Immigration: The Debate and the Moral High Ground

Since 911 we have become a country that no longer believes itself to be safe from international violence. We have experienced first hand the devastation of loss on our soil. Our immigration system is broken and now consumed by fear as well as ineptitude, we struggle to move forward. 

We are a nation of immigrants. The only true natives are the American Indians, everyone else is an immigrant. Our boarders both north and south are pretty loose verses those who come into our country by plane or boat. We are a large country and the length of our boarders are long and have many miles covered by uninhabited land and wilderness. In short we do have to tighten up the loose ends. In the meantime we have people who are seeking asylum from persecution from violent gangs and corrupt governments. People who are looking just to live their lives without fear. I heard on Face the Nation this morning that at least 80% of all people coming into the United States are fleeing for personal safety for themselves and their families. So what are we to do?

Well I cannot write what we can do, we have experts that should be working on that. We do need to curtail people coming into our country illegally, we are a nation that has a rule of law. Sometimes though there are special circumstances.

I cannot remember where in Central America this large group of immigrants came from, but they came in a caravan headed for the US. We knew they were coming, we should have prepared to process them instead of seeking to ban them. The news gets confusing to me after that. One day I am listening to the news and this group of people are camped along our boarder and the next time I am hearing about children being taken from their parents.

President Trump has this zero tolerance policy for illegal immigration, which in effect means that the immigrants that come in illegally are jailed immediately and the children taken from them because they are not to be incarcerated with them. Obviously this was a heartless and extreme measure to a group of people who have already been extremely traumatized by events that led to their exodus.  Thank God that those closest to Trump were able to convince him that taking the children from their families was extreme and unusual punishment. In short a cold hearted act that served no reasonable purpose for the country nor the families involved.

What happens next is yet to be seen. But kudos to those who have been fighting for the human treatment of the immigrants coming in. We are a nation of laws, but we are also a nation of compassion and humanity. We are the standard bearers of freedom and human rights. This has been our nation's drive since World War II when we found out about the exterminations of Europe's Jews. We as a nation have held the moral high ground, we must not decide to waver from that now. We are the land of the free, the dream of the weary and safeguard for those who seek justice and peace.

We need to protect ourselves from those who seek to harm us, but we cannot call everyone the enemy or we will lose our identity and our grace.

A Mother's Day Reflection

It happened a couple of days ago as we were celebrating my father's 95th birthday. My son got into the driver's seat and I in the back directly behind him. I see a small spider on his headrest and before I get the panicked words, "there's a spider", I open my car door and quickly swish the spider out the door. For those who know me that was an unbelievable act of courage, for I have a undeniable fear of spiders and all bugs for that mater.

Love trumps fear, and my instincts were to protect my child, even if my child will soon be 44 years old.

I am so proud to be a mom. I raised two children and I would give my life for either of them. To be a mother is the greatest blessing a woman can have. I look back on the childhood of my children. I worried about them, cared for their activities (I hate sports, but I was there), shared their joys and their sorrows. Love is what binds us, even today. I pray for them and their families daily. I still worry for them too. I have found that I never stop being a mom. The children grow up, but you love them and worry about them long after they have left the nest. Being proud of them when they are young and even (if it were possible) prouder of them as adults.

I reflect back to my own childhood, I had three moms, my mother, my grandmother and my great aunt. (my grandmother and her sister lived with us. My mother had ill health for many years.) I loved all three of them so very much. though all three of them have left this earth, my love for them has not ceased.

To all the mothers reading this, know that your sacrifices, worry, joy and prayers will never be in vain. You are cultivating a community of love that will last through your children, your grandchildren and yes even your great grandchildren. Those who come to know you will love you and love never dies.

Have a very blessed and joyous Mother's Day!

The bits and pieces of life

This is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry. It contains every gemstone imaginable. It cost me only $35. I can wear this piece with just about any outfit, whether it be casual or dressy.  If you take a closer look you would see that it is made up of scrap pieces of gems. The cast offs, the insignificant pieces that were meant to be thrown in the garbage. Yet I own this beautiful piece. I bought it with the idea of owning so many gems. I have never been disappointed with this purchase. It is a mirror of real life.

How many times do we feel insignificant and that we don't matter. In a world where there is so much emphasis on fame and power, we need to remember that in life the small and the humble are important too.

It isn't Gun Control, It should be Gun Common Sense

After this past week's horrible school shooting in Florida, the 18th since the beginning of this year, the gun control debate is flourishing again. My confusion is with people siting the 2nd Amendment. Really. This isn't a 2nd Amendment issue. No one wants to ban guns, we just want to take the semi automatic and automatic guns out of circulation.

The AR-15 is easier to purchase than a regular handgun. You cannot go hunting with this rifle, if you did you won't be able to eat the kill. In an article written by the Toledo Blade Editorial Board and I quote; "It is easier to buy an AR-15 - now the weapon of choice for copycat mass killers - than a handgun in Florida and Ohio. You must be 21 to buy a handgun, but you can buy this weapon of war at 18, and with no waiting period in Ohio."

To me this is very scary that this horrible weapon, which is much more damaging than a handgun, can be gotten so easily.

Why are some gun owner so hell bent on keeping this gun. It is a weapon of war. It was designed for one purpose, to kill as many as possible in a short period of time. If collectors want this gun, fine, don't sell the ammunition and have the gun for show.

People, we need to compromise here. Don't give me the malarkey about guns don't kill, people do. Yes, people can still kill with a knife or a rock. But you cannot take out a dozen people in a minute with a rock or a knife. And yes, mental illness is a problem here, but obviously with being able to buy the AR-15 so easily even the mentally ill can buy this gun.

We need to respect our 2nd Amendment right, but we also need to make sure innocent people aren't dying because we cannot compromise for the common good.

I am neither a liberal or a conservative. I am someone who lives in balance. Living in the middle allows me to be able to compromise when things need to be corrected. Our country cannot continue to have the right and the left constantly having to have their own way. We need to come together for the common good of the entire country. That is what our founders had in mind when they drew up the Constitution.