COURAGE AND COMPASSION IN TIMES OF CRISIS

I recently finished reading Dave Egger's masterpiece, ZEITOUN, which accomplished what no other work of fiction or nonfiction has done in years, brought me to tears. It's the point of literature--isn't it?-- to move us to a deeper sense of our own humanity. Sometimes that aim is easy to forget.

ZEITOUN is about the horrors experienced by a Muslim family, particularly the husband and father, in New Orleans in the wake of Katrina. It was a story I could not put down. Carefully written, each word carved with compassion and clarity, ZEITOUN lays bare the grotesque bureaucratic monster that made this tragedy so much worse and epitomized on so many levels what was wrong with our country at that time--when Bush 2 was still in power and many Americans had not yet realized natural disasters are the order of the day not the rarity of tomorrow.

ZEITOUN also lays bare our prejudices and small mindedness, humbling the reader when it comes to her understanding of what the right thing to do might be in times of natural disaster or emergency. Reading this narrative, one quickly comes to realize the survivor of disasters is not so much one who is smart or physically adept as one who is morally strong and wise. Disasters put our bodies, minds and moral fibers to the test. ZEITOUN is the story of a modern hero who epitomizes moral courage and stamina and stops at nothing to preserve the life of his family and community. It is relentlessly gripping and both devastating and uplifting.

MARCH 10 HONORS TIBET

        This March 10 marked the 54th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising against the People's Republic of China in Tibet. In NYC, thousands of Tibetans and those who support them, such as members of Students for a Free Tibet, convened in front of the United Nations to protest continued oppression by the Chinese government in Tibet. In the afternoon, protesters marched to the Chinese Consulate at 520 12th Avenue waving flags and chanting slogans such as "Shame, shame China shame," "China out of Tibet now," and "Free Tibet now." The occasion was particularly solemn due to the self-immolations that have taken place in recent months in and around Tibet.

       Since 2009, 107 Tibetans have set fire to themselves in protest against the ongoing suppression of freedoms by the Chinese government and its systematic usurpation of Tibetan culture and traditions. Among those who set fire to themselves were 93 men and 14 women; 23 persons self-immolators were 18 or younger; 21 were monks; two were nuns.

        At the UN on March 10, I spoke to one Westerner who is a longtime friend of a group of Tibetans in this country. Although she said she has been to Tibet herself, she said, her Tibetan friends cannot go. "Anyone who goes to Tibet now will see that it is virtually unrecognizable. It is completely Chinese."

        Since 1959, approximately 1. 4 million Tibetans have been killed by the Chinese government; hundreds of monasteries and temples have been decimated; and many civilians, monks and nuns have been raped, tortured and imprisoned. Additionally, the Chinese government has prevented Tibetans from practicing their religion, while attempting to usurp the country's culture and traditions. And still the world does not attend to Tibet. And still China practices its unlawful takeover, violating human rights in Tibet.

      As Tibet's spiritual leader (and until recently political leader) in exile, HH the Dalai Lama has helped to significantly raise people's consciousness around the globe about the plight of Tibet. He advocates nonviolence, and his people have followed and continue to follow his spiritual guidance although they now have another political leader. In April 2011, Harvard law scholar Lobsand Sangay became the first Prime Minister of Tibet after being elected to the position by Tibetans in exile. He is in his early 40s and currently a Senior Fellow at the East Asian Legal Studies Program at Harvard Law School and an expert in Tibetan law and international human rights law.

       The International Campaign for Tibet has a fact sheet page on the self-immolations in Tibet and a petition that supporters of the Tibetan cause can sign, listed on the right on this page: http://www.savetibet.org/resource-center/maps-data-fact-sheets/self-immolation-fact-sheet

Dream of Patagonia

A recent short story publication:
http://www.scissorsandspackle.com/current-issue1/arya-f-jenkins/

A Satirist's Vision of the World

Last summer I bypassed summer reading lists altogether. It seemed false to me. First of all, the whole idea that you only have time to read in the summer, as if the summer is this vast vacation landscape, the time when we are all rich and unemployed, rich with time at least, is very false, don't you think? On top of that, I was reading too many things I didn't want to share. I can be a stingy reader, not only as regards lending books, but as regards not discussing them. Most of the time, I prefer to digest their ideas alone. Consume their pleasures selfishly. Selfish to the bone.

