Country Rican

This post is about sexual assault, but I’m not going to try to convince you about my views on Kavanaugh.   I am a liberal.   I make no apologies about it; it is not a secret. I am who I am, and everyone that knows me knows it.   I guess my post is not so much about sexual assault; it is broader than that. My post is about social media and empathy.   I am a very empathetic person.   For whatever reason, and trust me I have theories, it is hard for me not to put myself in the shoes of the other.   I am also very accustomed to being surrounded by people who do not share my world view. Which as time goes by, I realize more and more that it is kind of a rare thing. Other than my immediate family who frequently agree with me, and for the 7 or 8 years I lived in Athens Georgia, I am usually surrounded by people who disagree with me.   Which teaches you a lot of constraint for a lot of reasons: not offending a business associate, keeping the peace at family gatherings, advising a student

La isla de los ratones June 2017/June 2018 I’ve been digesting how to describe what I saw when I was in Puerto Rico this time around.   My first visit to the island since Maria was 9 months after the disastrous storm crossed it.   If Puerto Rico were the United States, the storm entered through Florida and came out through Washington State.   Think about that for a second.   The island is only 100 miles by 35 so that means there was not an area that went untouched by the storm.   However, my hometown sits where California sits so it suffered less than most. It’s hardly something to celebrate when to get there you must drive across the island and see the blue tarps.   Lots of things are different while at the same time – everything is the same.   It is hard to put into words when you drive by the spot where you held your rehearsal dinner and it is no longer there.   Swallowed by the ocean, or a blown away by the wind.   When you fly into San Juan it looks the way it always lo

My first memory of the three kings was in New York City.  We didn't celebrate it, even though we were from Puerto Rico, we just did Christmas.  I was in my dad's arms and he was showing me an image of the kings on the wall.  Maybe it was a Christmas card... I honestly can't remember.  I remember asking him about them and him telling me they represented the three wise men who brought gifts to baby Jesus.  He told me how in Puerto Rico, where he grew up, little kids left out grass for the camels and the kings would leave them gifts by their bed.  I asked if this was at Christmas and he said no.  Three Kings Day happens after the New Year.  I was around Sofia's age and I remember thinking "Puerto Rican kids are the luckiest kids in the world!  They get two Christmases!"    When we moved to Puerto Rico I was 7 years old and I too got two Christmases.  The year I moved to Puerto Rico I learned a lot about my culture that showed me I was one of the luckiest kids i