Grace Cares Update

“A girl from Chestnut Ridge inspires hope in Dominican Republic”

Grace Goldberg-Springer a twelve-year-old girl from Chestnut Ridge means it when she says she believes in taking action to help other people. Grace began helping children in La Lomita an impoverished community in the Dominican Republic when she was 10. For her 10th birthday, she asked her friends not to bring her presents, but instead school supplies to help the approximately 100 school age children who live there. Her commitment to the community did not stop there. This year Grace is in the process of raising $1,500 by making and selling necklaces and earrings to start an egg business in La Lomita. This will help the community become more economically sustainable. Part of the proceeds will support and feed the poorest people in the community.

Grace learned about La Lomita through GRACE Cares a 5013C not-for profit founded by her aunt Dr. Zoe Kopp, uncle Dr. T. Namaya and cousin Ken Giancola. The acronym for the organization is: Growth, Resources, Action, Community, Empowerment. The not-for-profit helps with small sustainable community development projects that assist poor communities to become self- sufficient.

La Lomita and surrounding communities are some of the poorest on the island with a lack of food, education, clean drinking water, high birthrates, lack of employment, and a host of on-ongoing needs. With the participation of the local community and Dominican project leader Ruben Ottenwald it was decided to start a small enterprise of raising chickens to produce eggs for the children as well as for sale. This project will provide both health and economic benefits to the community.

This past week Grace Springer-Goldberg traveled to the Dominican Republic to meet the people of La Lomita, and help build the chicken coop that will hold 100 chickens. Her experience at the farm at Green Meadow School in Chestnut Ridge prepared her to help not only with the building of the coop, but enabled her to share her knowledge of growing beans and tomatoes.

While in the Dominican Republic, Grace participated in meetings with community leaders to review future projects, which will include the formation of a local community non-governmental organization and an agriculture cooperative. Grace said, “We must continue to focus on helping people help themselves.” The people of La Lomita were inspired and grateful that someone so young from so far away had done so much to assist them.

Community Development in San Jose DR

Over the past few days in San Jose section about twenty minutes from Santiago. At Ruben and Anna Marie's place with all of their kids and extended family, always someone is around, Viejo, Andres, Pablito, and the girls Roselita and Naomi. Feels like our extended family, food prepared, house open, and of course it is a two way street. But so value their open, gracious hospitality.
Over the weekend with Frederico and Fatima and their kids, with Theresa and her family, so much fun. DR is always about family and friends. Americans would have freaked out, we had shown up with a group of maybe ten people, Frederico and his families opened their arms wide. Thoroughly enjoyed connecting with him as it had been too long. My close friends and buddies scattered around the globe. The visionaries, the rainbow makers, the rEvolutionaries, and dreamers, and the do ers.
Zoe, Grace, and I working with Ruben and Theresa, and others in helping Ruben articulate his vision of development for this community. At first appearance it is an overwhelming task but the question is how to bring this vital discourse forward to an organized development process. Identifying what needs to change, what are the elements for transformation, how to engage people in a genuine conversation. The work of Paulo Freire always stay with my mind, engaging people in the critical dialectic "What is your condition?" "What is your poverty?" Respecting folks, even the poorest of people that they have the possibility of changing their poverty. The challenge as the educated is that we believe we "know" we only know "our" perspective of "their poverty" The hubris is that as change agents we can only initiate that conversation.
I am not a patient person, I am by nature a visionary, a poet, and view the world with the lens of that perspective. The vision of what is possible, not always pragmatic, not defined or limited.
Enjoying the time to get back to community development work, meeting with Ruben and the workers, and exploring and understanding what are the needs of the community. We are trying to help Ruben set up a foundation/ development organization that harnesses his vision and helps to translate it into a long term and sustainable vision. The UGGGH part that I hate to do, the institutional, the formalization of informal relations. The part that I struggle with in my art work, the artist working with the tools of organization, structure, taking the idea and vision and making it real.
I'm missing the daily writing, the daily attention to the new productions, the new plays, and other work, nevertheless,I'm enjoying stepping back to this much slower pace, the pace of late nights under cloudy nights with Ruben and talking. The time to spend with Gracie and getting to know her, watching her open her eyes to the world of the less fortunate, the poor. At times those labels of poor and wretched are ripped away, and the laughter is heard. Most times, for the poorest of the poor, which is the La Lomita community, the poverty is so overwhelming. The poverty that leaves me exhausted, overwhelmed, but ultimately from this we are able to articulate a few programs to assist Ruben and the community.
The other component is a program of art, drawing, music. In development, with the most desperate of circumstance, we forget that music, art, all of this elevates the spirit. This was especially true in Haiti with the art and musical instruments we were able to provide. The kids playing music.
Tomorrow we go back to NY, back to the Beatnik Cafe, and where there is much to do. Also in taking the program to the next level. Much work to do in the world. I also see the balance between this community development work on a pragmatic level, and the art work like Peace Gardens, the Brothel projects, Four Profits, and other art.

