Activity #3: Food

Activity #3: Food

Reasoning behind the activity:

I believe our food and food systems are such an IMPORTANT part of our culture and our value system as a society. The choices we make regarding food are so important if we want to live our lives according to our principles.

- When our food is grown, does it destroy the environment and the soil?

- When our food is transported, are we polluting the air?

- Are farmers/workers being exploited at various stages of the food growing and food distributing process?

- Does the food we eat come from farmers/businesses that receive massive subsidies from the government that put small farmers at a disadvantage?

- Are we relying on the physical labor of others, while we are just the end recepients? (Basically, is our only interaction with our food... eating it? While the hard labor of hundreds went into producing it? How can we stop being the leeches of society?)

- There are many other questions and issues involved as well. (i.e. Who has access to what types of food?)

- Here's a video of an organization in Oakland, People's Grocery, that deals with food justice issues:



The activity:

1) Be involved in the process of bringing our food on to our plate (cook it, buy it, grow it, etc. For right now, the most realistic is cook it and buy it.)
2) Pick one item in that meal and find out as much as possible about WHERE that food came from and WHO was involved in the process of bringing that food to our plate.

Reflection:

1) What was the action part like? Cooking it? Buying it? Who'd you go with? What'd you make? Who's recipe? Did you cook for just yourself or others as well?
2) For the 'research' portion:
a. Which item did you choose to trace back?
b. What did you learn about where it came from and who's involved in the process of bringing that food to your plate?
c. What environmental and/or social justice issues did you uncover?
3) Ultimately, what do you want your interaction with your food to be like? How can you move in that direction?

Astha:
1) I chose to make Panang Tofu Curry from the following recipe: http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/02/panang_tofu_curry and then went about getting the ingredients from the recipe. Once we decided to do the activity I had started thinking about the process of how I was going to find out where my food comes from and what store would be most amenable to tracing the origin of my food. I went to Whole Foods near my house to get most of the vegetables. As you know, I'm reading Omnivore's Dilemma right now and he has a chapter on the industry that "organic" food has become and how the supermarket with stores such as Whole Foods are promoting this image that we have in our heads of what "organic" is. It was very interesting to step into this massive store with a new perspective. I did the shopping and cooking by myself. I love cooking and never get around to it much but when I do, I always have a good time. I had the music going and it was good times. I cooked for my brother and my mom.

2a) Because Whole Foods tries to promote the "organic" theme, it had the location of where the produce was grown. Not specific farms but states or countries. I also talked to a worker in the store and went about describing that I want to understand the distribution of this food...and he was able to add information. I'm listing whatever I could find.
-Shallots - Grown somewhere in California --->shipped to a distribution center in Munster, Indiana (this distribution center for Whole Foods serves the Midwest area including Chicago, the nearby suburbs, some parts in Canada, St. Louis and a few other places that the guy listed)--->then to Whole Foods in Naperville, IL
-Garlic - California -->Munster, Indiana -->Whole Foods - Naperville, IL
-Lime - (There was no location on this and the guy said that limes are more seasonal and the location can vary, he thinks its from..) Grown in Mexico --> Shipped to California -->Munster, Indiana --> Naperville store
-Organic Cocunut Milk (wins the prize for most miles traveled) Thailand-->distribution center in Austin, Tx --> Munster, IN -->Naperville
-Carrots --> Cali -->Munster, IN --> Naperville store
-Red bell pepper -->Mexico --> not sure if shipped to Cali before Munster -->then Naperville

2b) What did I learn about the process? One thing that I kind of already knew but it was really reinforced when trying to find the origin of each food is the sheer mileage in that is covered to get the produce we simply pick up off the shelves. Each thing that I chose to track was grown in California or Mexico. Each produce product is probably being shipped on its own truck as well and there's no real sense of efficiency in trying to reduce the number of miles traveled. The processed food comes from a farther distance. The coconut milk came from Thailand...who knows where the actual coconuts to make the milk came from, but I'm sure it was processed there and traveled around in the country before it was ready to be shipped. Then is it carried by ship, by plane? How many stopovers are there along the way? Then it goes to Texas and is probably loaded on multiple trucks to redistribute to the various Whole Foods distribution centers by region. I mean that is just ridiculous!!! I can't even begin to imagine the number of people involved in this process. The farmers that grew the original product...how are they running their farms, are they caught up in the cycle of taking loans to keep their farms running like India? The factory workers that are involved in the manufacturing of the cans - what conditions are they working in? Or is it mostly done by machines to reduce costs?

The other main thing that I became much more aware of in this process in learning where our food comes from is what a business the "organic" food industry is. A lot of these ideas were pointed out in Omnivore's Dilemma but once pointed out you can't help but be aware of it. The word "organic" automatically makes us think that the product is more natural, healthy, better for the environment, is supporting the small farmer, and without pesticides and genetic alterations. And these exact associations is what the food industry plays up on. The descriptions of the coconut milk and the tofu all had at least 1-2 of these words included in the packaging. The entire Whole Foods store has these words thrown about. The store often plays up when a product is USDA "organic" certified. I attempted to find what is required to gain this label via the USDA website but got completely lost in all the different sections they have. They seem to have a million divisions (slight exaggeration but seriously there is a lot) for what it takes to become certified in meat, vegetables, fruit, etc. Then there is a list of allowed chemicals to use in food and prohibited. All I got out of it was that there is a lot of red tape and the process of getting certified has become a business. Then outside of the USDA is all these other organizations that pop up in trying to get people to become organic. All these things go directly against the principles that started the organic movement in the first place - which was to get people to become closer to their food and know where its coming from in a more natural way.

