Journey Across America

My week of service learning in New Orleans is almost over. My mind focuses on my journey back to San Francisco. Last year it took me almost 24 hours as I was passed from airport to airport trying to get around the inclement weather that closed down much of the center of the country. I felt sorry for myself. I just wanted to get home to my dear family.

Only when I was back in the Bay Area and telling my stories from the week did I realize how absurd my feelings of wretchedness as I moved from dry, clean airport, to dry clean airport. Those I had gone to help faced a much worse journey and many are still traveling, whether physically or psychologically.

I would like to share a beautiful song that accompanies a beautiful video. Mary Chapin Carpenter has done an amazing job using music and visual to make a statement that stays with you.

Thank you, Mary.

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Alon Shalev is the author of The Accidental Activist and A Gardener’s Tale. He is the Executive Director of the San Francisco Hillel Foundation, a non-profit that provides spiritual and social justice opportunities to Jewish students in the Bay Area. More on Alon Shalev at http://www.alonshalev.com/ and on Twitter (@alonshalevsf).