Roses and Linen

While in Silver City, New Mexico, last week, Annie and I had the pleasure of sitting in with a fine group of folks from the Grant County Peace Coalition who were planning a “Roving Peace Occupation / Happening / Peace Walk” under the banner “Come Home, America” in observence of our country's 4th Anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

“Come Home, America,” a gathering of

roving musicians, street actors, clowns, friends, old hippies, young hippies, students, weirdos, moms, dads, kids, carnivores, vegetarians, disgruntled postal workers, lovers, peacemongers, enviros, pissed-off Gen Xers, gays, lesbians, veterans, bicyclists for peace, cowboys, disgusted Republicans, clergy, Democrats, Greens, Libertarians, potential cannon fodder, business owners, anarchists, Christians, Muslims, Jews, atheists, rock stars, AND EVERYONE WHO’S SICK OF 4 YEARS OF THE AMERICAN OCCUPATION OF IRAQ, AND A POSSIBLE INVASION OF IRAN, AND WHO JUST WANT TO LIVE IN A PEACEFUL WORLD

is taking place today from 3 PM until dark in downtown Silver City. While our travel schedule didn’t allow us to participate in this gathering, Annie and I did help the cause a skosh by volunteering to apply “IMPEACH MINT” labels to mint candies and “Bring Me Home” labels to plastic toy soldiers. The IMPEACH MINT candies and Bring Me Home (a Mouths Wide Open Army Men Project) toy soldiers are being distributed to fellow citizens during the event.

Today is, of course, the fouth anniversary of our country attacking, without provocation or justification, Iraq, and as in many communities across this land, commonsense folks in Silver City are taking to the streets to collectively and visibly voice their disapproval of the war and to call for the withdrawal of American troops. Here in the Bryan/College Station Texas area about 40 of us or so gathered last night to protest the Iraq war and also in remembrance of the soldiers who have lost their lives in Iraq. One particularly thoughtful protester, a member of the Brazos County Veterans for Peace, brought with him a couple of dozen white roses and distributed them to other participants, who in turn waved them at passerbys. Why white roses? Well, along with linen, such as the American flag that covers the caskets of U.S. casualties killed in Iraq, a rose is one of the traditional gifts for a four-year anniversary.

Also while in Silver City, Annie and I sat in on a meeting of the Southwestern Chapter of the New Mexico ACLU, and they, too, were a fine group of folks. Their meeting wasn't at all any different than any of our Brazos Valley ACLU Chapter and we felt right at home among them.

Annie and I have both felt drawn to New Mexico from very early on in our individual lives, primarily because of la tierra y la gente, that is, the land and the people--like the kind of folks we met last week from the Grant County Peace Coalition and the ACLU. But there's also something else that draws us to the Land of Enchantment. Like maybe because New Mexico is descended from the sky. To say that we’re anxious to move there permanently in two years would be a sure-fire understatement. We can hardly wait.