2c) Some of the environmental costs are mentioned above...in my meal alone the mileage required for each produce product was at least 3000 miles because it usually came from Cali or Mexico. I bought about 6-7 different vegetables x 3000 minimum. The Thailand coconut milk is what some 6000 miles. The gas used in each truck...thats a long trip to be making. I think my total bill came out to be $10. That is less than half a tank of gas. Somehow its not adding up to the true cost of the meal.

Also, in Omnivore's Dilemma, Pollan was mentioning that the way the organic system has become in Cali, there are 2-3 big industrial "organic" farms that basically grow everything for the big stores like Whole Foods. He visited some of them and saw migrant workers doing the weeding because the chemicals can't be used to keep them away. There are no good laws to protect these workers that work long hours, get minimal breaks, don't get access to water, and are most likely not paid nearly what they deserve. Once again its far from the organic ideal of small farmer working on his own land.

3)What do I want my ultimate interaction with food to be like - Ideally, I would know where each thing I eat comes from, and it wouldn't be taking more energy to get the food to me than the actual energy the food itself provides. How I'm going to do that...I'm not sure. The only thing that makes sense to me is if I start growing my own food and am part of a community that shares what its missing but that at this moment in my life is so far from the truth. Also, I've become used to the convenience of picking something up and also used to the variety presented to me. To actually eat in a sustainable manner, an understanding of what is seasonal and local is necessary and to adapt to that is a step forward. Being in a state that spends what seems like 6 months in the cold and grows mostly corn also makes it hard. I thought eating organic was a step forward but I've realized even that has its downfalls. If I do get to move to Cali...the hope would be to buy from the local farmer's market and since most of this food is coming from there anyway, the distance would be less. I'm not sure if I'm ready to be growing my own food yet but I think that would be an end goal.

Raj:

1) What was the action part like? Cooking it? Buying it? Who'd you go with? What'd you make? Who's recipe? Did you cook for just yourself or others as well?
I'm going to be slightly honest here...
First, it is hard reflecting on this activity because I cooked the meal over two weeks ago... and so.. I'm sure details have been forgotten... and I still don't have that FEELING that I had when I bought the ingredients and cooked the meal. I'll try to recreate the best I can.
Second, I love the meaningfulness of this activity. But I definitely felt some stress over it, because of the real or apparent time crunch in my life. It's definitely something I'm going to have to solve... to really live a whole, harmonious life. And during this activity, that was so apparent. I was just always thinking, "When am I going to buy the food? I really want this to be local and responsibly done, so how am I going to do that? When am I going to cook? Who am I going to cook for? When do I have time to cook? etc." And, like you probably know, if I'm passionate about something... I really feel like I need to do it well and go all out.... sooo, it's really hard for me to go half-ass during something like this.
Anyways.. on to the actual activity.

As school ended on Thursday, I was ready to go to the Farmer's Market near the Fruitvale BART station to see what they have. At this point, I had no idea what I was going to cook the next day. At school, though... Matthew, the garden teacher, put up the first produce stand of the season with some of the winter vegetables they were growing! Sweet.. what a place to start my shopping! Some of me 5th grade students were helping him out do the selling... they were complete naturals. You could tell that they've sold things before.. probably with their parents. It would have been really cool if I would have taken a picture of them... next time.

After going out to the car to get some bags, so I wouldn't make them pack it in new plastic bags, I returned and bought some spring onions, garlic, and cilantro.

I put that away in my car, took another bag, and walked on over to the Farmer's Market. Already... it just felt good... the normal mental exhaustion and replay of the day that normally happens after the school day wasn't there.... it was an automatic, unintential de-stresser and 'pick-me-up'.

I got to the market and there were really only a couple of vegetable sellers. I stopped at the bigger table. I had a little paper with me... because I thought if the sellers would give some details about their products, I might need to write it down. I started asking the woman behind the table about the different vegetables, and how they're grown, etc. She saw me with the paper and pen. That definitely was not the right approach... she was hesitant to give me detailed information... and she was probably suspicious of my intentions. Even I felt uncomfortable with the approach.

I ended up buying tomatoes and eggplant.

Finally, I got in a more normal "Raj" mode of conversation... completely natural. And I started talking to both the man and woman (husband and wife) behind the table. The man told me to call him Mr. Mua. They were Hmong, and live on a family farm near Fresno.... A large extended family owns and works on the farm, along with the grandparents. I talked to him about the farm... he said they don't hire any outside labor.. the family does all the work... especially the grandparents. I forgot how many acres they owned... I believe it was 30. He told me about his kids and how they don't know anything about farming, but at least they still speak Hmong unlike other kids. He talked a little about the war... he was about 16 when his family came to the US as refugees, so although he didn't fight in the war, he definitely remembers it. He said his kids don't know anything about it. It was really awesome to connect to him... I want to go back on Thursdays... to further build this relationship with him.

