!!!!). Take a bus to Tegucigalpa (capital of Honduras) where someone from the ranch will pick me up. Jan 17th.. start orientation for a year of work at NPH! http://www.nph.org
That's all for now.. just sharing the game plan.
Laura
xo
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Saturday, November 21, 2009
a Big Apple affair
"New York remains what it has always been: a city of ebb and flow, a city of constant shifts of population and economics, a city of virtually no rest. It is harsh, dirty, and dangerous, it is whimsical and fanciful, it is beautiful and soaring - it is not one or another of these things but all of them, all at once, and to fail to accept this paradox is to deny the reality of city existence." -Paul Goldberger
Ok, its official.. I can finally join the list of those who "heart NYC" It comes a surprise to me, as well! I've always appreciated rural, small-town, community life, even more so after moving from metropolis to metropolis. However, my affinity for cities, especially the city of all American cities, has been more like that of an acquired taste.
In fact, distaste used to reside on my palate of judging urbania when I thought of the Big Apple- too crowded, too dirty, too much. It wasn't until I'd lived in Baltimore for nearly a year, that I could even fathom the "charm" of cities so big and old and disorganized. The understanding came to me slowly. I remember the day I saw a plastic bag (garbage) floating with the wind in the air, thinking it was a kind of romantic exchange.. 'twas then that I realized that I'd grown to see the beauty of the reality of cities. Now I can't seem to get enough of the grit, busyness, energy, architecture.
On my latest date with NYC, my dear friend Sheena and I wandered around Greenwich all afternoon in search of a wine bar (that was open in the early afternoon). This led to stumbling upon an intricate jewelry store smaller than most modern bathrooms, beautiful old churches, sculptures, funny eclectic shops, old Irish pubs, strangely named establishments, a lovely Italian restaurant with great wine (and coolly charmed service), which then led also to a fun and unexpected evening of Guinness, pizzeria, espresso and dessert with our handsome Italiano tender of the bar. :)
The next two days were of similar form.. I was with my very best friend from college with whom I can always be just me, just silly, goofy, sometimes annoyingly giddy and over-analyzing me.. our friendship is perhaps what makes being in NY so comfortable and fantastic. We strolled through busy streets, thrift shops, stores, and more.. then spent the next day in Central Park. That day it was rainy but still, amazing. We were on the runners path for a while and the fog drifted gently around the middle of the buildings hiding the rooftops from our site. Yet, despite the gray skies, the trees with its fall-colored leaves painted the most beautiful picture- a perfect backdrop for a couple getting married, in the rain, with only a pastor and a photographer (and random passerbys) to witness. In the spirit of New York, the groom wore a gray sweater, pants and a tie while she wore an ivory dress with red heels. What a wonderful, simple thing to witness.
So, My Dear New York.. thank you for hosting a once again lovely visit.. for being ever-inspiring, the best.. and the worst of hosts, comforting yet aloof. I couldn't be more thankful for the opportunities I've had to get to know you and to spend time with you, your people, your craziness.. Someday maybe I'll even make you my home in you and my livelihood in one of our lively neighborhoods.. a little cafe with espresso by me and cakes by Sarah... a dream..
Ok, its official.. I can finally join the list of those who "heart NYC" It comes a surprise to me, as well! I've always appreciated rural, small-town, community life, even more so after moving from metropolis to metropolis. However, my affinity for cities, especially the city of all American cities, has been more like that of an acquired taste.
In fact, distaste used to reside on my palate of judging urbania when I thought of the Big Apple- too crowded, too dirty, too much. It wasn't until I'd lived in Baltimore for nearly a year, that I could even fathom the "charm" of cities so big and old and disorganized. The understanding came to me slowly. I remember the day I saw a plastic bag (garbage) floating with the wind in the air, thinking it was a kind of romantic exchange.. 'twas then that I realized that I'd grown to see the beauty of the reality of cities. Now I can't seem to get enough of the grit, busyness, energy, architecture.