Rice and Beans

Friday at Ruben's farm on the mountains overlooking the fields of Santiago. Meals are some 9 to 12 people, family, workers who are building the new chicken coops. Neighbors stopping by, big plate of rice, beans, and some vegetables. Eating always commences with grace. As we sit out under the "dining room" a big tin and palm leafed open patio. Laughter, chatter in Spanish and English, mostly Spanish. Last night sitting in the living room playing guitar, listening to Naomi and her funny stories. My niece Grace is getting on rather nicely, a too tempting target for mosquitoes as she is is covered in bites, but otherwise she is enjoying herself.

This morning spending time with Ruben teaching him guitar, talking about his plans, and seeing how we can help. Z and I helping to shape his vision, offering feedback. He is a man with the the kindness of a saint, and sometimes that works against him. But most times he does very well. There is so much need in this area. THis morning we went to La Lomita and one of the villages there. There was laughter and children playing, but there were children everywhere, as if the main produce of DR is making babies. This 4% population growth is overwhelming any ability for the country to escape the on-going poverty; unless they make their way to the US, Miami or New York. But uneducated and poor, the only jobs that are available are the brute labor jobs or the most unskilled. In this poorest of area, with no work, and children flooded everywhere. This kind of poverty feels overwhelming. Yet, we had put in a well with electricity that is providing clean drinking water. Another project with Grace Cares provides a new covered community space. But the lack of work, high population growth, and generations of poverty create a desperate poverty of spirit. A few escape to the US and come back, but most flee this verdant prison of paradise.

Our interaction and conversation with Ruben is looking at how do we help to create some kind of sustainable economic activity. We had been researching Rocket Stoves a very simple home made design for stove efficiency. Some years ago I had worked a lot with Appropriate Technology and liked the very simple technology like this. Rocket Stove plans are on the way.
Other suggestions on the table are the chicken and egg project. But as we are vegetarians we will support the egg production but not raising chickens to be eat.
Other projects like growing specialty crops -- perhaps saffron, herbs,and so forth. But these are lengthier conversations

Though I have been a vegetarian for some thirty give years plus I didn't like to impose this perspective on others; however, this is one of my core values, the respect for all life, the belief that all life has Buddha nature, and life is sacred. When we approach life with this perspective that life is sacred, we in turn bring this awareness to all dimensions of our life. The environment, the waters, and this entire world we live in needs to be interacted with as sacred. Not something to be exploited, killed or ravaged. Life is sacred. Our interactions with each other should be filled with love and care. A very simple prescription.

In approaching this work with Ruben, and seeing his sense of care and responsibility in his community is inspiring. He approaches all he meets with great care and kindness. It is wonderful connecting with him again, my brother Domicano. This morning we had a couple of hours to talk, play guitar, and talk about art and politics.

Today looking at a few more community projects

Evening in Santiago

Leaping into the world of Ruben and,his family on the tiny farm nestled about 20 minutes from the town of Santiago in DR. Email works, after a fashion, but most of the life and pace could easily be centuries ago. Today we went with Ruben to visit many of the poorest families on his route, passing out good words, notebooks, where needed some money for food. But my interest is getting away from the charitable model and more to development. How to help people become self sufficient and independent. Many of the folks who are surviving are dependent on money from relatives in the US. A $30 a month or so contribution goes a long way.
Enjoying the time and opportunity to spend with Ruben, his good nature an humor is a delight, he is unfazed by all the poverty and laziness, unfazed by the hopelessness of the task, and still there is a part that is very optimistic. Today, helping with the chicken coup, a little bit, Grace is a real trooper working with the wheel barrow and helping to lay the floor down. She is a real sweet spirit with the younger girls, drawing and teaching them math, and English. It is good to see her thrive in this environment, though it is a brief moment in a poor country it is important for her to get a taste of this. I wish more affluent children from the USA can see this and immerse themselves.
I am appreciating this stepping back into a very slow pace, a bit hard since I am use to a very intense pace of creativity. One of the things you see is that for many life is reduced to the basic survival, there is little of the creative world, it is reduced to if you eat or not, sometimes the choices are very bleak and limited. The farming is marginal, even in this relatively lush paradise. There is a chronic shortage of water and the land is of a poor quality for farming.
Today Zoe and I spent time with Ruben, exploring possibilities for economic activities, and how to move forward with the proposed chicken and egg project. Which comes first?Also, spent over an hour with Ruben teaching him basic health and herbal medicine care. This will be exciting to get the Appleseed project off the ground and to do a version of this here.
Still keeping my hand into the work of the play production. I am enjoying our all too brief visit to Ruben's family. This evening playing guitar, singing with the girls. Thoroughly enjoying the delicious and simple food, and most of all the company.