Friday... was cooking day. While I was at school... I google searched for recipes... I typed in the ingredients I had (tomatoes, eggplant, cilantro, onions, garlic) and did a search. I got 3-4 recipes and printed them all out.

When I got home... my mom had already started the chopping of vegetables process. The garlic and onions and tomatoes were already cut. She's such a funny lady. She just thought that she'd make it easier for me. At the moment, these things slightly annoy me... why is she so overzealous? But, in the end... it's only out of enthusiasm... the desire to be more involved in my life.... the desire to help me out in any way possible (even when I don't want it...).

I was pretty tired when I got home.. took about a 15-20 minute nap on the couch, and then it was to the kitchen. My mom kept giving suggestions on how I should cook the eggplant and what I should make.... but, after seeing my irritation, she's like, "okay, which recipe do you want to use?" I ended up choosing this recipe - http://www.cookreceipts.com/miscellaneous/cyberrealm-vol-5/sauteed-eggplant-with-tomato-and-onion-topping.html - because it just sounded yummy to me... and easy to make. =) I was cooking for me and my dad... because my mom does some sort of fast on Fridays... so Mom would be eating the food the next day.

Once we really got started... cooking the meal was awesome. It was just nice to put a meal together, and know that Francis packed my cilantro, and Estrella took my 2 dollars... and the Hmong family grew my tomatoes. Also, it ended up being solid bonding with the mother.

And I enjoy cooking. I've always enjoyed it... but.. once again.. there's the time factor to it. I've never prioritized it in my life...

The whole meal probably took me about an hour to put together.

2) a. Which item did you choose to trace back? b. What did you learn about where it came from and who's involved in the process of bringing that food to your plate?

Well, I definitely could have done a better job with the research portion... but here's what I did find. The ingredients and what I found:

- Tomatoes - from Mr. Mua's Farm; grown in greenhouse; not organic; I asked him what pesticides, chemical fertilizers, etc. were used... but he didn't know the English terms for any of it. He asked his wife, and they had words that they used in Hmong for the stuff, but not English. When I asked where he bought the seeds.. his only answer was "from the company"

- Eggplant - I thought these were from Mr. Mua's farm, but I was suspicious because I know it's not eggplant season. When he got comfortable with me, Mr. Mua told me that he buys them from some company (again, no name) and that they come from Mexico. Once again, these were non-organic.

- Spring Onions, Garlic, Cilantro - From the school garden in the parking lot. =) I'm not sure how they start these plants... what nursery, etc. But I do know that they are completely organic and the garden teacher, Matthew, is the main person who watches over the garden... he has high school interns that help him after school... my students help create the compost that is used to fertilize the soil that grows... my students help him sell the produce after school.... and the money goes back to the garden program. =) All things that make me smile. Matthew is from a bad-ass organization called Oakland Leaf - http://www.oaklandleaf.org/ (Actually.. when I just searched for the website... and started browsing it... I found out HOW bad-ass this organization is! And its main office is just a few blocks from my school.... this excites me!)

- Peter Vella's Delicious Red California Table Wine - I did not conciously select the red wine that was used in this sauce... I just used whatever we had at home... and this was the one. They have a website - http://www.petervella.com/. They're winery is located in Modesto, CA (which is about 75 miles from here) and it's kinda cool, they have their family history and all on the website. It doesn't seem like they grow their own grapes anymore... as it says they get their grapes from the 'finest vineyards of Napa and Sonoma county'. All-in-all.. it seems like a pretty local venture.

- Trader Giotto's Extra Virgin Olive Oil (from Trader Joe's) - It says that the bottle was packed in Italy and that the oil is from the EU (European Union, I'm assuming). I tried to do a little research online... and found this document on the Trader Joe's website - http://www.traderjoes.com/reading_room.html. Interesting stuff. It seems like the Olive Oil from Italy is the most prized... however, olives do grow in California, and olive oil gets made here as well! Good to know since I love to cook with this stuff. So, I would assume that there was all kind of travel involved in Europe with olives, and paste, and processing, etc... then on over to Trader Joe's main distribution center in Monrovia, CA (near LA), and then to the stores.

- Salt, Crushed Red Pepper, and Parmesan Cheese

c. What environmental and/or social justice issues did you uncover?

Environmental -

Well, I would have loved to question Mr. Mua more about their farming practicies and the sustainability of it.. and if that's something they consider... but I think I should definitely get to know him better. Again... I would love for this to be something a little more long-term.

Social Justice -
1 - The school garden is getting the students more aware about fresh, organic, local food that they usually don't have access to.
2- The Hmong family farm... the Hmong are a community from Laos that were forced to fight on the U.S. side during the Vietnam War against the Communists. When the US left, the Hmong were left out to dry. Many of them ended up in camps in Vietnam. Eventually, many came over as refugees in the 1980's. They've struggled as farm workers in agrarian areas of California, as well as labor workers in urban areas. Eventually, many saved enough money to buy or lease their own land, and many have large strawberry farms. In urban areas, and even in Central California, their youth are prone to join gangs and get caught in the world of drugs. They do have a strong cultural community here in California, though, and hold on to that heritage. Interestingly, Nelly right now is working on a project with Hmong farmers in California, and how they can share information with each other and get the latest information on farming, etc.

3) Ultimately, what do you want your interaction with your food to be like? How can you move in that direction?

