Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Day 203.

Today, I...

saw the last of Alanna for a while. We went out this morning for our last banana smoothies together. I know she will miss this place and that she will be greatly missed by this place -- good thing she lives in Snohomish.

missed thinking of what Washington was like. Now I've begun thinking about how it will be.

realized I am going to miss the way that Costa Ricans support the Special oOympics. They have entire parades for their athletes when they return from competitions and on TV, I've seen more announcements supporting the disabled than I've seen car commercials. I have a feeling part of this has to due with the fact that abortion is illegal in this country -- I've noticed many more handicapped young people here than I do in the States.

learned how much I've changed when I consider other people's points of view. Previously I was so angry all the time -- angry at our previous president, angry at the big corporations, angry at what American society had become. Now...now it's less anger and more ache. Today I read a Glenn Beck quote that would have once given me a hernia; now I just turned off my computer, opened my "Lent is for Lovers" journal (somewhat like my "Why I Love my Life" blog. I pick a subject and write a love letter for them), and began scrawling all the things I love about Glenn Beck:
  • He's from my corner of the planet.
  • One of his daughters is named Hannah.
  • When he was fifteen, his mother committed suicide.
  • A few years later, his stepbrother did the same.
  • Like all of us, I'm sure he's looked at all he has done and wondered if it was right.
  • He's been diagnosed with ADHD.
  • Alcoholics Anonymous has changed his life around.
  • People like to pick on him.
Don't get me wrong, much of what Glenn does and says goes against everything I believe in and I am not going to drop my passion for social justice any time soon, but you have to agree with me when I say that the internet doesn't need any more hate-blogs. Aren't there enough red faces in the world already? Why waste energy spreading angry propoganda when you can send a simple love note? Which do you think will make a bigger difference in the long run? If I'm not mistaken, the most published book in the history of mankind is also the biggest love letter.

smiled when my host mom accepted my invitation to go see the play El Nica (The Nicaraguan) with me on Tuesday.

-Hannah

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