Saturday, September 16, 2006

it has been way longer then i wish

It has been way longer then I wish

Close your eyes and watch as the orange light shines in the surface. Next, point your chest toward the sky and open your heart. Really, open it. She is going to stop drinking so she can honor her body and not be numb. She is really going to do it this time.

Last night she got home around midnight but for strange reasons ended up staying awake till 6 am. The hour before sleep was spent preparing a meal, which unlike most, did not turn out that great. There is usually never any bread in the house and when there is, it goes bad. A lot of things go bad. There is nothing redeeming about smoking, but last night, when she stood outside on her balcony there was a parade of leaves on the street. This is the sign, it is the time for fall.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

sept 11 for 2006; breathe, beacause it matters

On the eve of sept 11, 2006, I start a new class with my amazing YouthLink students.

Been thinking a lot about what it means to live in the world today.

When I watch the work they have been making, it takes my breath away.

Tomorow we meet and I am going to give them the following proposals for thier advanced projects:


YL 30 Advanced Video Class:
Documenting history as it happens so we can carve out a space for the future

It has been 5 years since the 9/11 tragedy. How this incident changed and continues to change the world, the US and impact the lives of individuals is expansive. How it will be recorded and written in the history books is a timely and important question.

What do President Bush’s Post 9/11 anti-terror policies mean to you? How do they directly and indirectly impact the world we live in? What kind of future lies ahead? How does 9/11 overshadow other important and urgent issues that need attention both locally and globally? What does this all mean for you and how do you think it effects your present life, your future world?

While mainstream Hollywood pictures, and biased media (on both sides) present their view of life since 9/11, you (YouthLink 30 students) will research, discover and explore other, all to often silenced and unattended stories that may otherwise never make it into the news or the big screen. We will use the September 11 tragedy as a way to explore what it means to be alive in the world today, through the eyes of US based youth. We will make media that will not only contribute to the writing of this history, but, by sharing new and fresh perspectives and stories, have an impact on the future.