Ultimately, I think you know... I want to be able to grow a good portion of my food. I want to be RELATED to my food and the processes that brought it to my table. I have a strong feeling that one's food system... is really the key to a society. Because it ties soo many things together. Food and education... are the two main 'fields' that I want to be a part of.

How can I move in that direction?

A more active role in growing food.. either in my backyard or at school. Learning MORE and MORE about gardening/farming and practicing what I learn. Providing full support to endeavors by Nelly and Sampat in giving gardening/farming a more significant role in their life, because in that regards, they're ahead of me right now. Continuing to educate our children about 'food' and giving them hands-on experience.

Cooking.. once a week. Can I do it!? I hope so. Because when I cook... I am more aware of where the ingredients come from... because I want to know. When my mom cooks, I don't pay as much attention. If I just cook... once a week... I just think there will be a domino effect that will influence so many other aspects of my life and my family's life.

Far into the future.... I see us being tied to the land in some way. The land also brings people together... and creates a sense of community. There is just so much... soo much upside to working with the land and growing food... it moves me.... and it upsets me that I've been ignoring it this year.

I just read this article a couple days ago about 10 reasons to start a vegetable garden... I'm going to put the link here - http://www.insidebayarea.com/search/ci_12002754?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com. The top 10 list from the article: maintaining seed diversity, self-sufficiency, thoughtful gifts, exercise, cut fossil fuel use, save time, lessons for kids, nutrition, joy of harvesting, and saving money.

Bon appetit! =)

Activity #2: Spreading the love

Acitivity #2 (I still can't think of a better word to describe what we're doing here): The task at hand is going to be two-fold:

1) The infamous Valentine's Day is coming up. We've decided to use this day to spread the love across the city of San Francisco with a bunch of friends and family. The general idea is to have free hug signs, share a meal with people, and come back together to reflect on how the day went. I want to know what motivates you to participate, what happened during the day, what memorable moments stayed with you, and some personal difficulties, if any, you had with the activity. What observations did you make throughout the day and what were you feeling? My list of questions can continue so overall, I want to know all the thoughts that went through your mind for the day.

Astha:
So much to reflect on. Here goes..(this is going to be really long)

Part 1: At first, I didn't even think I would be able to participate in the Day of Spreading Love activity because I had no intentions of coming to visit you. When you forwarded me the email though, I thought it was a great idea and had automatically found my own volunteer activity that would allow me to connect with people and use Valentine's Day as an excuse to do it. But the stars aligned and I got to be there with you.

It started with picking up "our kids" from the school. Some background info: Raj teaches 5th grade and he had offered whoever wanted to come from his class to join him on this opportunity. A bunch were interested but it ended up narrowing down to 4 confirmed kids. I was there in his class when he was in the confirming process and it was so interesting to see the motivation to do something like this from the kids. I'm still not sure exactly what motivated them. I think automatically I want to think that they are doing it for the same reasons that I am doing it: to become more aware of the world around us and to connect to people and to share. But I'm not sure if they analyze or think about it as much as I do. We gave them time in class to make valentine's cards for the people that we were going to see so the whole class could participate in some form. Some of the things I heard from the kids made me cringe a little. They would be shouting out the word hobo left and right and wanting to write "dear hobo, i hope you don't die" in the cards. I was really hoping that they didn't say the same things on Saturday. But at the same time, I did think that what they were saying was completely unfiltered. They weren't making things "politically correct" and then thinking something else in their head. They were just saying whats on their minds.

Ok going back to the actual day...Francis, Sherrie, Jacky, and Sherrie's two cousins Tina and Alan were the final bunch that decided to come. They all jump in the car and are super excited to head to the city. They come prepared with their cameras and candy and LOTS of energy. The atmosphere in the car was very positive and it was just good seeing this side of them outside of the classroom. We decided to do a random act of kindness and pay for the car behind us on a toll. We told the kids to pick out two cards (they were so excited to have the cards and wanted to find their own) and then gave one card to the attendant and then asked her to give the other one to the car behind us. They automatically looked behind the lane to see who would get the card but we were unable to see a reaction. We did see how happy and appreciative the lady at the tollbooth was though. We felt the positive energy being thrown out there, the kids felt it, and I knew that this was going to be a GREAT day.

We get to Ami's apartment and for a bit, I didn't know what to do with myself. Slowly people start trickling in and the significance of all the people gathered doesn't really register at the moment. The kids initially don't know whats going on either and you see them clumping together for their own comfort. But then the posterboards and markers come out and they started making Free Hug Signs, Free High 5's, Spread the Love, Happy Valentine's Day. The girls get absorbed in that, Alan goes to go make food with other people. I ended up helping to figure out where the various groups should go and wrote out instructions with Priya? (I think thats her name). Everything got made really quickly because there were so many people there! Organization was spectacular. We all gathered in a moment of silence before we headed out and the pure energy in that room was incredible!!!!!! A few people shared what made them come out, I saw kids there, families there, people our age...I was filled with so much gratitude that I got this opportunity to be in that moment. I also kept thinking back to the atmosphere of love and understanding that we had during Inspire and we had created it here in America.

