I’m couch-bound so it affords a perfect opportunity to sit back and wrap up the week. Remember the Ugly, Beautiful Scars? Well – we’re waiting to see just how ugly, beautiful this one is. Surgery was yesterday and yes, there will be a blog post. There is something terrifying and lonely as you gaze up at bright operating room lights and you realize you are completely out of control. And then you remember that, lonely as you are, there is One present who knew you before you were born and your nervous heart and anxious mind begin to rest in His care….(to be continued!)
On to the weekend wrap up.
On human trafficking: In the west it is easy to armchair simplify some of the problems in the world. From poverty to health care to world hunger we want big, sweeping, answers and progress. We want people to make healthy choices without considering some of the obstacles that could prevent them from making those choices – for instance, having to take three buses to get to a grocery store, yet McDonald’s is across the street and offers a full stomach and 1400 calories for $1.49 plus tax. And that’s only one small example. I believe human trafficking is one of those issues that our limited vision sees as one-dimensional. We’d love to swoop in and rescue, but usually these problems are far more complex. In the article You Can’t End Human Trafficking Without Ending Hunger the author points to the desperation created by poverty and hunger. Desperation that can lead to the unthinkable. Take a look and see what you think.
On rice: Even as hunger looms as a world-wide problem, there are glimmers of hope. India’s Rice Revolution tells the story of a “Miracle Village” in Bihar that has set a record for growing rice – all with no artificial herbicides. It has scientists and food experts around the globe cautiously excited. Could this be an answer to world hunger? I don’t know enough about it, but the article is hopeful and a great read.
On birthing children in faraway places: This article is an older article found through a new blog. Rachel lives in Djibouti and blogs from Djibouti Jones – Life at the Crossroads of Faith & Culture. I have loved perusing through her blog and I think you will as well. The article I read resonated fully with me as I gave birth to one child in Pakistan and two in Cairo, Egypt. She chronicles well the process and realization that this child has begun a life between two worlds. Take a look at A Child of Two Worlds published in the New York Times.
On Family Pride: My daughter-in-law Lauren turned 25 this week. We are so honored to be a part of her family. Lauren is an amazing, talented actor and this week her improv group, M’Lady, was featured in the Huffington Post. Take a look here at The Oscars Improvaganza. Their group is the first one featured. We are so proud of her and this group so if you live or visit Los Angeles, think about going to the show!
On my bedside stand: I’m immersed in Behind the Beautiful Forevers. It is so well written; poignant and heart piercing. To end this weekend wrap-up I leave you with some words to draw you in:
“Asha grasped many of her own contradictions, among them that you could be proud of having spared your offspring hardship while also resenting them for having been spared.”
Thank you for reading and engaging in Communicating Across Boundaries!
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Marilyn R. Gardner 
Wishing you a speedy recovery :)
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Thanks for the link Marilyn! Am especially excited to read the article on human trafficking. And had to add that I read Behind the Beautiful Forevers earlier this year – Ah-mazing. Loved it. I just finished listening to Aman Sethi’s A Free Man so I must on a kick of books about India, also really good. Happy, quick healing.
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I was so happy to post the link. I love having someone else who get the east-west between worlds perspective. So about Behind the Beautiful Forevers – I’m developing a theory about it and just spoke with my daughter about it. She has her Masters in refugee and migration studies and just came back from living in Cairo the last 3 years. I’m finding it incredibly hard to read because I feel like I know the people. They are in Pakistan and Cairo and I’ve been to their 1 room mud homes or shanties and interacted with them on the streets. I can’t read it as someone removed and it is so hard. It’s so much easier living ‘in’ this than reading ‘about’ this. One of my other favorite books is called Life Among the Poor in Cairo and there are many similarities in the books. It’s not about her writing which is hauntingly beautiful – it’s about the people themselves. I’m processing all this as I read.
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Marilyn, thanks for this wrap-up of your week. Praying for you during this tense time of surgery, etc. I know exactly how you felt looking up at that OR overhead light. I had my moment the minute I walked across the hospital threshold to sign in for open heart surgery. That’s when I relenquished control. Complete. A consentaneous decision. A peace that passeth all understanding took over. It was not euphoria as a result of medication. At this point there had been no medication! It was the absolute presence of the One who is in control. More recently as I suffered a severe brain hemorrage mental clarity slowly left me. Losing consciousness, my last thought came from a hymn with these words , “Jesus I am resting, resting in the JOY of what Thou art; I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart.” In His hands, giving/losing control is peace.
I am excited about Lauren’s opportunities with her acting career. She is beautiful and talented. Keep us posted.
Your mom and I have some dramatic stories about birthing in far and distant places, don’t we? Not many children can boast of being born on the dining room table and not many doctors can claim to delivering a baby with rainboots on! It was during monsoons and I think she arrived at the home on a horse!
Your comments on human trafficking and hunger are sobering. We must not quit until there is an end to this growing world-wide problem.
Enjoy your weekend.
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You both have amazing stories! Jonathan’s birth – I will never forget reading about that in your book. Surely God had his hand on you and him! We all grew up with these stories but taking them in as adults is a completely different thing. They have far more impact as I realize the seriousness of some of the situations. Your thoughts before surgery were really moving to me. I love that you went into surgery with “Jesus, I am resting resting” on your mind and heart. Quite incredible. Those bright lights overhead and the feeling of almost abandonment….and then resting in this unseen God.
Thanks so much for reading. It means so much to me.
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Just want to share about a book I have been reading, a novel I picked up at random at the library – how I thank God for free public libraries! The book is: “The Shortest Way Home” by Juliette Fay and it is about a family with Huntington’s Disease, a genetic inherited disease. If one parent has it, any children have a 50 % chance of also having the gene. It also deals with Sensory Processing Disorder, something I had never heard of. The setting is Massachusetts, Marilyn, between Boston & Worcester. I love these Saturday wrapups. I always want to look at all the links you list, alas, today I don’t have time. Hope your scar heals with minimum pain. Enjoy letting your family wait on you!
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Thanks Mom! I am surrounded by flowers – I love it :) Thanks for the recommendation. Have not heard about sensory processing disorder so going to look it up right now. Thinking of you this weekend.
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