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Stereotyping of Native Americans

• Authored by:
• James Summers

Dear Editor: It was great to read about Burton and Mary Jo Housman’s recent visit to Casa de los Amigos in Mexico City in the Jan/Feb issue. Pacific Yearly Meeting has made progress in building and maintaining ties to Friends in Mexico over the last few years. Visitation between Mexico City Friends and the rest of PYM has increased, and the participation of Mexico Friends on several major committees and programs is most welcome.

On Knowing (March 2015)

On Knowing

• Authored by:
• Mary Klein

Last January, police in South Carolina released a sketch of a possible murder suspect, drawn by artificial intelligence, based on information from DNA found at the crime scene. No eyewitnesses and no cameras had observed the murderer’s face, yet the computer produced an approximation of it, and the authorities believe it might help them solve the crime. (Pollack, NYT, 2/24/2015)

On Knowing (March 2015)

Gifts Known and Unknown

• Authored by:
• Paul L. Niebanck

When springtime in Seattle finally comes out from under its winter blanket of fog and drizzle, its smile is bright and its mood is balmy. That’s the kind of day it is – a Sunday in May, shortly after Easter – when Fred comes out of church and finds himself striding down the hill.

On Knowing (March 2015)

Are Committees Still the Answer?

• Authored by:
• Joyce Zerwekh

Dear Friends: Liberal unprogrammed Quaker meetings are organized or disorganized by committees. Without an identified pastor or priest, we count on the wisdom of committees.

On Needs (May 2015)

237 Acres of God

• Authored by:
• Thistle West,
• Hannah Mackinney

It’s lizard season. Driving down the Rough and Ready Highway, the air is hot and dry, a tangible manifestation of the California drought. But here, everything is alive. The Woolman Semester School sits on 237 acres in historic gold country, but more immediately, it’s my favorite place in the world. I’ve been coming to Woolman for various reasons as long as I can remember – College Park Quarterly Meeting sessions, summer camp, family work camp, visiting Friends – but today, March 30th, 2015, I’m returning to visit for the first time since graduating from the Fall 2014 high school semester. Driving past the orchard, it already feels like home.

On Needs (May 2015)

Not the Final Word

• Authored by:
• David Hartsough

Part of my dad’s job with the American Friends Service Committee was to take speakers around to various college campuses, churches, and summer institutes. As a kid, I sometimes went along and got to meet such spiritual giants as peace activist A.J. Muste and civil rights leaders Bayard Rustin and Ralph Abernathy. During spring vacation in 1956, my dad decided to take my brother Paul and me to Montgomery, where the bus boycott was four months old.

On Difference (July 2015)

First Day School Lesson Plans

• Authored by:
• Nancy Marshall

Dear Editor: As I have said before, I love the “Pages for All Ages.” Reading all the themes that you have planned in the months ahead (money, beginning, limits, etc.), this one comes to mind for me: “First Day School Lesson Plans.” I am sending you a few that I have developed, which you can share with other Friends, and I’ll share more with you soon. I have this fantasy that if we are prepared, children will show up!

On Difference (July 2015)

Quaker Culture: Speaking as Equals

• Authored by:
• Eric Sabelman

Friends (of the non-pastoral sort, at least) do not have a hierarchy.  No chain of command.  No higher-ups.  No in-group.  No pyramid of authority.  No ultimate decision-maker, where the buck always stops.  Nobody on the bottom, who must keep his/her head down and mouth shut for fear of retaliation.  Nobody who is powerless.  Nobody more powerful than whomever fills the temporary and limited role of clerk.

On Difference (July 2015)

The Right Mix of Gifts

• Authored by:
• Rob Pierson

Dear Editor: Thanks to Friend Kirby Urner for throwing light on the sometimes troubled relations between Meetings, their Nominating Committees, and their Peace and Social Concerns Committees (“Sticking Out Like Sore Thumbs,” July/August 2015). My Meeting has felt this tension, and I’ve talked to other Meetings that have as well.

On Play (September 2015)

The Abundant Benefits of Play

• Authored by:
• Patricia Morrison

Play is one of the most lauded – yet undervalued – parts of our lives. In the work I do with artists and creative professionals, I help each person develop or revive a practice of regular play. I have seen these practices transform people’s relationships, increase their incomes, and improve their abilities to give their gifts to the world while staying healthy and grounded. Yet even though I continually encourage others to play more, I often find myself surprised by the power of play to restore my own calm, compassion, and creativity.

On Play (September 2015)