My Hometown and Violence in Baltimore

These days, I consider Baltimore to be my adopted hometown sufficiently that a tattoo I'm planning to get should have a bit of Baltimore's skyline--although I have not seen the artist's final pre-drawing yet.  But, where I grew up was just outside Philadelphia, and I have commented recently on the argument against cutting too many of the classes like arts, gym, and library as a result of a budget that must be cut.

Recently, there has been what seems like an inordinate amount of violence in Baltimore--from shootings, to stabbings, to robberies and assaults.  At least some of it has been linked to groups of youth.

I think I may see a connection.  Not a causal connection between the two.  But a common theme that is reflected in both discussions.

There are many reasons that a local school district in tough economic times has to make budget cuts which may result in entire programs being cut.  It is unfortunate.  But it is a reality.  The cuts are made should be determined rationally.  The cuts that are made hopefully reflect the preferences of the local community when it comes to where they are willing to accept less public investment in their children.  The cuts can be countered (in part) by more investment (and it will most likely involve time and money) in the children by parents and others in the local community.

It is the idea of the investment in children by parents and others in the local community that brings me back to Baltimore.  Why do youth feel that they have nothing better to do than rob and assault?  It may be, at least in part, due to a lack of investment.  That lack of investment may be from their own parents, it may be from others in their neighborhood, or it may be from their school district.  Most likely it is some combination of two or three of those listed above.

How willing are individuals in our society to invest in others?  I don't know what any scientific data will tell us.  But it is a fundamental political question for this year.  What is the role of government when parents or the local community don't have much to invest?

And what does each community invest in safety?  How can communities keep themselves safe?  At the end of the day--more investment.  Things like citizens on patrol.  But those only work if the investment is made consistently.  If they are only a response after negative events begin to occur, then they may help stop what is occurring but are unlikely to prevent things from starting.

I think we are at a point where communities need to focus on answering three questions.  First, are they willing to maintain a constant vigilance?  Why constant--because any problem that is arising should be nipped in the bud and not allowed to get out of hand while there is a lot of talking and hand wringing.  In other words, how action oriented are communities able to be?

Second, how much of our own time and money are we willing to invest in helping our communities.  Are we just in it for ourselves?  Each person or family making sure that they are safe and well?  Or are we all in this together and trying to keep our neighborhoods and our communities safe and strong?

Finally, how much time and money are we willing to invest in our own children and others' children?  Why should we be willing to invest at least something in others' children?  I think that not investing in children sufficiently can lead to a need for more investment in community safety and greater vigilance.  Maybe that is okay.  But we, as a society, amy want to shift some resources to more investment in children so that we would have to invest less later on.

I don't have any illusion that answering these questions is simple.  I am just trying to point out how the root causes of some of the problems that one suburban community outside Philadelphia faces are not so different from root causes of some of the problems in Baltimore City at the moment.  And I believe that many communities in America will have to struggle with answering the questions I have posed about themselves in the coming years.  The answers to those questions will define how we as a country will define ourselves in the future.

May our consciences, guided by whatever religious or other moral compass each of us uses, guide us to the best decisions for our communities.  

Why Do I Run?--The Seven C's

It is not often that I ask myself this question anymore.  Everyone around me knows me as a "runner"--whatever exactly that means.  But this morning, I was participating in a neat 5K race.  It was called Operation Oliver.  It focused on a neighborhood not far from where I work that is being revitalized with help from a number of organizations include one called the 6th Branch--military veterans performing service activities.  The local leader of the project carried an American flag (a large one like you'd hang outside your home) on a pole the whole race and ran not too far behind me.

The race was not the best organized.  No port-a-potties at the start or finish.  Took them a long time to figure out who got awards.  Not the best marked course.  And it was the last part that led me to ask that question--why do I run.

The race was so poorly marked and there may have been miscommunication among people who ran the race that some people ran 2.5 miles and others ran just over 3.  It was almost certainly short of 3.1 unless my watch erred the opposite direction as it does in every other race.  If it was 3.1, my 19:33 would be my first sub-20 time since high school.  As it was, my 19:33 projects out to about a 20:15 which would still be my personal best since high school.  That 20 minute 10K remains elusive.

But, I was challenged to answer "why do I run?" when I thought about what the mis-direction on the course would do to my placing.  Incidentally, I was first in my age group.  That's a nice feeling.  And the fact that I was even worried about it points to one of the reasons I run--I'm still competitive.  I once posted on Facebook "why do I still get butterflies before a race if it's all for fun?"  A friend from high school asked, "Are you sure it's just for fun?"  Today's race clearly showed me the answer is no.

Interestingly, there was a guy from the Back on My Feet team with which I run whom I did not expect to pass but did.  He indicated his frustration with the fact that he lost a place or two because of the misdirection.  Again, someone who is competitive.

My previous entry about Back on My Feet shows that it is not just about competition though.  It is also about community and caring.  A healthy mix of community, caring, and competition is not a bad thing.

