Reflections on my trip back-to-school and into Web 2.0, as well as the occasional random thought...or, as it turns out, more than occasional randomness...
Compassion is the principled determination to put ourselves in the shoes of the other, and lies at the heart of all religious and ethical systems. One of the most urgent tasks of our generation is to build a global community where men and women of all races, nations and ideologies can live together in peace. In our globalized world, everybody has become our neighbor, and the Golden Rule has become an urgent necessity. Charter for Compassion project
Karen Armstrong won a TED prize in 2008, which fulfilled her wish to create a Charter for Compassion. The idea for the charter is synopsized at TED Prize and in the video below (shared at the suggestion of TED site). Or, visit TED to view her original full-length talk.
We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit.
e.e. Cummings
Last week my husband and I hosted my former professor and advisor from Valdosta State, Dr. Jane Zahner, in our home for a couple of nights. Jane was in town for the COMO conference where she promoted the VSU Instructional Technology programs and demonstrated her Off Off Campus blog during her professional blogging presentation.
In most paradigms, hosts dispense hospitality to guests: a gift. Unquestionably, Fife and I were the true gift recipients, not she. To my delight, she entertained us with stories of seasonal cats, coyote-dogs, her Hungarian exchange, and the upcoming whooping crane migration, but she also listened, laughed, and came down on the right side of some of my hot-button topics. Gracious to include me in her presentation, she also gave seasoned advice and technical support for my own presentation, while cheering me on and calming my illogical, but serious, jitters. Even better, she validated my work on a big project, gave thoughtful ideas for promoting it to possible publication, and agreed to share her valued feedback on its revision: each a durable gift with transformative power.
What a joy it was to share the wit and wisdom of this fascinating, fearless, and generous woman for a few days. . . and what a gift to continue learning from her.
Scanning video offerings on CNN.com this afternoon, my eyes fell on this tag: Deaf Kids Get NBA Quality Instruction. The story (below) reported on Mike Glenn and his 30 year-old Decatur, Georgia basketball camp: free for deaf kids. Intrigued, I searched for Glenn's bio. What I read made me wonder why I had not known of this remarkable man before today.
Born in Rome, Georgia in 1955, he learned to play basketball from his father, who voluntarily coached all sports for black students and taught math at the Georgia School for the Deaf in Cave Springs. He went on to graduate from Coosa High School in Rome as the number 1 ranked state basketball player and held a record which stands today: 2400 career points. Glenn graduated with a degree in mathematics and a minor in computer science (with honors) from Southern Illinois University. During his time at SIU, Glenn was recruited by UNC's basketball coach, Dean Smith, to try-out for a spot on the US Olympic team. Instead, according to Sports Illustrated, he chose to spend that summer in Carbondale volunteering at a deaf camp and taking a math class.
He broke his neck in a car accident in 1977, but recovered and returned to the NBA where he played in the NBA for 10 years and received the Walter Kennedy Service Award in 1981. He is a published author, licensed stock broker, television analyst, commissioner of the World Basketball Association, and avid collector of African-American artifacts. A successful life by any count.
What I find most amazing about this successful man is his apparent humility. He says that he was inspired to begin his deaf basketball camp when he saw deaf students' reactions as he signed to them at a deaf basketball tournament in New York. Mr. Glenn's father's volunteer coaching at GSD likely influenced him as well. He has certainly honored his father by combining the sign language and basketball skills his dad taught him with the generosity of self that his dad modeled.
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