Clare Consultation, LLCThree Quotes for Weary Citizens
In days when helpful words don’t come easily, these Elders are, for me, clearings in the fog. George Takei wrote this in the past week – [you may know him for his role as Sulu in Star Trek.] Just a few weeks after my fifth birthday, in the spring of 1942, my parents got my younger brother, my baby sister, and me up very early, hurriedly dressed us, and quickly started to pack…. Read More
An Elephant on Fire
From time to time, a bad habit bursts into flame. Most bad habits are, by definition, world views and behaviors that don’t necessarily play well. But, for the most part, they stay at a level low enough to be ignored. Chewing on fingernails, for example. Interrupting is another one. Some of these bad habits arise from social agreements about the worth of people that just aren’t fair – that erase dignity. And… Read More
Privilege Highway
Recently I had the chance to visit with a long time friend, colleague and leader in the African American community. We found ourselves speaking of the urgently needed, but still largely inactive national dialogue on America’s race history and relations. He told me this story: “My friend was working with a group of teens at a local high school. There were black, brown and white students in the group. My friend had… Read More
50 Years after Bloody Sunday – Where is Elderhood?
ANSWER: It’s in every one of us. Really. Even in the headliners criticized by the vast and varied media. Overt or latent, Elderhood ™ is in you and it’s in me. It’s in Obama. It’s in Boehner. It’s in Netanyahu. And, most surely, Elderhood ™ is in John Lewis and each of the original Selma foot soldiers gathered today to remember Bloody Sunday – the horror they survived 50 years ago… Read More
Billy Frank — This is what Enduring Looks Like
A great man has left this life – the one we know together here on the bold curve of our planet. Billy Frank, a Nisqually Indian man who was born and lived his whole life long – all 83 years – among the people of the Nisqually Tribe, among the tribal people of the Columbia River, of the Pacific Northwest, of North America, of the globe. He accepted no slight to Native… Read More
Zero Tolerance 2.0
I recently heard a story from a student finishing her sophomore year at a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. A story set in a quiet college neighborhood, its characters all part of the college’s community. Here’s how it went – A group of friends were hanging out in a dorm room. All were men, all members of the football team and all, incidentally, considered strong students by respected faculty members. … Read More
Why Read a Blog on Leadership and Change?
You may know this blog has a history. It started January 21, 2009 – the day after Barack Obama was inaugurated for his first term as President of the United States. It was a time when the ragged red underlining of word processing programs – the marks used to flag misspellings – showed up without fail beneath the two words, Barack and Obama. The blog first followed my road trip around the… Read More
<500 words to honor our Elder, Nelson Mandela
This week I had the distinctly privileged new millennium opportunity to sit in a microbrewery with a web design specialist. “Websites are, at best, for linking good minds in support of human community and the planet we humans share.” I knew I liked her. Somewhere in the mix I asked about blog length (you who follow EX:Change know mine can be lloonngg). She said, “Max 500 words.” I was impressed. I’m giving… Read More
American Work from the Ground Up
Labor Day is the American holiday designated to honor workers. Historically, the day arises from the American Labor Movement in the late 1800’s. The tradition continues — you likely noticed it last weekend – as a way of honoring the contributions of American workers to the health and wellbeing of our country. Also vital to the country’s emergence and continuing welfare is American Wilderness – a presence, a natural fact, that has… Read More
Mayo Summit – Listen to These People
Galena, Alaska was at 39 below zero four days before Christmas in 1997. At 40 below, the airport closes. Air travel is the most reasonable way to get into Galena in winter. The other ways are by snow machine or dog sled. A hand full of tribal leaders from the Yukon River basin were gathering on that day because they had become acutely concerned for the health of the river. Toxic dump… Read More