And there are other things. I met new people today.  People talking as it got chilly after the race.  The race was run with the sun out.  Then the clouds came and it got cold.  But we talked for a long time about running, racing, and learning.  It was all good.

I saw people as they crossed the finish line.  Some struggled. Some were overjoyed.  Some who had obviously run most of the race slowly had it left in them to sprint as they could see the finish.  The joy and exhilaration that I saw on people's faces was amazing.

And, the sense of camaraderie.  I suppose that may be part of community.  But it is definitely cool to get to see others succeed.  I was the last one from team Christopher's place there today and I brought home medals for six other runners on my team.  I'll give them out on Monday.  It was just incredible.  I was particularly impressed by one woman whose running I knew was strong, but it became extra clear to me a couple weeks back when we did timed miles.  She ran a 6:12.  Few guys on the team were running that pace.  She hung with me and was the second female overall.  It is just so cool to be able to share success (and struggles--like trying to understand where the course actually went and dealing with the chill after the race) as part of being a team.

So, why do I run?  Competition, community, caring, and camaraderie.  To stay with a C theme, I could probably add compassion.  Given the sense of accomplishment that comes from finishing a race I could add "completion".  And, finally, to complete the seven C's, I'd say "consecration".  A dedication to something.  It does not have to be religious.  It does have to be a higher purpose.  I believe there is a higher purpose to running.  And I believe that for me in particular that purpose is a key aspect of why I'm out there.  

Back on My Feet--More than Just a Running Service--An Approach to Life

Yesterday, I happened to be staying overnight in Washington DC for a two day conference.  Since I know that Back on My Feet groups everywhere run Monday/Wednesday/Friday during the week, on Thursday, I emailed a staff member of Back on My Feet--Baltimore, who put me in touch with a staff member from Back on My Feet--Washindton DC, who put me in touch with two team leaders, and less than 24 hours later I was leaving my hotel to jog for a circle up with Team La Casa at 5:45 AM in a part of Washington DC I'd never seen before.  I enjoyed running 2 miles with the group, meeting a lot of new people, and adding a few miles as a social activity rather than just a run as part of my 6.5 mile total yesterday morning.  But running with Back on My Feet in a different city while away for work is not just about finding a few people to run with for a social activity.

Back on My Feet has established a process by which its team get togethers proceed.  I felt immediately at ease meeting and greeting with hugs as I arrived.  The team in DC circled up and had announcements in a way that seemed familiar.  Their approach to learning everyone's name was a bit different than my team's in Baltimore but that is okay.  Each person said their name just once and answered a question.  Yesterday's was favorite cupcake flavor--red velvet in my case.  Then the run with lots of chatting and a circle at the end that ended with the cheer "Back on My Feet--Keep coming back".

In the starting circe, the team leader for La Casa mentioned the degree to which Back on My Feet provides community so that they could have the opportunity to welcome a Baltimore teammate who happened to be in town for the day.  One could also refer to as a just plain "company" rather than community but it is definitely something more.  I also heard it referred to as fellowship or "extended family" in a figurative way.  The community feeling is always present.  And being referred to as a teammate who just happened to be from Baltimore was a reminder that other than the fact that some of those who run with Back on My Feet are in some type of recovery while others come from the community to run with them, once we are in circle we are all just teammates.  Everyone is equal.  Everyone cares about each other.

The organization is not religious.  We do recite a version of the Serenity Prayer at least once for each run.  Team La Casa actually recited it at the start and finish.  But that is a general prayer for serenity, courage, and wisdom to a higher power as it is treated within the organization.  Despite the fact that the organization is not explicitly "of any faith" the principles of community, care for each other, and equality among members reminded me of something from the Bible and one interpretation of the success of early Christianity.  On the first, the Bible verses I am thinking of are Matthew22:36-40 from the New American Bible Revised Edition:

36 “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”

37 He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.

38 This is the greatest and the first commandment.

39 The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

40 The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”

It is verse 39 which is most striking and makes me think of the approach to others promoted by Back on My Feet.

For the early Christian community, there was a Frontline program on PBS where I saw at least one historian's interpretation.  You can read the complete story here.   Here is the paragraph I find most moving:

"Now the Christian community, as we have it particularly in the letters of Paul, begins with a formula that is a baptismal formula, which says in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither male nor female, neither slave nor free. This is a sociological formula that defines a new community. Here is a community that invites you, which makes you an equal with all other members of that community. Which does not give you any disadvantages. On the contrary, it gives even the lowliest slave personal dignity and status. Moreover, the commandment of love is decisive. That is, the care for each other becomes very important. People are taken out of an isolation."
Back on My Feet is still a young organization guided by a powerful idea. If the idea and the organization continue to be nurtured so that I feel the sense of community at every run with Team Christopher's Place, at every local race the entire Baltimore BoMF family runs, and every time when I try to get together with local groups when I travel, and if the organizational leadership (paid and volunteer) does their best to make sure that everyone shares that sense of community, I believe the organization will go far.