On my latest date with NYC, my dear friend Sheena and I wandered around Greenwich all afternoon in search of a wine bar (that was open in the early afternoon). This led to stumbling upon an intricate jewelry store smaller than most modern bathrooms, beautiful old churches, sculptures, funny eclectic shops, old Irish pubs, strangely named establishments, a lovely Italian restaurant with great wine (and coolly charmed service), which then led also to a fun and unexpected evening of Guinness, pizzeria, espresso and dessert with our handsome Italiano tender of the bar. :)
The next two days were of similar form.. I was with my very best friend from college with whom I can always be just me, just silly, goofy, sometimes annoyingly giddy and over-analyzing me.. our friendship is perhaps what makes being in NY so comfortable and fantastic. We strolled through busy streets, thrift shops, stores, and more.. then spent the next day in Central Park. That day it was rainy but still, amazing. We were on the runners path for a while and the fog drifted gently around the middle of the buildings hiding the rooftops from our site. Yet, despite the gray skies, the trees with its fall-colored leaves painted the most beautiful picture- a perfect backdrop for a couple getting married, in the rain, with only a pastor and a photographer (and random passerbys) to witness. In the spirit of New York, the groom wore a gray sweater, pants and a tie while she wore an ivory dress with red heels. What a wonderful, simple thing to witness.
So, My Dear New York.. thank you for hosting a once again lovely visit.. for being ever-inspiring, the best.. and the worst of hosts, comforting yet aloof. I couldn't be more thankful for the opportunities I've had to get to know you and to spend time with you, your people, your craziness.. Someday maybe I'll even make you my home in you and my livelihood in one of our lively neighborhoods.. a little cafe with espresso by me and cakes by Sarah... a dream..
Friday, November 13, 2009
Mi casa is tu casa..
As many of you may know, the Mangan household was blessed with an addition to the family in the early 90's when Raul, who was part of a foreign exchange program from El Salvador, moved in. With his wise, gentle spirit and playful sense of humor, he was quickly everyone's favorite. We all loved him as though he were truly our brother/son, and in the two short years, he opened all of our eyes to a world we didn't know and left a lasting impression on each of our hearts, forever.
I was only ten at the time, but I remember a lot about his stay with us.. how he taught my mom and brothers to cook foods our home had never seen. How he taught me funny little things in Spanish. He would have this big group of friends, all from Central American who were part of the exchange program, over for bonfires and soccer games- so much fun for all of us! He coached my soccer team, came and spoke to my 2nd grade class.. He was awesome, but what I remember best and treasure most are the bedtime stories he would make up or read to my younger brother and I before bed.
It was a sad, sad day when the blue station wagon pulled out of the lane with Raul and all of his belongings in it to head back to his home in El Salvador.
Almost two decades have passed since that day and now I am preparing for my year in Central America. Unfortunately, my Spanish-speaking abilities are minimal, and thus, it was required of me to attend Spanish-immersion language school before starting at the ranch. Perfectly, it has worked out for me to go to language school in El Salvador and stay with my brother, Raul and his own family (wife, son and niece), who will now host me. :) How incredible.. that life should come full circle in so many ways.
Today I received this beautiful email from him... and now, I am officially excited! I thought some of you might enjoy this..
"Hey Laura,
We were planning your whole staying last nite.
I have my annual vacations from Diciembre 28 to Enero 11. So we will have plenty time to do things. S* (initials to protect, this is his wife) will mostly take care of you the last week during the days since I will be at work. (so you will also have time for women’s talk). P* (his son) also planned for you to read him a story from a book in Espanol every night. (the same I did with you and Daniel a long time ago).
M* who is our 25 year old niece is living with us also, will take you out with her bunch of girl friends. She is a party animal and she does just a little bit of English. So that would be good for your Spanish too.
Our house is not that big, two-story house of about 110 square meters. 2 bathrooms . it has room for two cars in the front and one tiny backyard protected by three “beautiful” high concrete walls that block all of our view.:)
The residence area is very well protected. So, don’t worry about that. We have direct phone line, internet access, cable TV and cell phone access. (Cable TV is prohibited for You, Only local TV Channels in Spanish).
