Running Down a Dream....

Hello! It's late Sunday night....oh, wait...nope, it's VERY early Monday morning. (c; Bibi and I just spend some time out at Spring Lake. I became friends with the guy who bought the house right next to mine, right before I sold it, and he and his girlfriend had Bibi and I out tonight for dinner and really good conversation...it was really enjoyable. Bibi and I were both actively engaged in the conversation, and it was just really fun.

Today's been a pretty productive day. Bibi went to work, as I wrote earlier, and I read Into the Vicious Heart. I finished it around 7 this evening. It was thought provoking for me.

Background: My sophomore year in high school, I had a teacher who wanted us to watch Schindler's List. I really didn't want to watch it. I have no problem READING about the Holocaust, but I just really didn't want to watch a movie about it...it seemed wrong to me that I was being forced to watch something that I was, in my opinion at the time, fully aware of, and fully sympathetic to.

Flash Foward to Today: The epilogue of ITVH mentions how American and British soldiers in Europe attended showings of film footage from the liberation. At many viewings, the general audience would have many different reactions. Some people got physically ill, and some laughed because of the discomfort caused by what they were seeing. Still others got up and began to walk out. The GI's would block the exits and tell them to sit down. It was important for them to see it, not because it was shocking or explicit, but because the people, the victims that were shown in the films....they had no choice...they couldn't just get up and leave. It is important for us to remind ourselves of the depth that humans can reach in our "inhumanity". When I read this, I felt proud of the GI's for taking a stand against the people in those theaters. And then, I realized with a little bit of shame, how I had reacted to the teacher wanting us to watch Schindler's List. You see, I was REALLY mad that I had been forced to watch the movie. I don't really, in all honesty, know why it bothered me so much...but I remember that it really did bother me. And, in reading this book, I recognized a major change in myself that this book brought about. I recognize now...that there are times that might be uncomfortable....that might make us wince or make us ill, physically or otherwise, that are absolutely necessary...in order to understand who we are all linked....that this is not about me, or you, or even a small group of "us"....being a human is about being part of 'humanity'....

Ok...well, that was a bit jumbled...I hope that made sense. (If not....read that book.)

So, as I said earlier, today was a productive day. Bibi and I have been talking now for a while about our future plans. We made the decision, a while back, to agressively persue joining the Peace Corps. Originally we planned on waiting to have kids until she was 25. (I would be 31.) That was fine, when we started thinking about the Peace Corps. Now we're realizing that we may not want to wait THAT long to have kids. We'd both like to start trying in about a year. Well, we talked about it today, and we both feel very strongly that we want our 'family', not just our 'coupleness' to be more global and international. So, we're going to, at least for now, halt plans for the Peace Corps. (Now, for all of you quick-to-jump-to-correction type people, yes, we know you can't have kids and join the Peace Corps....wait for it....I'm going to address that particular issue shortly...you just need to have patience.....no, seriously....wait for it....) We realize now that there are many different options out there. And, in all honesty, there are opportunities that are not quite so mainstream that may be more attractive when the time comes. So, we're going to start looking to options for a few years down the road. (So, Sarah, and Katie, we're MOST likely going to be moving to KC in another year. (c; ) We're considering, among others, looking at the possibility of working on a Department of Defense base, and doing humanitarian work along with our regular jobs. (Lucas: "In this life there are nothing but possibilities." --Empire Records)

Wheww....that was a long paragraph.

All right you crazy kids....get a good nights rest...you're gonna need it.

Thanks for reading....

Oh, one more thing...I'm going to start the Bob Dylan Autobiography tonight. (A little light reading, after the heavy reading....)

Tommy