Ok I cannot go through all the details so I'm sticking to the questions. What was my motivation? I think the initial motivation for any service oriented activity for me is the opportunity to spread joy to people around me. I feel happiest when I am able to connect to another person and take care of someone. Its easier to care for the people in your life but to put yourself out there and do the same for a stranger, makes me push my personal comfort level. I want to eventually get to a point that I feel every person that I interact in my life, I treat him or her as I would my family and friends. With this activity specifically, the opportunity to serve and spread love to homeless people, is something that I've always wanted to be more at ease doing. I see homelessness on a daily basis and the thought that each person has his or her own personal story that lead to this point in their life is always with me. Yet it is so easy to pass them by. This day allowed me to break that barrier a bit and step into their life even if it is for a short time. Other motivations...do something meaningful on a day that is usually about consuming and focusing on couples. To share the blessings in my life, to connect, to understand, and to push my boundaries were all motivations as well.

What happened during the day? Some I mentioned above. General outline after we all dispersed to different parts of the city...Raj and I took the kids, his dad, Aniketa, and Matt to Union Square area. We further split the group when we got there and then went about handing out the sandwiches and making as many connections as we could. We met again at Peace Cafe and went over the day with the group. Memorable moments? The first guy we met (Eric? I'm annoyed that I forgot his name) stayed with me. He gave off a very welcoming and friendly vibe and we were all able to feed off that a lot. He had the cutest dog and I felt like I was just able to let go of a lot of my own self-imposed worries. I wasn't thinking is he thinking we are pitying him, am I speaking in a condescending tone or anything along those lines. We were just sharing stories about our lives. The kids in general were a huge memorable moment. Going from watching them make their vday cards to seeing them in action on the streets to their additions to the convos at the Peace Cafe and hearing about sharing it in the classroom again was just incredible. Some definitely had more energy and courage then others to approach people but they were there giving their fullest. Their excitement and honesty just filled me with hope for our society's future in general. Watching Raj lead the initial moment of silence and initiating the sharing of experiences at the Peace Cafe was also something that distinctly sticks out in my head. I feel like those moments are when you are at your element and I was filled with SO MUCH pride, gratitude, and joy that I got to share this moment with you and experience you doing what you do best. Finally, the energy of the group as a whole has stayed with me. We all came in with our own fears and motivations to be out there on that day but we came back together having experienced something together and simply connecting. We learned something we hadn't known before, barriers were broken, and love was spread. It was a beautiful thing.

Finally...observations/feelings/hardships. One main observation was the contrast between what we were trying to do and our surroundings. We are in the middle of Union Square which is basically where all the big department stores are, nice restaurants, theater etc. The streets are packed and everywhere you look you see couples holding hands, valentine's day accessories being sold (flowers, bears, etc) and consumerism at its best. But as I went through the day actually seeking out the homeless, you become so much more aware of another world. We met people and heard stories of people that were sooo appreciative of a simple card or a vegetarian sandwich and on the same street a limo is pulling up and out comes a bride in a lavish dress. I'm not describing it well but there seems to be such a disparity and until you open your eyes, you could easily pass this by and not give it a moments thought. Its so easy to just be consumed in yourself and your life at all times. And then when I think of what I FEEL when I OBSERVE this...so much comes to mind. When talking to people and reaching out to them, I felt I made some better connections than others. Sometimes it just ended up being about handing out a lunch bag and that made me frustrated with myself that I couldn't overcome my own discomforts to reach out to another person. I noticed that it was a lot easier to open up if some appreciation was noted and I thought to myself why is it that I need to be appreciated to proceed further? Why can't it just be a selfless act without the need to look for approval? Then there is never enough to provide for everyone out there. I always wonder the utility of these days because its always a feeling that I'm not doing enough to address the root cause of the problem. This one meal and conversation isn't going to get them off the streets. And why do some people have so much while some have so little. Its one of those things that just doesn't settle with me well and the fact that I'm living in the excess is always with me. I appreciate that I become aware and made connections with people that I normally wouldn't and that always teaches me and stays with me but I still go back to my comfortable life. I can rationalize it to make myself feel better that I'm trying and its not going to change overnight but its still unacceptable to me that this disparity exists. I think I play a direct or indirect role in promoting this disparity to continue and I'm always thinking what I'm going to do with my life to reduce it. What are we going to do together to not make this a one day thing? This doesn't discount the energy, love, and joy I felt throughout the day but my one day isn't enough.

If the entry seems scattered, I think it portrays what I felt that day because it was all over the place and mixed range of emotions.Really highs, really lows, some in betweens and just stimulus coming in from all over the place. As I'm reading it ended on a negative note but I think that is my all over the place thinking. There's a lot more that I could add but at this point, I'm choosing to stop. :) Overall, great way to spend the day and I would love to go through my range of thoughts and emotions with you every year. And have the kids be there :)

Raj:
What motivates me to participate?
I’ll have to admit… that my primary motivation is to give others the opportunity to be inspired, to view the world through a different lens. I love getting people together for something “more”… not just entertainment, not just shooting the shit… but for something meaningful. (Maybe.. I may not realize it… but I may also enjoy the attention/respect that I get for organizing something like this) And… it’s just so much fun for me.
I also know that I need this opportunity to connect, as well. So, another motivating factor is that because I live such a “purpose-driven” life… I rarely take a step back just to connect to people, to spontaneously “spread the love”… so for me, these days give me that opportunity to try to share whatever warmth that is within me, with others.

