Dennis Thum and Bliss

This morning Dom and I met with Dennis Thum and discussed our class so far, what to do with our remaining days, our majors, our hopes and dreams, our past wounds, and our families. He's such a sincere guy with so much care and concern to offer. When he asks about someone, he really is interested. I am amazed by all his experiences, and his ability to open up and share stories.
He has this really intriguing idea that the USF theatre department (and/or in conjuction with somebody's senior project) should band together with the State Pen and put on a production with the inmates. That's a cool idea! He said there would of course be obstacles, including having the project passed by authority, finding an all-male script, and the possibility of working with men who perhaps aren't the most mentally healthy.
After we had the opportunity of working with some prisoners at the Salvation Army the other day, I believe it is safe to say that there are certainly some prisoners who would jump at the idea to be involved with a production run by college kids (especially if there were some ladies!). They seem so bored, as if they could shrivel into a state of indifference. It seems like a production would be a very constructive use of their time, and I think Dennis has a great idea. Talking to him today got me somewhat interested in his prison ministry. I'm sure I would be pretty scared at times, but imagine how enlightening it would be to worship with someone whose main difference from me is that he was convicted for his sin...I'll have to consider partaking in Dennis' prison ministry in the spring.
Talking to Dennis is such an encouraging conversation; he's an upper of a guy :)
I kept reading in The Geography of Bliss today. I still think Weiner is a hilarious author, and it is so interesting to read his perspective of a similar region of the world that Rita from Tales of a Female Nomad experienced. One point that both authors mention is a similarity of women worldwide. On several occasions Rita notes how the women gather together in the kitchen, preparing a meal and gossiping. Despite language, race, food, and clothing differences, the essence of women worldwide is very much consistent. She also speaks of the nurturing tendencies of women everywhere she travels. Across the globe, women seem to reach out and take care of others.
On the same note, I find it interesting that Weiner mentions this as well. I don't remember the page number, but I do recall him talking about women being motherly pretty much everywhere. That is an interesting observation. The act of nurturing is natural for ladies across the board.
From my own observations, maternal instinct starts young. I've worked at a couple daycares and done enough babysitting to see that little girls don't normally crash their Hotwheels into the wall, wrestle their friends to the ground, and catch spiders. Nor do little boys feed their dolls, give pretend birth by popping a stuffed animal out of their shirts, or put their arms around their upset friend.
I guess God designed women to be motherly...I dig that!
When Weiner is in Bhutan he is asking one guy about why the Bhutanese are so happy, and his response is that they don't have high expectations. Sometimes I joke that if I don't expect much I can't be disappointed. In all seriousness, it's definitely worth consideration. Of course there is the idea that low expectations lead to low ambition resulting in low productivity resulting in low sense of worth which would not lead to happiness. However, there is also the idea that my best is my best, and since I didn't expect/demand more than my best, I accomplished my best at the best level I could, which probably leads to contentment, also known as happiness. Interesting statement by a man in Bhutan. Hmmm....I may take the low expectation mindset for movies, but I still like dreaming :)
Also in Bhutan, Weiner learns that the happiest countries are those with the most trust. Companies operate on an honor system, and civilians place great trust in their government and neighbors. "Trust is a prerequisite for happiness...Several studies, in fact, have found that trust-more than income or even health-is the biggest factor in determining our happiness" (92). Interesting! It makes sense. I imagine if upon moving into my dorm room, I had a bad gut feeling about my new neighbors and my belongings disappeared and I was scared to go to bed at night. That wouldn't be very happy. But thankfully I am blessed with awesome neighbors who I am confident would help me if I asked and who definitely respect my space and property. And I'm happy.
It's interesting that trustworthiness is so key to happiness. The only reason we need keys for our houses and cars is because of a lack of trust. How many people are smiling while they're feeding a coat hanger through the top of their car door? In a trustworthy society, keys wouldn't be necessary, which means nobody would be locked out, which means more happiness!
I'm hoping to get to another restaurant tomorrow and I need to keep reading in Bliss.
Thank you for sharing your stories and encouragement, Dennis!
Today was a good day, even with the bone-chilling wind and blowing snow and icy sidewalks ;-)