life on the farm: Ruben Uber Mensch

In Dominican Republic this week to work with my friend Ruben who has a little missionary project of sorts in the middle of the island. A couple of hours from Puerto Plata. My niece Grace and Zoe are here too. We have an on-going relationship with Ruben and his community. We have sponsored a number of community development projects through Grace Cares - well water project, feeding of the elderly, and now this new poultry project. my niece grace 12 years old has raised funds for a poultry and egg project as part of her batz mitzvah - mitzvah. good, so very good to have her with us. my other nephew Kenny had started this community development work about a decade a ago. Not a big project this is one of the great joys to work and bring our nieces and nephews into this work. this essential work. there is so much need in the world, and though our efforts may only be a tiny drop of care in a desert of need, every drop counts.
this work of gracecares and other community work is invaluable to me, as it reminds me of the essential work in the world, to care and assist those less fortunate.
ruben is a mensch. he is a tremendous inspiration. he is the "priest" the "caretaker" "the community mensch" a former Cappucian monk, he gave up the monastic life to return here by the small community la lomita. This is the real spirit of Christianity, i imagine.
As I am watching this implosion of the Catholic Church caught up in their defense of the sclerotic Vatican and the symbols of faith, i recall the numerous nuns and priests i had worked with in the past, and their truly noble and selfless spirit. i think of my friend Father Marty Jenco who i worked with in the Middle East, Sister Stella from Yemen, Father Gannon and later Bishop, who were fearless in their faith and committed to the poor.
Ruben without church with this own sweet kind mission --- his mission is Love. In a world of cynicism, my cynicism notwithstanding, it is too easy to mock this sweet beautiful sincerity of charity and love. These are the people who are my heroes in the world. Ruben who could have had an easy life, a big farm, people working for him, or living in the USA -- instead he is the community leader without title. When someone needs help, he works with them, not in charity that robs them of their dignity, but in a spirit of care and love. A family needs some medicines he finds it for them. Others need help with housing or transportation to a hospital he helps them. He organizes a feeding program for the elderly. A program to assist the local school.
Ruben said,"I grew up very poor, I grew up hungry, I had the opporuntiy to go to the Unitied States, I always thinking of all the people who did not have enough to eat. I want to go back and do something, i want to do something, i want to help. A piece of bread to a child who is hunger. A tylenol to a person with pain." He says this without vanity, as a matter of fact, this is life, "There is a need, and I help."

"But I cannot have a long range vision, i have to worry about right now, the next emergency, the next crisis, and it is difficult for me to plan for the future. But by God's grace we are able to help people. I can not choose to do otherwise. I am putting a band"

Things rarely work smoothly, crisis to crisis, but it is all with the sense of grace and that it is in the hands of God.

In this small community in the middle of Santa Domingo is a miracle that is happening every day, it is the miracle of dignity, the miracle of faith, the miracle of community, undaunted by the poverty. In the morning, many workers, local people come out to see Ruben. A powerful spiritual presence without the slightest bit of ego, filled with humility grace and humor.

There is NOTHING noble about poverty, poverty that is hunger, poverty that robs one of dignity and the sense of self worrth, but the good works of Ruben and the people around him elevate the people and the community. He enables them and us. One fellow John from the US made a generous donation to this community, and he said, "Ruben inspired me."

Today, Grace, Zoe, and I will spend time visiting the community. Helping with building the new chicken coop, as much as we can, though the community workers will do most of the work. We had visited some local children with developmental problems, health issues of other kinds. Many of these congenital issues I cannot help, but we are hoping to create the Appleseed project here.

Appleseed is our long term project where we train community lay health workers how to treat the top 20 ailments, injuries, etc. using herbs, homeopathy, and where necessary over the counter medicines. Most of the basic primary care illnesses can be safely treated at home.