What memorable moments stayed with you?
- Picking up the kids from in front of the school…. potentially transformative experiences like these are usually reserved just for the privileged lot, so it was really incredible for me to have a few of my students be there with me for the first time during an activity like this.
- Giving the toll lady two V-Day cards (one for her and one for the car behind us) and $8 (for our toll and the car behind us) AND seeing and feeling the kids reactions… knowing that the wheels were spinning in their head… trying to make sense of what we just did. - Seeing you and Priya take complete control of organizing and figuring out where groups will go and making sure they have directions, contact info, etc. =)
- The moment of silence in Ami’s front room (that’s a very versatile room…..)
- Seeing the reactions of the people on streets to the cards that the kids made and true appreciation in their words and actions.
- Seeing how free Jacky was going up to strangers and giving them cards.
- Hugging you in the middle of Union Square.
- Just being with the kids… through their falling teeth, getting comfortable out in the streets, hyper moments, reserved moments at the restaurant, and the hilarious car-ride home (Francis’s soliloquoy!)

Personal difficulties?
Being conscious of what others close to me are thinking.. feeling...
Otherwise… I didn’t know I would have to expend that much energy ‘taking care’ of the kids… so I wasn’t really able to connect with the others that were doing the activity with us nor was my focus on the ACTUAL activity itself… connecting with 'strangers. In the end, for me, it was fine that my main focus was elsewhere.
On a day like this… I don’t ONLY want to connect to homeless people… I want to connect to everyone and anyone… so, sometimes, ‘seeking out’ homeless people.. makes me uncomfortable.

Overal feeling?
An incredible way to spend Valentine’s Day. A tradition that I believe we should keep… for future years.
I didn’t physically give you anything for V-Day.. didn’t take you out to dinner (unless you want to count Del Taco)… but I just hope that the day was as special for you as it was for me.





2) This second activity is going to be another attempt to connect to the people around us but on an individual level. I know we've both seen people that are homeless in our respective cities. I have always wanted to sit down and be able to ask him or her about his or her life in an attempt to better understand what happened that led them to this point. The task is to ask a homeless person to share a meal with you. After, reflect on how you went about choosing who you wanted to ask, where you decided to share the meal, and the conversation that came up. What hardships did you face throughout? What internal battles were you able to overcome and what did you learn? Were you able to connect with this person and see a bigger connection with humanity? Also, what were the differences you noticed in connecting with people in a group vs. on your own. Once again..the questions will continue so reflect away :)


Astha:
I cut in front of you so I could see the questions without seeing your post. Sorry! And I cheated and read your response for the first question before I finished the second part of the activity. Oops. :)

Ok this one is going to be more cohesive. I hope.

How did I choose: Started thinking about it a few days after we talked about the activity and set up a deadline. I met up Krutika in Evanston, and I saw a guy with a cup outside a restaurant and I made a mental note that I could come here. It was a smaller city setting and seemed more approchable. But then practically speaking, I was in the city and figured I would go after work to look for someone and break the fear of asking a total stranger to dinner and share a meal. Ended up waking up late on Friday, couldn't get to the city but needed to meet up a friend in Evanston again and remembered the person I saw, and was just hoping that another person would be there that I could ask. I was running late and I was annoyed with myself that I didn't get to devote the time I would have liked. I parked my car, and saw Larry standing in front of the Baskin Robbins. Thoughts running through head at the moment...what am I doing, I hope he doesn't think I'm pitying him, is it safe, how am I going to talk to him, and I hope I get to hear about his life. I simply asked him if he would like to share a meal with me. He hesitated for a bit...I felt like he was thinking is he hungry or not and then chose to accept my offer. I asked him what he's in the mood for and he said he could go for a biscuit and he led me to the nearest Burger King.

Conversation...Interesting to say the least. After we got our food..I began by saying something along the lines that my motivation to ask him to a meal was an attempt to better understand people and connect with him and find out how he got to where he is today. The conversation that followed was very interesting. Larry is probably a near 40-50 year old, African-American guy with really bad teeth (perhaps insensitive but it stuck out). He said he was born in Spain to a Spanish father and a Russian mother. He moved here when something about his siblings coming here. (I couldn't always follow everything he was saying). He said he's moved all over and lived in multiple states. Was living with a friend but he passed away and then remaining family kicked him out. He actually currently is not homeless and has an apartment on the west side of Chicago that he got with the help of an organization called Chicago Connection (I think thats the name of it) and he gets help from a guy there (I forgot his name). Rent is $700 or something near there and he pays with his SSI that he got from a car accident a while ago. Was homeless for a while and says that living on the streets is bad. He mentioned going through homeless shelters and seemed to be fixated on the homosexuals that stayed in the homeless shelter and how he didn't like that. He also mentioned that he's seen violence in the shelters and guns have come out. He doesn't trust people on the street and doesn't think anyone should go through that experience. When I asked him about education he mentioned Stanford and Northwestern and I was a little confused. He comes to Evanston area via the train everday and does what I saw him first doing. He says he doesn't like "panhandling" but he'll take what people will offer him and he's thankful for that. And then the rest of the conversation was surprisingly about current events. (Surprising for me because of my own assumptions on what I think "homeless" or people on the streets know). He didn't think Obama would accomplish anything and too many expectations were on him. Liked Bush? Thinks he was doing a good job to get rid of the terrorists? And Clinton wasn't? Question marks because that thoroughly surprised me. I think he mentioned something about Obama picking the same Clinton administration and I totally thought of you making similar comments. And Iran was brought up as well and how Iran is not going to not talk to Obama.

