Closer to Home

I cannot believe I've been home for nearly two weeks. The landscape of Belfast's city centre had become more familiar than the Los Angeles skyline, but I sighed contentfully at the sight of the palm tree-lined grid of streets and the jam-packed freeway lanes. I had already indulged in a McDonald's cone at the Newark airport (they must use a different formula in the UK!) and now all that was left to be desired was my bed. Of course I was excited to see my mom and let her kiss me alot, but after that all you really want after a 24-hour travel day is a warm shower and BED. Wish granted at approximately 9pm PT!

And then I woke up at 2pm...Belfast time. It took a few days to adjust, but you'll be relieved to know I am not waking up with the sun anymore.

Over the past several days, I've tried to explain many things to family and friends, including DukeEngage, Northern Ireland, the Troubles, my role at Lisburn PSP. All of these have come to mean so much to me that sometimes I can't find the right words to represent them wholely. However, one of the most challenging questions came from my incredibly perceptive and intelligent grandfather, who asked, "In what way were you, as American students, able to contribute where you were working?" This is certainly a question with which I wrestled throughout the program. Sometimes I was concerned that I was gaining more from the experience than I was giving in return. What I learned is that for many people, it is natural to identify needs that can be filled, but it is more challenging to step back, soak up the environment, listen to people, and learn by following. Following?! Yes, a long-lost art among overachieving, motivated college students, but it seems to me a skill for true service that is equally important to leading.

Leadership + followership = service.

After you recover from being awestruck by my profound equation for service, I will tell you something else I learned. From working with the people at Lisburn PSP and the community centre, I saw firsthand that people sustain energy for a project or cause in which they are truly invested. Today, the "trend" seems to be international service, which I am not trying to discourage by any means. But we also need to remember that our greatest value often lies in what we know. We have the most significant working knowledge about the communities where we've spent the most time and the people with whom we have formed relationships. It's interesting that my international DukeEngage experience taught me the importance of looking closer to home for ways to transform my skills and knowledge into action.

My sincere endeavor now is to keep my eyes and ears open. There's a lot of world outside of Duke University and it not's separate from us. We are part of the world. Just tonight, NBC aired a Dateline special with Ann Curry, entitled "America Now - Friends & Neighbors," which focused on a town in southeastern Ohio and the severe poverty that has been intensified by the recession of the past few years. (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38382773/ns/dateline_nbc-america_now) There are few adults who are lucky enough to obtain a mininum-wage job because company after company has gone under. Fourteen people living in 4 rooms, children sleeping on the floor, parents going hungry for days to feed their kids, local food banks nearly closing due to funding withdrawal -- all of this within a few miles of people who singlehandedly could afford to support several of these families with money they wouldn't feel missing from their bank accounts. This is America. And the uppercrust which has no personal experience with this kind of poverty is the smallest minority in the world.

So, whoever you are and wherever you are, keep thinking, listening, and (when appropriate) acting.

Week 8: The Final Days

Before you say it, I know it's been longer than a week since my last post! My absence is due to our busy schedule during our last couple of weeks in Belfast lest you think I was running out of things to say / write about. Now the difficulty will be pouring out everything out of this full noggin...

I am finally at the point where I knew the bus schedules and ice cream selection at various corner stores by heart and even count out 76 pence in change (the exact amount of a Twister) without getting flustered by all the coins. And now we're leaving. I would be lying if I said (typed?) that I didn't miss home - because I do. But Belfast has become yet another pseudo-home, complete with favorite places and new friends. My list of pseudo-homes is growing slowly: Boston/Somerville, Durham, and Belfast. And now we're just supposed to pick up and leave?? Yes, I guess that's the deal I signed up for with this DukeEngage program. In fact, I think I had to sign something saying that if I don't leave the country at the end of 8 weeks, they will use force to get me home.

Thus, our goodbyes began. First, Mike and I had to say goodbye to Sharon and Adie-- our wonderful supervisors for the summer and managers of Lisburn Prisoners Support Project. We all worked together in the cozy Credit Union office and the close quarters fostered close working relationships. Thankfully, we got to see Sharon and Adie one last time over the weekend because Adie invited us to join his family for their community's bonfire in celebration of the Twelfth. The "Twelfth" is the Protestant celebration on the 12th of July that originally was designed to celebrate King William of Orange's victory over King James II at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. Three hundred and twenty years later, I highly doubt that people (especially younger generations) are still celebrating this triumph. Now it is a deeply-rooted tradition that starts with the burning of massive bonfires on the Eleventh night and ends with a day-long parade of Orangemen and bands through Belfast (and other cities in Northern Ireland). The "marching season" is fairly tense because TONS of flags are flown, including some paramilitary emblems (although the number has decreased signifcantly in recent years) and because the marches pass through many neighborhoods, including some Catholic ones. The route of a lawful march has to be approved the Parades Commission, who try to accomodate the Orangemen's (Protestant) desired route while respecting the Catholic communities opposition to the parades going through their neighbourhoods. Sounds like civilized compromise, but both sides become embittered through this push-and-shove process. A recurring theme in Northern Ireland's history is one group feeling (rightly or wrongly) as though giving something to the others lessens what they have -- i.e. if you get more rights, ours will be limited. An interesting position to consider...

Yes, it's tradition -- but sometimes that's not a good enough reason to keep doing something. I'm sure you can think of some examples without any prompts from me. All I know is that while I was appreciative of the warmth coming from the huge backyard fire, it was eerie to see the tricolor flag (of Ireland; representative of the nationalist community) burning on top. No matter what way you spin it, that's not friendly or peaceful. This is a very complicated (and dare I say heated) issue, so feel free to respond and/or ask questions.

Another goodbye we had to say was to Farset and the wonderful staff, including the manager Ruth -- who cooked me my first (and only) heart-clogging Ulster Fry. Trying the combo of fried egg, sausage, bacon, soda bread, potato bread, and beans was on my to-do list. Phew! So glad I've got that checked off now.

Finally, we are going to have to say goodbye to each other and our shared summer in Belfast. Hold up! Let's not get ahead of ourselves -- our flight doesn't leave for another 30 hours. There's still time...