September 23, 2015 The Julian News 5
• An Old Friends Passing
Romanian politician, Cornel
Vadim Tudor, died last Tuesday.
Vadim was larger than life and a
bit louder than large. He said what
he felt like saying and whatever
he said enthused the crowds,
even when he was so taken with
his own words he forgot why he
was saying themed. Vadim drew
support from those who didn't
know better and it was a lot of
support--in2000 he won 28% of
the popular vote for the Romanian Presidency. He reminded one of
Donald Trump.
Cornel was anti-Semitic, at least in his remarks, so the Western
Embassies would have nothing to do with him. Stung, he retaliated with
off-color humor. In a famous play on a name he called Ambassador
Jim Rospepe, "Rosapopo," in his newspaper, popo meaning rear and
you can put it together, dear reader, as "rosa" which sounds enough
in English like what it is in Romanian. Then add a bit of homophobia
to the mix.., no one said Cornel was cultured.
I didn't agree with most of the things in Vadim's pOlitical speeches
but over the years he became a friend. How did that happen? It
began as a matter of principle--diplomats should talk to everyone,
like them or not. So when, after I retired and someone asked if rd like
to be introduced itwas like...meeting who? Satan? The head of ISIS?
But..."Whynot?" Curiosity and principle are a strong combination.
The first thing I learned was that Vadim loved the United States
and knew more about US history than most Americans. The second
thing was that he was perfectly willing to listen and, if something
made sense to him, to do it. When told that his anti-Semitic remarks
were keeping him in the bad bodks of the Western Embassies Vadim
pointed out that his brother-in-law was Jewish. He then hired two
Israeli PR consultants for his next campaign and anti-Semitism
disappeared from "Romania Mare" and his speeches.
It didn't make a difference to the Western Embassies. It should
have, they should have acknowledged the change, but all that was
years ago and many conversations gone.
Over those years we often had dinner, Vadim and his in-your-face-
cleavage legal counselor. She WAS his legal counselor and smart as
a whip if you could get past the cleavage. We argued, debated, he
gave me signed copies of his many books and his death makes me
wonder if he will be remembered for anything except the extreme and
outrageous. Most people are multi-faceted but in some one aspect
smacks you in the face so hard you don't see anything else. It was
this way with Vadim. And It makes one wonder about Donald Trump.
Celebrate Autumn,
With Mountain Tribal
Gypsy
There's nothing like rhythmic music and dance to help celebrate
the changing of the seasons. Come out to Wynola Pizza this Sunday
afternoon as they help welcome in the Fall Season.
The troupes recent performances have the audience laughing and
clapping at the ladies interact with the crowd.
Relax on the patio at Wynola Pizza with Mountain Tribal Gypsy
from 5 to 7 as they twirl and show off their fall colors, celebration all
that is the belly dance, bring your friends, children, spouses and have
a good time escaping for the final time before the start of a new week.
Every time the ladies dance it is a new experience to behold.
rvice ince
Really
by Michele Harvey
I was wondering who wrote the song line "You don't know what
you've got till it's gone." Then I heard it sung within minutes and
remembered that Joni Mitchell wrote it and made the line famous in
her song Big Yellow Taxi. I know that my thoughts strayed from Joni
Mitchell's theme in her song; however, some people think they have
a lot even when others might consider them poor and others don't
appreciate what they have until they no longer have it.
I grew up a little bit poor but I don't remember feeling poor. My mother
raised us by herself because my father died in the Korean War. She
raised us in a nice house making payments with her widow's pension.
She would rather have had my father than the nice house, but she
was able to raise us in a safe neighborhood and that was important.
My older sister, my younger brother and I began working for pay when
each of us was eleven years old. It was simply what we all could do
to help our mother financially. I don't remember if any of us actually
gave her any money like many children do, but I do remember buying
my own clothes or buying fabric and supplies to make my own clothes
throughout high school. My mother still bought our special occasion
clothes for dances and paid for visits to the hairdresser a few times
each year. She paid for our needs and I am forever grateful to Mom,
who gave up so much for us children.
When I was a child we didn't waste food. We pinched mold off of
old bread before eating it and scooped mold out of jam before eating
it. But we never felt poor because mom made sure we occasionally
went to drive-in movies, camping trips, picnics and days at the beach.
Morn often invited people to our house for barbecues throughout the
Summer because she liked to surround herself with friends. Mom
would rather cook for 20 people than for just the 4 of us. Because she
enjoyed people so much, she gave her children the gift of getting to
know a very diverse and always changing group of people.
Last Sunday, Pastor Cindy at the Julian Community Methodist
Church told a story about missionaries who did a project in Appalachia.
"Barbara Brown Taylor is a writer who used to be an Episcopal
priest. She tells about taking a group of youth from her Atlanta church
on a mission trip to Appalachia. They worked on a log cabin that
would be the home of a minister. One of the local teenagers was
named Dwayne.