So, now it is winter, and I am reading madly, thinking unselfishly of sharing some of my pleasures with my audience, because I am reading George Saunders, and he is a very unselfish man. He is not only unselfish, but terribly funny and brilliant, one of the best writers I have ever read, still alive.

He is a writer of short stories mainly and has such a wild way of thinking about things and such confidence throwing about his ideas that you feel you're with some kind of mad gymnast, who uses words in the most awesome fashion, so that he makes you think, right alongside with him, of things you normally don't ponder enough. He is not a gymnast the way John Updike was, so that you are in awe of the man's ability to flip vocabulary, but so you are in awe of his ideas and his original way of reaching both your heart and mind.

Saunders' two collections of short stories are: In Persuasion Nation and the recently published Tenth of December. His fiction is great. I saw him recently on Charlie Rose's TV show and noted that he is also a humble and kind man. Saunders is a writer who is also humble and kind. This was enough to set me straight on a course toward procuring his work. I have done little else but read it in the last three days.

Not surprisingly, as I am primarily a nonfiction writer myself, I have fallen in love with his essays, specifically The Braindead Megaphone, published in 2007. His writing puts me in such a state of alertness and hyper engagement that I am forced to read sections aloud. I paraded back and forth in the living room reading his essay on Dubai out loud, a hilarious and poignant examination of class and luxury, and those who have and those who have not. And I read aloud what is perhaps the most gorgeous essay on the love of writing that I have ever read, "Thank you Esther Forbes."

So, here I am sharing my winter list of one: George Saunders. Read him. You will feel brain and heart fed, alert and more intelligent after consuming his work. This I promise.

THE HUNG OVER GLOBE

A few words on one of my favorite yearly parties, The Golden Globe Awards. I am one of those who enjoys watching beauty contests and award shows, mainly because I like seeing people happy. We know the winners won't be remembered for their success--even by most people who hear of their prizes-- for longer than a day, if that. We all know people and moments are expendable as air. But still, witnessing the joy is great, and the glam, gossip (and sometimes even speeches) divine.

This year was no exception, with its high points, and lows. The high points--Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, and most especially, Amy's reference to "Hillary's husband." And the lovely couple, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, who would almost have you believe that you can have a happy marriage (with children along with success) in Hollywood; and Daniel Day Lewis's speech--surely, by all accounts, the most heartfelt and eloquent of the evening. The low points--the dissing of Spielberg's masterful film, Lincoln, save for Lewis's garnering best actor; and Jennifer Lawrence's snarky and totally unnecessary remark when she won: "I beat Meryl."

Jodi Foster's speech about privacy, fame and longevity in Hollywood rests somewhere in the middle. Last night, it left me, and probably a million other viewers, rather perplexed. What did she mean? Were we supposed to switch her off while understanding her "deeply"? Were we supposed to peer close, while pretending not to see or hear her? I wasn't sure what she was saying, except "it's lonely at the top"--Even with all her wealth, success, good health, great looks, mate of 20-plus years, two sons, and very good friends that she thanked last night. Very lonely. And yet, I couldn't muster the pity and compassion she wanted me to feel for her. Poor thing, receiving a lifetime achievement award. At 50.

But at the same time, I can say this is what I did like about Ms. Jodi Foster's moment: Her speech included the invisible folks up in the balcony, appreciation for the much maligned (rightly or wrongly is irrelevant) Mel Gibson, a story about her lesbianism, and reassertions of her defiant wish for privacy in a world where reality shows predominate. These declarations made me feel proud of her, in a way; made me feel she is valiant, sort of. Oh well, in the aftermath of Jodi's acceptance speech, I kind of respect and like her and wish her well.

Kudos to all. Thanks for the laughs, Amy and Tina, and Kristen and Will, who almost did steal the show.