Hardships/Internal battles...Some mentioned above with the initial questions in my head before approaching him. I mean an ongoing one is always who am I to think that I can "help" someone and provide them a meal. I put myself in Larry's position and I wonder if I would feel shame or too prideful to be on the street asking for "help." I feel like I would and because I think that, I would hate to disrespect someone in my effort to learn about people. Struggles with thoughts of my personal security because I'm a girl. I definitely didn't share that I'm doing this with family or friends because of the fear that they are going to tell me that its not safe and what am I thinking. And then frustration that those thoughts are going through my head because we shouldn't need to be worried about our safety because I believe if you give out positive energy, thats what you get back and in that no harm will come your way. The thoughts that if I go into a restaurant with a person that looks a little bit more disheveled, will I get unnecessary attention? What is this person that I'm sharing a meal thinking of me? Does he think I'm completely crazy? During the meal and as I was getting to know Larry...a feeling of deja vu from India came to me. The whole time I was talking to him, I was aware that something mentally wasn't normal. I mean this is coming from the medical perspective but the way he was talking, it seemed that he went from one idea to the next very rapidly and I didn't know what to believe of his conversation. That was a struggle because I didn't want to assume anything but still something didn't feel right and I took everything he said with a grain of salt. With the whole deja vu, I definitely felt a difference in the way I think and was asking him questions and his response to them. Often, I felt like he was confused with what I was asking and didn't really know what to say. It reminded me of when we were at the school discussing the Narmda Dam issue with the villagers, and they were confused by the sometimes abstract concepts that we were asking them. This situation felt very similar and I'm not sure if I was aware of it enough at that moment to step back and try to change the way I talked to him to make it more at the same level. The hardships I overcame..I think the biggest is I did it. I asked a stranger to have a meal with me. I was a little afraid and I still don't know exactly what he thought of my gesture but after that initial conversation, I wasn't concerned about my personal safety. He was a gentleman and I shared a meal with another person. The power dynamics were definitely not fully alleviated but I tried. I got that personal one on one time that is more of my comfort zone and I got a view into his life. I learned that not everyone asking for change is homeless which was surprising for me. His ability to talk about current events was eye opening. He never wanted to impose or take advantage of my offer. He ordered a simple egg sausage biscuit and some chocolate milk. The total meal cost me $5. At the end as we're saying our goodbyes, I got a warm feeling from him and we parted our ways. I was able to feel a connection to him in the end. We talked, I heard about his life and got another perspective on what people go through which always makes me more aware of my daily existence.

Comparison: Definitely different to be in a group and go on your own. I felt a lot more pressure and thought a lot more about my intentions on why I'm approaching this person. I thought more about how I would physically go through with it, the timing, location etc. In the group activity, I just showed up and was surrouneded by this energy that was easy to jump on the bandwagon. On my own, I had to create that and let go of a lot of my own fears. The connection with people was on a different level too. Its easier to get a smile after handing out a lunch and leave it at that positive feeling. But one on one, its more than just handing out something. Larry was still sitting in front of me and to keep a conversation going is an interesting challenge to face. I felt more of a personal understanding in the individual meal. I got a better picture of Larry's life then any of the people we met in SF. Overall though I think the combination of the two activities, made for a better understanding. For future times, I will feel more comfortable in both situations adn each will have helped the other if that makes sense. And with both experiences, I am more aware. I am constantly thinking about my reflection, being more aware of people around me on a daily basis and while I have no solutions to address the root cause of these inequalities, I do believe that if we let go of our own fears and inhibitions we can reach out to people and simply connect, understand, and begin to love everyone around us regardless of where they come from.

Raj:


It was Thursday evening, and I had ‘planned’ that this was going to be the evening that I’ll roam around the streets around my school to find someone to share a meal with. Actually, two nights before, I stayed in SF at my sister’s place… soo, I almost spontaneously got myself to do it then… but ended up not.

Anyways.. soo, I drove to the BART station and parked my car there… and with eyes open, began walking down International Blvd.. the main street in that area. It was around 5:30 pm. There were lots of people, lots of cars… but no one that looked like they would want to share a meal, and no one that looked like they lived on the streets. There was one homeless woman who I tried to talk to… but she seemed to be mentally tramautized in some way… she didn’t respond at all, and just gave me a blank stare… with a smile plastered on to her face. After walking about 7 blocks and returning, I walked around the BART station, and behind the BART station, I saw this large African-American man pushing a cart.

This whole time… it was definitely more awkward being alone.. I’ve done things like this sort in groups, but not alone. The same “feeling” and inspiration I feel in a group… was much harder to muster up alone. Inspiration and warmth don’t just radiate from me… I feed off of the inspiration and warmth of others… Also, being a male and it being night… and me being slightly terrorist-looking… I never know what others think of me…. So that also keeps me hesitant.

