International Day of Action for Rivers
While searching the web this weekend, we came across a wonderful blog post by Katy Yan on the International Rivers website about Maya’s latest children’s book, I Know the River Loves Me. Katy says:
This is a great book for a young child or classroom, but it also reminds the rest of us about the power that comes from combining words and art, poetry and paint. The author herself was inspired by the Yuba River in California, along with rivers in India, Puerto Rico, Brazil, and Mexico, to share her love of rivers with her daughter and a new generation of river protectors.
This year’s International Day of Action for Rivers on March 14 is all about harnessing creative energy to protect and celebrate our rivers. Take this book and that day to remember that there are still free flowing rivers out there, and that no matter how threatened your river may be, it’s never too late to protect, restore or fall in love with it again.
About the International Day
of Action for Rivers:
On March 14, 2011 unite with communities around the world and take part in the fourteenth Annual International Day of Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water and Life. Be inspired to hold your own creative action: Express your love for rivers through music and dance, speak out against human rights violations with paintings and photographs, and call for a better energy and water management model through poetry and words. Find events in your area or create your own.
Read more of Katy’s blog post or learn how you can call and listen to Maya read her book, I Know the River Loves Me.
Filed under Events, General | Tags: celebration, day of action, empowerment, fun | Comment (0)Reflection Press turns 1!
We did it! Thanks to the awesome support from our friends and community, Reflection Press turns 1 this month! And as a special anniversary treat for our blog readers we’ve assembled a mini-guide to Claiming Face that specifically focuses on The 3 Rules. Request your free copy and learn more about Claiming Face: Self-Empowerment through Self-Portraiture.
We also created a video reflection of our past year, how the creative process worked for us, and some of our plans for the future. You can view the short 5 minute video below. Thanks for your support in making this a great first year!!
Proposition 8 Overturned!
What a fabulous day, not only did we send off our Gender Now coloring book to be printed today but also a Federal Judge overturned Proposition 8 which had taken away the right to marry for same-sex couples in California. All over California LGBT people are celebrating, marching, and dancing in the streets. Maya and I were interviewed in the Castro about our thoughts on the court decision. I didn’t know what to say at first and then I remembered….what would have it been like if my dads could have been married? How would that have legitimized my family and my experience and provided much needed reflection? It’s hard to say but I imagine that it would have spoken volumes in more ways than I could imagine. While California joins other states in beginning to recognize the rights of ALL, there’s still a ways to go until full equality. But in the meantime let’s celebrate the small victories and dance in the streets!!!
To read the full ruling click here.
Filed under LGBTQI Families | Tags: acceptance, celebration, empowerment, family, lgbt, reflection | Comment (0)Happy Pride: Forty and Fabulous!
Here in San Francisco pride weekend has finally arrived! The glitter and sequins and boas…the rainbow flags flying high along Market Street from the Embarcardero all the way up to the Castro…the giant pink triangle adorning the top of Twin Peaks. Yup, it’s Pride in San Francisco and the culmination of an entire month of Pride! This year’s theme: “Forty and Fabulous”
We are marching in the parade this morning with Zai as usual waving to the crowds of people lined along the street to watch the 40th annual Pride celebration. Many other cities across the country have been celebrating their own Pride events and we too have been attending many events in our own neighborhood, attending lots of really superb films and performances, like Frameline 34 and Fresh Meat, and just generally being and feeling proud.
It is the festivities of Pride that often make us appreciate the value and importance of reflection in our world. For a whole month the world has a few more rainbows in it! Be Out! Be Proud! Be Fabulous!
Filed under From the Life, LGBTQI Families | Tags: celebration, family, festive, fun, holiday, lgbt, pride | Comment (0)For the Love of Harvey…Unspeakable Joy!
Ghandi/October 2
Martin Luther King Jr./January 15
Cesar Chavez/March 31
Harvey Milk/May 22
These are special days. They are dedicated first to honor these individuals, their lives and their contribution to our world and our lives. Second, these days represent a call to learn and align ourselves with the spirit and intent of their work. We are each challenged to come forward and live it in our own way.
Ever since I was a child and well into adulthood, through stories my father told about Cesar, through the unforgettable words of Martin, and films about Ghandi and Harvey, I learned that while we may be disenfranchised within the dominant paradigm, we can be a peaceful, powerful and an undeniable presence for change. We are here. We belong. And yes! We, absolutely all of us, are powerful, beautiful, wise and worthy.
I have come to know this for myself in part because of the mere existence of these four people and the impact of their thought and work in the world. But how do I know about them? It is because of the specific attention given to them, the honor, the respect. I have learned their words and come to recognize their images in schools and libraries, public spaces and media. Through example they have taught me some of my most valuable lessons for being committed to my own true nature while living on this planet. They have honored me first. They have valued and reflected me in my worth. In my own much simpler way, I try to thank them and continue the flow of their beautiful intentions through my work, my life, my thoughts and words. They stand as my models.
This weekend, Matthew and I attended some of the events in our neighborhood for the first ever Harvey Milk Day. I say all the time how much Continue reading »
Filed under LGBTQI Families, Power of Reflection | Tags: celebration, courage, family, festive, fun, lgbt, reflection | Comment (0)
