Dear friends,
Today I’m appreciating patience and going slow. I’m remembering Thay’s calligraphy in the EIAB: Patience is one of the marks of true love.
I’ve been on high speed lately, balancing the responsibility of running a month-long coding intensive at Shoruq Organization in Dheisheh with the difficulties of co-organizing a group of thirteen Palestinians and Israelis to France in August.
My coding academy at Shoruq Organization in Dheisheh Camp is halfway done. I have seventeen curious and engaged students (and three teaching assistants): our youngest is 14 years old from Dheisheh, and our oldest is 58 from Bethlehem! We’ve covered basic Javascript and classes, and tomorrow we’ll start learning to build web pages with HTML, CSS, and React. I’m exploring the possibility of holding a second workshop for the advanced students, training them in leadership, class facilitation, and project management skills. Perhaps it's a pathway towards building sustainability and growth into the tech economy here.
In other news, I’ll be traveling with Palestinian and Israeli friends to Plum Village in two weeks. I’m deep in preparation now, a process which requires very little of the Israelis and Americans, and a great deal of energy, money, and time from the Palestinians. As I become familiar with the barriers to entry for Palestinians visiting France -- erected out of fear and desire for safety -- I explore my own judgment and fear of people I don’t know, barriers that limit my own ability to meet others with an open heart. What barriers do I erect around my own heart to keep myself safe? Who do I exclude in the process?
I’ve written more about barriers and the Palestinian visa process below:
https://melaniegin.com/barriers/
New password: plumtree
One last thing: if you’d like to contribute towards scholarships for my Palestinian friends to visit Plum Village, the monastics have put together a special donation page. Thank you in advance for anything you can offer; funds go directly towards helping my friends arrive in France.
https://donation.plumvillage.org/middle-east-wake-up/
Thank you very much for your presence in my life. May you touch peace and rest in this moment, wherever you are.
Love,
Melanie