-
Are You Aware? Life From My Point of View
This is part III in our Awareness Wednesday series on disability. Read the other posts in the series here. It is 2:30 p.m. and I’m sitting on the steps in front of the school waiting for the taxi that will take me, Connie, and Billy home. I’m working on my homework, which is reading. It is fun, and I’m learning more and more. I’m recovering from my first grade year of school in the U.S., where the teacher had no clue how to teach low-vision children. I’m now in a new school and must be transported to another town. The taxi arrives: It’s the white van and that means Ray. Ray…
-
Sabbath Devotional :: Perspectives on the Pale Blue Dot
This week’s diet of news includes: a platter of pardon for a confessed criminal a fresh gumbo of cooked-up conspiracy theories a pallet cleanser of a whistleblower’s account about specious miracle drugs and a bulk order of Funeral Potatoes for the nearly 90 thousand souls in the US who have died so far this year from COVID-19. This maelstrom of chaos has been unrelenting for years now. We muster our courage and contact our civic leaders on important matters — often feeling like we’re howling in the wind. We protect the vote and encourage our communities. We send aid, lift banners, and inform ourselves from reliable sources. We reach way…
-
Are You Aware? Five Lessons from Raising an Autistic Child
This is part II in our Awareness Wednesday series on disability. Read the other posts in the series here. Like all parents, my world changed forever when I had my first son in 2002. Like a growing number of parents, my world changed forever yet again when I discovered, in 2004, that my son was autistic. Navigating the world of public education, private insurance, and social interaction as the mother of an autistic child for the past 15 years has been a challenging experience, one that has taught me several lessons with respect to how our system works in practice. I share five of these lessons below. Although much of what…
-
MWEG Member Op-Ed :: “America’s New Threat Might Be Middle-Class Hunger”
“In late March, when the Javits Center in New York was converted into a hospital, I became obsessed with protecting my parents from the coronavirus. I didn’t want my 86-year-old mother to die on a cot in a convention center. Then images of farmers ploughing their crops under gave me a new goal: to make sure my mom, who experienced chronic hunger as a child in postwar Europe, doesn’t go to bed hungry in her old age, too.” MWEG member Stefanie Condie is concerned about the tremendous strain COVID-19 is putting on our food system. Read her op-ed to learn more about why rationing may become more and more necessary, despite the…
-
MWEG Member Op-Ed :: “Can the Democrats Avoid Trump’s China Trap?”
“Before the pandemic, before the Great Recession, before proliferating hurricanes and fires, the United States began a global war on terrorism. Its leaders fixated on a shadowy enemy abroad as life at home crumbled for millions of Americans. The war on terrorism did not end terrorism; the war itself became endless. What it did shatter was the myth that a triumphant United States could bend the world to its will.” Click here to read the New York Times op-ed where MWEG member Rachel Esplin Odell decries the folly of turning this pandemic crisis into a geopolitical struggle that will further drain America’s resources and endanger our security. “Can the Democrats…
-
Sabbath Devotional :: Reflections on Remembering
During more than one lesson I was taught at church during my youth, I learned that President Spencer W. Kimball once said the most important word in the dictionary is “remember” (Spencer W. Kimball, “Circles of Exaltation,” June 28, 1968). This really stuck with me, and I have thought of it often over the years. There have been times in my life when “remember” has been an especially painful word. There have been traumatic events that replay in my mind that I desperately want to forget. There have been losses that sting and ache, and remembering is accompanied by waves of sadness and grief. Still, I recognize that remembering some…
-
Are You Aware? Coming to an Understanding
This is part I in our Awareness Wednesday series on disability. Read the other posts in the series here. A few weeks ago my son returned from his mission in Argentina due to the coronavirus. While he waits for reassignment, we have enjoyed having him home and hearing about his experiences. He was in Argentina for six months. It was just enough time to learn Spanish and become moderately fluent. He spoke about how homesick he was throughout those first weeks and months. It was incredibly hard to not understand the language. He is a smart kid who is very gifted with words. The inability to share his thoughts and participate…
-
MWEG Member Op-Ed :: “Romney’s Reckless China Rhetoric Risks New Cold War”
“Tough talk on China is all the rage in Washington. Senate Republicans are directing GOP candidates to answer questions about America’s disastrous coronavirus response by blaming Beijing for the outbreak, while presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is accusing President Donald Trump of being soft on China.” Click here to read MWEG member Rachel Esplin Odell’s Deseret News op-ed explaining how Senator Romney’s recent writings on China distort truth and exaggerate dangers. Romney’s Reckless China Rhetoric Risks New Cold War • May 4, 2020 • Deseret News
-
Sabbath Devotional :: Mighty Prayer
A group of disciples had stopped on the side of a road. The work of teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ was just beginning. There was so much to do, an abundance of knowledge to gain, and many many miles to go before their journeys would end. Their work would span throughout their mortal life and carry on through the eternities. Gathered in a circle, these faithful disciples united in prayer. The scriptures tell us it was a “mighty prayer” (3 Nephi 27:1). Their prayers were full of humility and sincerity of heart (D&C 5:24). Their faithful offering, individually and collectively, brought our Savior, Jesus Christ, before them asking them,…
-
Are You Aware? Who Will Survive?
This is part V in our “battlefronts” Awareness Wednesday series. Read the other posts in the series here. So many of us are home with our families and are relatively safe and going out infrequently. Imagine if the situation were different. Imagine trying to survive in this time without a home. Many homeless people are afraid to go into shelters at this time. They fear the close quarters and the infection rates in the shelters. Earlier this month 94 men tested positive at a homeless shelter in Salt Lake City. Recently in the Boston area all residents and staff at certain homeless shelters were tested for COVID-19. At one of these…