Roosters at 3 am and continued for hours, couldn't get back to sleep, life on the farm. Yet, Ruben gave us his best guest bed. A shower with a bit of cold water. All of this is middle class here. Though in the west we might think of this as "poverty" in reality this is pretty luxurious. I am back and forth in 3rd world countries that I would find it difficult to lose this perspective, but i am grateful to come back here with Zoe and Grace. Working with Ruben to see if we can help and create a longer term and sustained program of community development. Community development with the spirit of Ruben, not charity that robs people of their dignity, but community development that empowers people and enables them to make positive choices for them and their families. Community development with love as the center.

A beautiful day on the farm, roosters crawing, workers in the field, birds calling in the trees, children off to school in their blue uniforms and pink backpacks, verdant fields and pastures glistening green after a good rain last night.

More to come, right now I need to go, open my eyes, open my spirit, listen to the conversations. Where I can, I treat the sick and ill, one man came by this morning with an injured back, I stopped writing, and treated him. My open air clinic and office, sitting in Ruben's workshed, workers coming in, a few patients, and then i return to writing. Life at Ruben's farm.

And so what…

planes will not fly
vacations postponed
business trips canceled

weddings missed
engagements lost
births not witnessed

emergencies unattended

…as if our entire busy
world suddenly

paused

The Final Solution to the Palestinian Problem

The Palestinian problem has been an enormous thorn in the relations between Israel and the greater world. This has prevented a capable Western styled government from bringing the full fruits of its democracy to the Middle East. With the constant niggling and debate of rights, it is time for Israel to assert its full historic right to the full and final occupation of Greater Israel from the Mediterranean to the Jordan River to Lebanon and south to Sinai. We can stop the illusion and fantasy of a Palestinian state in the West Bank. Historically, this land was Israel, with stretches of time occupied by every power in the region. Though we had a period of Diaspora and left the area for two thousand years does it matter whether it was two days or two thousand years? Of course not. It is now time to fully reclaim this land and come to a final solution to the Palestinian problem. The moral clarity of this solution will shatter any sentimental notions
Though one can object to some “final solutions” previously, there were merits to it. Ironically, Germany’s final solution, allowed for the creation of the state of Israel, and Adolph Hitler may have inadvertently done more for Jews than Herzog. Though it is easy to condemn Hitler, I’m sure there was a grain of clarity to his final solution. Israel needs to stop depending on the United States for $3 billion dollars annually and to stop spending 45% of its GNP on military. We need to use this money to really bring back the garden of Eden. Before the creation of the state of Israel, the area was farms, fishing enterprises, and some minor industries, a backwards society that lived for generations tending the land. It was only when Israel took over that we took the archaic farms and made them into modern agribusiness, created arms industries, one of the worlds largest armies, and yes, a very capable nuclear weapons systems that a true transformation was possible. It’s time to rip off the veil of this illusion. Israel is the most powerful army in the Middle East and the sooner it takes the necessary and, albeit politically awkward public relations problem of the Palestinians, the sooner we can get on with fulfilling the prophecies.
Gaza can be a beautiful beach-front resort once Israel relocates Hamas to Somalia or Sudan. The Zionist homeland has worked diligently to get the world to see that this so called National Liberation Movement is in reality a terrorist organization and that all of our actions to wipe out this scourge are a blessing for Israel and all peace loving democracies. Not all Gazans need to leave there are many positions available in the service industry where we will need manpower, but maintaining absolute fealty to the fatherland -- Israel. Between the genius of Israelis and labor of loyal Palestinians is a perfect solution.
All Palestinians who choose not to become citizens of Israel, of course not full citizens, since full citizenship requires conversion to Judaism, but a limited citizenship in the way that Black Jews and other Palestinians have been incorporated into Israeli, would be shown the door to Jordan. In the way that the US uses illegal aliens, Israel needs people to work the farms, wait on tables, and do the necessary manual labor. Of course, like with the talented tenth, the extraordinary Palestinians who accept the notion of an Uber Israeli Jewish state can be part of the great Zionist state. After all, most Muslims in the region were Jews forcibly converted to that Mohammed or Christian thing. Those who chose not to participate in this great democracy will be removed to Jordan which is already sixty percent Palestinian. This would also provide a great opportunity for the people who claim displacement in Lebanon to reunite with their families and that solves the Right of Return. Our vision of a pure homeland that allows for democracy and security to flourish in the context of a Jewish state is a logical conclusion: Wouldn’t you agree?
Though the removal will initially be traumatic the final solution in greater Israel will allow for unprecedented opportunities for Palestinians in Jordan or other countries in the Middle East. Unless there is the preposterous notion of Palestinians having their own fully functioning independent state in the West Bank and Gaza?