Barbara said that Dwayne and her youth hit it off and. began to
exchange life stories. The city kids told him about the Marriott Hotel
restaurant that rotated once every hour. Dwayne told them about how
his uncle broke his hip falling in an abandoned coal mine. They told
him about the Atlanta Braves. He told them about raising a pet barn
owl from a baby. Dwayne even let the city girls give him a haircut:
At the end of the week, as they were about to head back to Atlanta,
they gathered with the locals for a group prayer. Each person was
invited to pray. Many thanked God for letting them serve the poor
people of the area. They asked God to bless the poor. After the
prayer time, it was obvious to Barbara that something was wrong with
Dwayne.
When she asked him, he replied, "You called me pood I've never
thought of myself that way. I have so much - how could you call me
poor? You should save your prayers for someone who needs them."
Later, Barbara wrote: "No one meant to huFt him, but our language
gave us away. We thought of "the poor" as people other than
ourselves. We separated ourselves from Dwayne in our prayers and
it stung him to the quick. By setting him apart, ~e withheld the one
thing he really wanted from us - simply to belong as a member of the
community, not a mission project."
Sometimes we need to reevaluate our thinking and our judgements
of others.
When I was married to my children's father, he worked as a building
inspector on medical facilities. One year about 1990, he made
$100,000.00. The following year he was unemployed for the entire
/ear and we lived on his disability and on money I made from yard
sales and from selling eggs. That year we got a loan on our house
to pay off car loans and I grew much of our food and raised chickens
for the eggs. I sewed a lot of the gifts we gave and made do where
I could. I found paying bills was very difficult, but I managed and
throughout the year I wondered how people who have nothing to
begin with, manage to get along financially.
Some people seem to live to complain. It's so easy to solve other
people's problems. It's easy to say "If you didn't spend money on X
you'd be able to pay Y. Other people make the most from what they
have and I admire them.
We are so fOrtunate to live here in the Julian Community. We can get
food twice each month from Feeding America when the truck comes
to town on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays. Several organizations have
rummage sales each year; this past month the Methodist Church
was selling clothes for $1.00 a bag. You could have gotten aa child's
wardrobe for.an entire year for less than ½ gallon of milk would cost.
We have bargains everywhere if a person knows where to look.
A country life can be a life full of cost free activities. Our mountains
are full of hiking trails and at least once each summer we can watch a
movie at Jess Martin Park. Our library has a full calendar of things to
do for all ages and books and movies can be rented for free.
.This past week I watched a TED Talk video of Mia Birdsong
speaking. Mia is a Family Activist Mia Birdsong has an impressive
resume that centers on lifting people up from poverty and prejudice. I
am very impressed with her attitude and the wisdom that she shares.
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In Mia Birdsong's TED Talk
she says "the story we tell about
poverty isn't true.
Let's honor the skills, drive and
initiative that poor people bring to
the struggle every day."
She asks us to look again at
people in poverty: They may be
broke -- but they're not broken.
One of the stories she tells in
her 15 minute talk is about three
women who formed a group
to help each other financially.
These three women formed a
house cleaning service. They
made up flyers and posted them
many places and the jobs came
to them. The way they operate is
for two women to work at house
cleaning while the third woman
watches the children. They rotate
their responsibilities and share
the income. Though each has a
husband who works full time, the
money that these women earn
pays for school clothes and other
items that the husband's salaries
don't cover.
Using some initiative and
their collected imaginations,
these women were able to lift
irvlces
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themselves a bit from the poverty that they had lived with throughout
their lives.
Mia tells stories of other people who lift themselves up and if we
look around we can see many more stories of possibilities fulfilled.
I know that in my life I have learned to utilize my assets and I share
whenever possible. I am given scraps of cloth and I sew them into
something useful. When I cook a zucchini or slice a tomato, I save
seeds for next year. This week's leftover corn goes into last week's
pot of homemade chili to stretch it for a bigger meal. A pile of used
boards can become a raised bed for plants.
I never want to sound like I'm lecturing people. However, in my
nearly 65 years I have learned so much from so many friends who
were willing to share their knowledge, their seeds and sometimes
their scraps of cloth, rve often told people that I am a pack rat and to
be a successful pack rat, rve learned to use the things I collect. This
way I really don't think will ever feel poor.
These are my thoughts.
OLD F XSHIoNED, INEXPENSIVE
FUN FOR TIlE WttOLE FA, iIIA.
59th annual traditional old time Melodrama in the Julian
Town Hall, every Friday and Saturday night from Oct 2
through Oct 24 at 7PM, and matinees every Saturday and
Sunday afternoon From Oct 3 through Oct 25 at 2PM.
$10- Adults and Teens,
$5- 12 & Under,
Free- 3 & under.
Tickets available at the door or in advance at Town Hall
Chamber Office or through our website:
wwwJulianMelodrama.com