Anyways.. so I see this fairly large black man… and a couple thoughts flash through my head, “Is he drunk? How’s he going to respond?” I asked him “how it’s going? What’s your name?” and a little bit of small talk then asked him if he would like a meal… and he said, “Naw, I’m okay right now. Are you from a church or something?” After I said I wasn’t… he said, “Oh because sometimes they come around in these vans, giving out meals… they give Cup-o-Noodles or something like that.”

I was definitely getting good vibes from this Kevin (his name)… and I just felt completely at ease… there was no alcohol on his breath and he definitely seemed like an intelligent person…. I’m not sure how I would have reacted differently if it was otherwise.

So, I began asking him questions… bout where he stays, where he’s from, etc. I’m not completely comfortable doing that… just shooting questions at someone.. I feel, “Why should this person share his/her life, and I just stay closed off?” Anyways.. I was eased a bit when he started asking me questions as well – “Where are you from? Do you live in Oakland? Etc.” And I started sharing with him bout myself as well.. how I taught down the street, etc.

I learned A LOT about him… he grew up in Oakland, went to Fremont High, but dropped out because school wasn’t for him, and started doing various odd jobs. He has 5 other brothers and sisters… one brother is still in the area the he keeps in touch with. That brother has a wife and kid, and they’re struggling… so he can’t stay with him. His mom lives in a senior home (he still goes to visit her a couple times per week)… so when she moved to the senior home, that’s when Kevin no longer had a place to live and was left to fend for himself on the streets. It’s been years.. I can’t really tell how many… that he’s lived on the streets. He’s tried shelters, but he doesn’t like them because he said there are lots of fights there, convicts, alcohol, and all that… and he tries to stay away from that stuff. He said, he tried living on the streets in SF… but felt it was more dangerous there…. While in Oakland, people just left him alone. At times, he’s had places to stay… through some agency, he’s worked as like house-help for severely disabled old people… and during these gigs, he gets a room to stay in and some money. But, he said he hadn’t worked like that in a couple of years. We also talked about other things… we talked about Obama, about education, about police and crime, etc.

What amazed me… was that there was no hesitation on his end to share. It was like he just waiting to share all of this. I feel… like especially in this country… people usually start with distrust of the other… and the other has to ‘earn’ their trust. But this man… there may have been a little feeling out period in the beginning… but very soon was able to trust.

After a while, I asked him again, “I’m going to get some food, would you like to join me?” This time, he replied, “Well, where are you going?” and I told him some Taqueria, get some Mexican food… Kevin: “Okay, I know a place with good burritos.”

So, then we walked… he pushed his cart along, and I walked alongside with him… both of completely engrossed in our conversation…. me trying to understand him, and him just sharing and every-now-and-then asking me questions back. I love the fact that other people on the street would be looking at us with a puzzled look….. messing with people’s assumptions and notions of what’s normal… as you know, I love that. =) But for him and I… in that moment… there was nothing awkward.

We ordered our food (steak burrito and vegetarian burrito… he’s like, “oh, you’re vegetarian?” and we talked bout that and when and why I decided, etc.) and took it “to go” because he said that he smelled and wouldn’t want to sit inside…. Sooo, we got our food and walked back to behind the BART station, where we were sitting before. For another 30-45 minutes or so… we ate… and talked….

He had told me that on Friday, he wanted to see his social worker to figure out how to get his money…. And he needed money for public transportation … I told him I’d give him a couple dollars. I didn’t give it to him right then… and he enver mentioned it again….. but, at the end, I gave him a couple of dollars… and I gave him my phone number. I really felt close to this guy and I think he felt the same way.. we probably spent over an hour together… and I will definitely look for him in that area again.

What hardships and internal battles did I face?

Well… one, ideally, I would love if these types of things come up NATURALLY. I don’t like the feeling of going out and “looking for” someone homeless to eat a meal with. However, because of the life-style I have chosen (everything is purpose-driven), I need to have that set purpose in mind to actually do it. Another internal battle was the asking of questions. I definitely wanted to learn his story, but I didn’t want to ‘interview’ him… and I think because he was so open, and turned it into more of a conversation, I was able to get over that.

For the time that we were together… I felt like we were on the same plane. Yeah, I paid for his meal… but TO ME, it felt the same as it does when I pay for a friend’s meal. I’m sure for him it felt differently. But regardless… I didn’t really have anything with me… and it was just him and I sitting behind the BART station on a bench-type thing.

After we finished our meal… I told him that I’m going to be heading out soon. And… I realized… how comfortable I was with him, and how comfortable he was with me. I asked him if he usually stays here… hoping that if he does, I could visit him in the future… but he said, he does sometimes, but he’s usually moving around. I said, “Hey, do you want my number in case you can get to a phone and you need anything?” And he said, yes. But neither of us had a pen or paper at that point. So, I said, “Let me get a pen and paper from car, I’ll be right back.” When I said that… to me, the different levels of privilege came rushing back… I have a car… I am going to soon leave this place in my car…. And he’s not.

I came back and gave him my phone number and $2. I asked him if he wanted to be taken anywhere right now, that I could drop him off… but he said no. During the entire conversation, he never looked at me while he talked… he would always be looking away. At the end, when we said our good-byes… he looked me in the eye…. And I could see the appreciation and warmth coming from him. As cheesy as it may sound, I truly felt connected to Kevin. I wish that one day… I get a random phone call from this man. I wish that one day when I’m walking around the BART station.. I see him again.