Sea of Pumpkins

i went on one of my favorite fall adventures this weekend – the pumpkin festival in keene, new hampshire.  maybe you have to be a certain kind of person to appreciate the fried dough, kettle corn, hot dogs, street bands, pumpkin pie eating contest and children in their halloween costumes but i think it is a great way to spend a fall day.  there is also a cute, little old theatre in the downtown area that shows old cartoons for free all day long so you can take a break from the cold for a few minutes and sit down.  it’s such a laugh, road runner, tom and jerry, the three stooges, cartoons I haven’t thought of for years!  and little kids still think they are funny – who would have thought?

and then of course there are the pumpkins.  this year it was a drizzly, rainy day so i think attendance (of both

around the gazebo - pumpkin festival 2008

people and pumpkins) was down.  usually there are upwards of 27,000 pumpkins brought by attendees.  do you know how many pumpkins that is?  seriously, that is a lot of pumpkins! the first time i went several years ago i was absolutely amazed at the sea of pumpkins, pumpkins for blocks and blocks.  but this year the recorded total of pumpkins was 22,568.  granted, not an insignificant number of pumpkins, but noticeably less than last year.  and i admit (with my head hanging in shame) that i have yet to ever contribute a pumpkin to the grand display of pumpkin pageantry.

but in spite of the there being a few less pumpkins, the pumpkin display was amazing.  the three story scaffoldings of pumpkins at the end of the streets, especially once lit up after dark, were a sight to behold.  at the end of the street around the gazebo there is always a fun display and this year they had the giant pumpkins in that area.  there was a pumpkin that was almost as tall as i am.  now i realize i’m not very tall, but seriously, i am over 5 feet tall!  the pumpkin was at least four feet tall and if it was standing on end (which it wasn’t) i’m sure it would have been a couple of feet taller.  it was amazing  — and carved.  i don’t know who had that job, i’m just glad it wasn’t me!

the pumpkin festival seems like one of those things that represents whatever you might think of as good about fall and new england.  it’s an adventure that you can share with family and friends.  i won’t miss very many things about new england when i leave, but this is definitely something i will miss. if you missed it this year, don’t miss it next year.  put it in your calendar now: saturday, october 17, 2009.

http://pumpkinfestival.com/

Cup of Tea?

I’ve just recently finished reading one of the most amazing books.  Perhaps you have heard of it, since it has won all kinds of awards, as has the mountaineer Greg Mortenson, whom the story is about.  The book is called Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace….One School at a Time.  Mortenson was attempting to climb K2 in Pakistan (the world’s second tallest mountain), when he got separated from his climbing party and nearly died trying to find shelter.  His story of survival in the harsh conditions is the story of someone who found his mission and calling in life in a most unexpected way.

In the very remote mountains of Pakistan he meets Haji Ali, the leader of Korphe, the village that nurses him back to health, who becomes like a father to him.  While Mortenson instantly feels a connection to the people, the culture and the community, it takes him a long time to adapt to the ways of the Balti and other peoples in the Karakoram Mountains.  One day Haji Ali explains,

Here we drink three cups of tea to do business: the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend, and the third, you join the family, and for our family, we are prepared to do anything – even die.

Mortenson thinks he finally gets it.  This is not America and you can’t do business like you do in America.  The point is not to get down to business, talk business, keep a professional business attitude.  It’s about relationships.  Talk about a change of perspective, attitude and a complete paradigm shift.

But the most inspiring part of Mortenson’s story is his mission to build schools in the forgotten places of (first) Pakistan and later Afghanistan, especially for girls.  He sees first-hand how children are raised in an environment of terrorism, educated into terrorism because it is the only form of education offered to them.  So, with the help of many people, he created the Central Asia Institute and starts building schools so children can receive an education just like I did, and you did and your children will.  He doesn’t do it without consequence, repercussions or a bit of a fight, but he does it and with great success, right through 9/11, the fall of the Taliban, the fall of Baghdad and all kinds of hate mail against his family through that time.

Mortenson’s story is one I hope we can all learn from.  Violence only breeds more violence.  But he is building a legacy of peace, here through education.  I can only hope that someday I will be able to have a sliver of this kind of impact on the world, maybe the Middle East, helping build peace through whatever means make the most sense in my life.

Here’s how you can read Three Cups of Tea (and you should definitely read it):

http://www.threecupsoftea.com

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Cups-Tea-Mission-Promote/dp/0143038257/ref=si3_rdr_bb_product

shhhh….it’s called silent for a reason

i’m going on an exciting adventure, a really quiet one.  anyone who knows me knows that i am a pretty quiet person, i guess that is to be expected given that i am well off the introvert charts.  but i am going to go on a weekend silent retreat.  no talking from friday evening to sunday afternoon. no music, no cell phone, no computer, no tv, nothing.  just me, the jesuit monks and whoever else might show up to try this spiritual exercise of silence for the weekend.  i am about as equally excited and nervious as possibe.  forty eight hours is a long time of silence, even for one as introverted as me.  what if i just have scream 26 hours into it?  ok, i’ve never really screamed in my life.  what if i bust out in song at hour 33? now you know that’s possible.  it’s just a long time.  but i am really excited too.  i think it will be an amazing opportunity to get away from the insanity that is my life and take time to just be.  now that’s something i’m terrible at.

so what is the purpose of a silent retreat, you might ask, as i did when i first considered doing it.  i am amused by this quote from the hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy:

If human beings don’t keep exercising their lips, he thought, their brains start working.

silence is an uncomfortable sound for most people.  we are surrounded by noise constantly: tv, radio, ipod, other people, the sound of our own voice, the list can go on and on.  so the idea of the silent retreat is simple, you go somewhere away from all of that kind of noise, and don’t talk for a short period of time (or potentially a long period of time if you want).  people have described what happens during this time in a variety of ways.  the hitchhikers guide, i think accurately points out, you can hear yourself think, which is often hard to do with all of the other voice in today’s society.  you may meditate, or seek the guidance or the voice of a higher power like god.  i think talking to god and seeing what he has to say to you is a great idea so i’m hopeful for lots of that and also hopeful for the chance to hear my own voice because i think it is easy to let my own voice get drowned out by the many voices in today’s world.

i’ve heard from others who have done this type of thing that it can be very significant and even life-changing.  i don’t want to put too much pressure on myself or the event, but i’m excited to see what happens and i think it will be really good.  so don’t call me.  it’s called silent for a reason.