Arriving, First Daize

The road to Haiti is long and exciting. Once you wake up and step out the door, everything is a new experience. 

Arrive in Haiti and one of the things you first see are the people living on the whim's of the sun and the rain, and the beams of sugar cane that you can sell at the market. This is a land that can be seen under many different aspects. Beauty being one of them. The natural beauty seen here in the mountains and the sea, the clouds and sunshine, along with the vivid colors, all go to create a landscape that is truly breathtaking. 

Everything here is unfamiliar. There is a sense that all has been assembled out of dreams and an unpolished veneer of reality. Poverty is yet another unfamiliar element, poverty being more extreme here than anywhere else in the hemisphere, more extreme than imagination. 

Almost.

Stepping Into Yesterday

Fans of this blog are some of the most ardent supporters of their marque.

I know this because there is no RSS feed here, there are no fancy graphics, just a sign on the wall and a web address. Rest assured, I've made it probably as difficult as I can make it for you to get here, and yet more of you continue to arrive. 

It's truly humbling. 

I started this blog 2 years ago with a journey to Jamaica to document my pursuit of the reggae culture and their local Caribbean traditions. Pound for pound, I am a compilation of moments lived and the people that have shared those moments with me. But I'm firmly convinced, it took that experience to get me HERE to where I am today.

More importantly, I understand now that my life experience has slowly worked its way through the ground water so that I can come to a place to be able to write about the human condition. 

Regardless of how much money I make, I can do this forever.

For kicks I went back to read my first blog entry and I rediscovered the essence of why I founded this blog..

I wanted to open myself up to the world, to share a little of what I've learned, to take a chance at "chasing down my dreams", to laugh at myself. It's like that song by Counting Crows, "One way or another, I'm just hoping to find a way to put my feet out in the world." 

Recently I began to receive several messages on a variety of topics from my readers. Some people just wanting to give me encouragement for my trip to Haiti, some wanting me to continue on with my "experiment".  

One blog fan recently told me she wants to, "eat a rare steak off (my) tummy". All of these things, together says to me a couple things: a) I have no idea what girls want, b) I have no idea who exactly my readers are. 

So as I pack things up and set out for a new and inspiring set of circumstances, I want to open the floor up to all of you. 

I'm ready. 

Post a comment or shoot me an email at, TRDEMARTIN@GMAIL.COM

Come one, come all! 

Thanks for reading.

Tim

The Power of Redemption

Ten years ago I travelled to central Africa as a volunteer to post-genocide Rwanda. I can vividly recall the feeling in being over my head. I had no idea what to expect or what I would find, but I knew it would be a journey. Today, a week before the eve of my trip to Haiti, I have the very same feeling. 

Rwanda gave me a new perspective on the world. I saw first hand what it means to have EVERYTHING taken away from you. Entire villages that were occupied by orphaned children. Hospitals that were filled with patients dying from AIDS or malaria. Memorial sites that were left as grim reminders of the pain the country endured.

But it was here I also found the shared opportunity of reconciliation that has LITERALLY transformed the country into a beacon of Hope.

Haiti presents to me a similar opportunity. 

Understanding the plights of any country is a difficult task. What are black holes become the sky filled in by stars that are the faces and experiences once I set foot on the ground. 

Forming a personal connection to whatever I am a part of is all it takes. Give me the person, and I will show you the heartbeat. 

And, though technically, my upcoming trip to Haiti is a freelance assignment to help document a medical-non-profit, I’m going in the capacity of a photo-journalist and filmmaker.  

For the past few months, I have been taking in knowledge about Haiti like a sponge, and I’m hoping to include you, my ever-enlightening audience, in this pursuit of greater awareness.

Lucky Dog's Mama

Here's to my sister, Jessica, and the exceptional parenting of her pride & joy Lucky Dog.

I'm clearly outnumbered on this one since I don't have a dog or significant other. They are truly one of the BEST love affairs of my life. And as long as she has Lucky Dog, there will be no children coming into the family.

Lucky Dog, "Uncle Tim" loves you!!!

The Reason Why

Far superior to us emotionally, sexually, and physically, women find themselves in a much better position than men, and it's all because of this little "girl" right here:  estrogen. 

As complex as women may appear to men, the planet would be an awful, hideous place were it not for estrogen. A woman can maintain her composure while acting cooperatively with others. She is an excellent multi-tasker, and can jam about twenty words into the space I could fill with just one. Anything that is endearing and charming in me, usually comes from when when I am exhibiting qualities that flow effortlessly to females. 

Things like compassion, tolerance, patience, forgiveness are all things a women does with grace and elegance. Just look at any mother and how she is when she interacts with her child and you will invariably see what I mean. 

I have the simple joy of living nearby to a beach that I can walk to, where among other things, I can watch women interact with their little ones. It's truly an amazing sight. Most of us do what comes naturally, and when you combine all of these attributes in a female, mothering is comes about as naturally as waking up in the morning. 

Just so you know that I know, whenever I am my very best as a person, I am for that minute, connected to my "femaleness".

Thank you estrogen for making me believe that, aside from myself, the world can be a better place for everyone.

Time to weigh in...

I was watching the Padres-Pirates baseball game on TV last night when it was interrupted by a "BREAKING NEWS" alert about the death of Osama bin Laden. The U.S. had staged a late night campaign in Allotta...something, Pakistan, based on trustworthy sources, the unseen voice explained. My roommate must have heard me scream out in shock, she came running into the room.

"What happened?" she asked. Her eyes drifting from me to the TV screen. "Is this a great country, or what?"she said.

The easy answer to that question is, "Yes, and thank you for asking." But I didn't know what to say, I had mixed emotions, so I let the voice on the TV orate the moment. "Thousands are gathering now and waving flags, cheering USA! USA! USA!" The TV flashed images of Ground Zero alongside chanting Americans from Washington D.C. and New York.

When I woke up this morning, however, there was no shortage of dangerous gibberish on Internet streams and cable news networks. Besides mentioning it, none of it is worth reflecting on. That's because the one thing that rallied above all that nonsense, was the shared sense of national unity and justice for the victims of September 11th and for those we lost to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Over the course of the last decade, there have been over 6,000 letters and visits that have crushed mothers with the news of their son's death. Today, I really felt a collective sense that those efforts and their courage has been vindicated, all 6,000 of them.

How's that for a great country?

Further Evidence

that women are better than men. They're responsible, as team Mom's, to slice up the oranges for their kid's halftime break at the soccer match. 

Was there anything better? 

No.

Look at my man there on the left side of the photo, digging into that slice. 

Mom's rule. 

This week it's all about them.

Mom’s are the one person who can ALWAYS make the “booboo” better.