I am the People, the Mob...

I Am The People, The Mob
Carl Sandburg



I am the people--the mob--the crowd--the mass.
Do you know that all the great work of the world is
done through me?

I am the workingman, the inventor, the maker of the
world's food and clothes.

I am the audience that witnesses history. The Napoleons
come from me and the Lincolns. They die. And
then I send forth more Napoleons and Lincolns.

I am the seed ground. I am a prairie that will stand
for much plowing. Terrible storms pass over me.
I forget. The best of me is sucked out and wasted.
I forget. Everything but Death comes to me and
makes me work and give up what I have. And I
forget.

Sometimes I growl, shake myself and spatter a few red
drops for history to remember. Then--I forget.

When I, the People, learn to remember, when I, the
People, use the lessons of yesterday and no longer
forget who robbed me last year, who played me for
a fool--then there will be no speaker in all the world
say the name: "The People," with any fleck of a
sneer in his voice or any far-off smile of derision.
The mob--the crowd--the mass--will arrive then.


-Francisco

New

New beginnings are like mornings: peaceful with the promise of more later. These days they’re cool and light, even early in the day.

I find myself savoring these moments. I know things will be rushed later in the summer, and inevitable deadlines and dilemmas will challenge me. But after the press of a semester’s end and what felt like non-stop student-dom day in and out, this time of new relationships and places, new information and procedure, new grace to goof up and learn is a change and a blessing.

-Cheryl

Long Rows of Solitude Lead to a New Beginning

An experience that has lead me to where I am happened when I was fifteen years old and was working amongst undocumented workers in corn fields, onion fields, and orchards. This experience helped me understand the condition of workers. At first, each row I walked through felt like a long journey of solitude, but then as my coworkers (mostly male) helped me I felt I was making progress. They cared for me, even though I had done nothing to deserve it. They taught me that all workers should be treated with dignity and respect no matter who they are or where they come from. We sometimes worked 16 hour days and it was very difficult me. However, I was fortunate to have been there by choice instead of by obligation or need. Some workers could not find another job. No matter what their skills were they had no choice but to work there in order to provide for their children. I admire those workers and I am so glad to have experienced this with them.My journey to this point in my life has been wonderful, I am a Junior at Seattle University majoring in Theology and Religious Studies. I feel called in this direction because I know that one’s faith has the power to transform one, it also motivates and influences one more than almost anything else. As I am growing, I am learning that we as humans are called to believe in God for many different reasons. I find refuge in God, with God’s help I have learned how to love more passionately and to accept the love that is given to me. I have also been inspired to do acts of mercy. This summer I am hoping to come to a better understanding of what God wants me to do. I know that I need to pray a little more and ask for help in order to find my true path. I am willing to explore many paths but I know that this exploration will lead me down a row that may be filled with solitude like the corn rows I worked in. However, sometimes those are the best rows because they give you time to reflect and gather your thoughts and when you least expect it someone joins you and is ready to help you get to the end. I hope that the people around me see the difficulty of “my row” and decide to come along for the journey. And when we reach the end there will be water waiting for us, which to me represents a new beginning, a baptism, a new life with God… We need this in our society and I have faith that it will be accomplished.

-Ydalia

I'm an angry man.

I'm serious.

I'm an angry man.

I can thank the Evangelical Lutheran Church for this revelation, confirmed by a personality battery I took about two years ago. It said had problems expressing anger and that I would often try to avoid confrontation if it threatened my sense of personal well-being. Well, they were quite right. But it had more to do than with me being timid, and more with me just getting tired of offending people. Explanation...

I am NOT a quiet soul. I had a habit of stepping, unintentionally, on people's toes and feelings and views because of my unbridled exuberence and joy. Was I arrogant? Well, yeah, a bit. But I also had strong feelings and convictions and when you're trying to actually DO something, well, you have to DO something which means getting the attention of anyone who is doing something else or is doing nothing. Consequently you're easy to see, easy to target, and easy to criticize. I did learn a lot about the importance of listening, of giving others their space, and respecting boundaries in ways that give people room to feel safe, breathe, and grow. It was good.

But that's not why I got shy of confronting people.

I got shy because everytime I'd try worship ideas I'd get some status quo church crony up in arms that I didn't follow the script. Or I'd mention a word like 'beer' when talking to church people and I'd be labeled as a 'risk for our youth'. After years of hearing that kinda swill you just sorta clam up.

But I'm done now. DONE.

My pastor in Geneva, Lusmarina Campos Garcia (www.genevalutheran.ch) helped me to acknowledge and accept my radical nature. I had to accept it. Denying it was making me neurotic and touchy - much like those who were oh-so eager to rub my nose in my own crap while ignoring the mountainous PILES they squeezed through their backsides day-in and day-out. And since, this frustration, this heat, I now know as a pure and brilliant anger - a righteous anger.


-Francisco

Other Blogs?

Here is a link to my personal blog that I just started. It's not that great yet, but maybe it will help with ideas.

If anyone else has blogs or blogs that they are a fan of - post them!

-Alex

Welcome!

Welcome to the IWJ Summer Student Programs Blog! I hope that everyones' first week is going well. The goal of this blog is to keep in touch throughout the summer, to keep each other updated, to inspire each other throughout the summer, and to keep everyone informed about events and workers' stories. Feel free to post any photos you took during orientation week, and photos you take throughout the summer. Social justice-related videos, articles, and stories are also great things to post! Here I've posted a mosaic I created of some photos I took during orientation week - more can be seen at our IWJ FlickR page where everyone else can feel free to post photos as well. Good luck and stay in touch!

-Alex