Love is the Imperative

Sweet ecstasy of morning and robins singing that sweet eternal spring song, nascent dreaming Spring. Opening to that possibility. The glorious sweetness of Spring The freshness of the day with unlimited possibilities. Unlimited creative possibilities as well stay focused as part of the morning meditation on Blue Heron Pond. Tremendously creative spirit right now, centered. Awake! Awake the morning is calling to awaken.
My center grounding to this spot here on Blue Heron Pond. Enjoying the absolute simplicity of the morning by Blue Heron Pond.
Do we have the strength of conviction and courage to sit by the pond with exquisite attention to the sound of robins and to the creative inspiration, the crackling vivacious scintillating energy of life. The glorious rhapsody of spring, the affirmation of continuity. The awe and connection to eons when people first felt the awe and hope of Spring. For millennia, after long hard winter the first shoots of green and flowers. A long winter all the food supplies exhausted. The animals scarce. The old and infirmed died. Children born. The circle of life starting over again. This is the continuity. My imperative as an artist or as a person it is very simple: Look! Listen! Be awed!

This is the imperative that I wrote Vermont my home,

CARE WELL

The last poem is
for this elegy to the pond –

sacred body of water
who has taught me more
of reverence than any church.

wiser in its quiet wisdom,
than any holy book or tome.

care well!
it seems to say.
care well!

swimming in the freezing
waters, ice cold springs
surprise and awaken me!

finches, darts of yellow
race across the fields.
blue jay screech warns!
robins, plump, are ready to nest.

care well!
it seems to say.
care well!

frogs’ night chorus more
joyous and godly than any
Bach chorale; tulips divine
the intersect of mystery,
revelation from the earth
and desire from the sun.

The Blue Heron is
nowhere in sight, sage
of these meadows who
nests high in the hemlocks,
is patiently biding her time.

Care well,
she seems to say.
Care well!

In a few years or less
I will be dead, but I
don’t grieve this passing.

I will grieve if we have
not loved this earth with
sublime tenderness,
reverenced the pond as
dearly as our gods, cherished
the wisdom of a flower,
and held the divinity of
each living creature as a
mirror of god’s love.

I believe that as god
spun the planet earth
on her course and
brought it to life


She set it free with this
single blessing:

“Care well!

How do we live in the world with reverence, not for some god or gods of our imagination, not some external moral authority based on our fears and fantasies and miasms of childish emotions. How are we truly coming close to that spirit of a truly wise and tender spirit?
There is too much violence and destruction, our interactions with such misunderstanding and malice, our phenomenal capacity for greed, and our rapacious interaction with the planet. Our spirits should be joyfully singing and opening the our souls to the ecstasy of life and love, yet we choose the lesser. Do I choose personal vanity of anger over the wisdom of the Earth; we choose greed over generosity of spirit. We have far greater capacity to choose a life-affirming way of being in the world. Yet we choose to often, a world such violence and greed. What is the legacy that we leave the next generation?

Violence in all levels is on my mind this morning in all the guises it wears. The destruction of the planet, global warming, militarism, the insane volume of hatred and violence we see on the television, movies, and all the video games. We are culture it seems that worships violence and war. The USA sacrifices the education of our children, the health of a nation, the safety of the environment, and spend more than all of Europe, Russian, and China combined on military. What is this insanity all about?

The Buddhist principle is the mandate --Do no harm. It then compels us to ask, what does this mean? What is the principle of no harm? By opposing this violence in the world do we become a force a power and energy presence for a greater Love? A profound love needs to hold us close, as close as a suckling child to a mother. We need to fill our spirits with the capacity for genuine love. Love that is transformative. Love that embraces the world as a sacred gift.

My imperative as an artist is to celebrate the magnificent beauty of the planet. To hold dear the water, to savor the sweetness of the air, the clarity of the skies, the preciousness of each breath.
How do we live and act in the Miracle Mind?
I sit in meditation by Blue Heron Pond the sun is making its mark around the stand of pines. Sunlight illuminates white rock sits implacable in the center.
Act wisely and well in the world. Turn off the television. Fold the newspapers. Look at this wisdom of a Spring day. The wisdom of the day is a conversation of love. Love as a celebration. Love as joy. Love is the imperative.

Love is the imperative

tender
loving
spirit

care
love
courage

you

other

the Earth

love
is
the
imperative.

namaya @Blue Heron Pond