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{ Sunday, December 25, 2005 }

9:53 PM | link

Well, you wonder why I always dress in black,
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.

I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.

I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.

Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there oughta be a Man In Black.

I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.

And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believin' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believin' that we all were on their side.

Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.

Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's okay,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Til things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black

{ Sunday, December 11, 2005 }

9:06 PM | link

I started this book this afternoon and finished it before bedtime. The author's story is engrossing yet so sad. I wasn't popular in school by any means, but luckily I experienced not one iota of what the author had to endure. Hopefully this book will bring bullying to the forefront of parents' and teachers' minds and encourage them to learn more about effective responses to bullying.

My only minor criticism of the book is that I wished the author had commented more on how very lucky she was to have all the resources at her disposal that she did -- a seemingly affluent family that for example, could whisk her out of the country on a moment's notice. My heart goes out to kids who have to deal with bullying without those luxuries.

But I hope more parents, teachers, bullies, and the bullied read this book. Here are some resources that she lists at the back of the book for those needing help or wanting to learn more:
KidsPeace
Bullying Online
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-SUICIDE

Labels: Books, Parenting

{ Tuesday, December 06, 2005 }

8:45 AM | link

• Instead of a secret santa or white elephant party, we're having a party and asking people to bring a toy or non-perishable food item to donate to a local group that's helping needy families.
• We're setting dollar limits on what we spend on each other.
• We'll try to give inexpensive gifts or make donations in the name of friends and family. We'll also try to buy gifts from nonprofit organizations—the dog rescue group we work with is selling 2006 calendars as a way to raise money for the group's work, so we'll buy those as gifts and support the group while we're at it.

Labels: Green Living