Our life in the family is not that adventurous, it is mostly related to P*'s school, his soccer games and my work routine. However, you will for sure find love, respect and jokes all of the time.
We are really excited to have you here and show you our country which is not quite different than the rest of Central America. You will find the poorest people but also the richest ones on Porsches and BMWs.
You will find people who lives in very poor country houses and also people in big ass homes. You will find the best Malls of Central America but also disastrous open markets. Some very insecure areas with high rates of
Delinquency but also areas where we can stay up very late with no incidents. Kids going to school every day on sandals and with only one cup of coffee in their stomachs and kids that take their PSP game consoles too.
You will just love it…and for sure this trip will change your life…believe me , you are hearing it from somebody whose life changed forever in your home in the trip to your country…
Kathy And Dave, don’t worry about Laura. Myself and my family will take very good care of her, the same way you did with me. I will set up her curfew early at night, at about 10:00 PM….:(. And I won’t allow her to bring boys home….LOL….
I am attaching you some pics of my house, so you have an idea of it.
I love you all…
And remember our salvadorean saying: “MI CASA ES TU CASA….”
Regards,
Raul
I was only ten at the time, but I remember a lot about his stay with us.. how he taught my mom and brothers to cook foods our home had never seen. How he taught me funny little things in Spanish. He would have this big group of friends, all from Central American who were part of the exchange program, over for bonfires and soccer games- so much fun for all of us! He coached my soccer team, came and spoke to my 2nd grade class.. He was awesome, but what I remember best and treasure most are the bedtime stories he would make up or read to my younger brother and I before bed.
It was a sad, sad day when the blue station wagon pulled out of the lane with Raul and all of his belongings in it to head back to his home in El Salvador.
Almost two decades have passed since that day and now I am preparing for my year in Central America. Unfortunately, my Spanish-speaking abilities are minimal, and thus, it was required of me to attend Spanish-immersion language school before starting at the ranch. Perfectly, it has worked out for me to go to language school in El Salvador and stay with my brother, Raul and his own family (wife, son and niece), who will now host me. :) How incredible.. that life should come full circle in so many ways.
Today I received this beautiful email from him... and now, I am officially excited! I thought some of you might enjoy this..
"Hey Laura,
We were planning your whole staying last nite.
I have my annual vacations from Diciembre 28 to Enero 11. So we will have plenty time to do things. S* (initials to protect, this is his wife) will mostly take care of you the last week during the days since I will be at work. (so you will also have time for women’s talk). P* (his son) also planned for you to read him a story from a book in Espanol every night. (the same I did with you and Daniel a long time ago).
M* who is our 25 year old niece is living with us also, will take you out with her bunch of girl friends. She is a party animal and she does just a little bit of English. So that would be good for your Spanish too.
Our house is not that big, two-story house of about 110 square meters. 2 bathrooms . it has room for two cars in the front and one tiny backyard protected by three “beautiful” high concrete walls that block all of our view.:)
The residence area is very well protected. So, don’t worry about that. We have direct phone line, internet access, cable TV and cell phone access. (Cable TV is prohibited for You, Only local TV Channels in Spanish).
Our life in the family is not that adventurous, it is mostly related to P*'s school, his soccer games and my work routine. However, you will for sure find love, respect and jokes all of the time.
We are really excited to have you here and show you our country which is not quite different than the rest of Central America. You will find the poorest people but also the richest ones on Porsches and BMWs.
You will find people who lives in very poor country houses and also people in big ass homes. You will find the best Malls of Central America but also disastrous open markets. Some very insecure areas with high rates of
Delinquency but also areas where we can stay up very late with no incidents. Kids going to school every day on sandals and with only one cup of coffee in their stomachs and kids that take their PSP game consoles too.
You will just love it…and for sure this trip will change your life…believe me , you are hearing it from somebody whose life changed forever in your home in the trip to your country…
Kathy And Dave, don’t worry about Laura. Myself and my family will take very good care of her, the same way you did with me. I will set up her curfew early at night, at about 10:00 PM….:(. And I won’t allow her to bring boys home….LOL….
I am attaching you some pics of my house, so you have an idea of it.
I love you all…
And remember our salvadorean saying: “MI CASA ES TU CASA….”
Regards,
Raul
Sunday, November 8, 2009
la viva loca! ;)
So this moving-so-often thing is mind-boggling! I mean, for someone whose familial roots run deeper than the wells that supplied the water on our ol' little family farm in Iowa, this is crazy! For 18 years I lived in one place, in one school system, one church, one town. Since leaving home, I've lived in 5 different cities, have driven across the country twice, and have physically moved my things at least a dozen, if not more, times. I wouldn't change a thing about it.. well.. okay, that's not necessarily true, I'd want to take a few things out of the equation but then perhaps I wouldn't have learned some of the valuable lessons that I have. Basically, it is awesome, surreal, and incredibly challenging :) And with that, I do believe I'm totally ready and in need of settling down a bit. I think living in Honduras for over a year... will be (ahhh... sigh) :) good for the soul!
Time in beach town, Venice, was amazing! I was really.. really sad to leave, having been sooo blessed with fantastic co-workers and friends and experiences.. It was a wonderful 6 months. I get a little homesick for CA now and then.. like tearful, wanna move back homesick.. but well, that was just a chapter in the story and its time to move on.
So.. here I am, having a lot of de ja vue .. annnd getting to enjoy all things Baltimore! It feels so weird yet so natural to be here, as though I never left, but strangely, I'm not the girl I was when I left. I've learned so much in such a short amount of time. Losing yourself really is finding yourself.. and its easy to get lost when you're high-tailing it around the country chasing jobs! Well anyway, there's a lot to enjoy about being back, most specifically, spending quality time with people I thought I might only ever see on a quick visit-trip! But as life goes, they've been changing and growing and moving, too, so its been interesting to jump back into their lives and experiences them a little differently!
I'm actually already more than half-way through this last little assignment in B'more. I can't believe how fast time is going!!! I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed with all that planning for Honduras means, but trusting that it will all work out. Slowly, but surely, it will come together!
And with that.. oiy! I'm ready for bed!
Goodnight friends..
-lkm
Time in beach town, Venice, was amazing! I was really.. really sad to leave, having been sooo blessed with fantastic co-workers and friends and experiences.. It was a wonderful 6 months. I get a little homesick for CA now and then.. like tearful, wanna move back homesick.. but well, that was just a chapter in the story and its time to move on.
So.. here I am, having a lot of de ja vue .. annnd getting to enjoy all things Baltimore! It feels so weird yet so natural to be here, as though I never left, but strangely, I'm not the girl I was when I left. I've learned so much in such a short amount of time. Losing yourself really is finding yourself.. and its easy to get lost when you're high-tailing it around the country chasing jobs! Well anyway, there's a lot to enjoy about being back, most specifically, spending quality time with people I thought I might only ever see on a quick visit-trip! But as life goes, they've been changing and growing and moving, too, so its been interesting to jump back into their lives and experiences them a little differently!
I'm actually already more than half-way through this last little assignment in B'more. I can't believe how fast time is going!!! I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed with all that planning for Honduras means, but trusting that it will all work out. Slowly, but surely, it will come together!
And with that.. oiy! I'm ready for bed!
Goodnight friends..
-lkm
Saturday, October 10, 2009
vague realities
Through these days
I move swiftly
gliding into new lives
strangely leaving others
faces, memories, landscapes
are moving faster
my memory can't capture
floating in my heart
puzzling me, lovingly
once unknown
but now so close
feeding my dreams,
enhancing my hopes
becoming my reality
becoming me
I move swiftly
gliding into new lives
strangely leaving others
faces, memories, landscapes
are moving faster
my memory can't capture
floating in my heart
puzzling me, lovingly
once unknown
but now so close
feeding my dreams,
enhancing my hopes
becoming my reality
becoming me
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