It has been a month and a half since my 9-year-old daughter has been in the physical presence of another child. To fully interact, to imagine, to run and play. She is not unique in this scenario that is being experienced by many children worldwide. She said kindly on a walk a few days ago, […]
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Posted inLetters + Opinion
Interpreting Equity During a Pandemic
One of my first memories interacting with other children in our community is of having my older brother, Mauro, interpret for me as we were playing — he was attending school and picking up English much faster than I was. We would migrate back and forth from Mexico where my abuelita y abuelo (grandma and […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
End of the Spell
Societies all over the world are caught in a terrible dilemma. Taking refuge in our houses and socially distancing are the only ways we know to protect ourselves and each other from Covid-19. Factories are shuttered, schools and stores are closed. So far, we’re lucky here in Humboldt where the death toll is zero. In […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Trapped
It is a beautiful Monday in Humboldt County, one of those days where the blue accentuates the deep green ridge of the tree line and reminds one of the grandeur that surrounds us. And for school districts and their communities, this gorgeous day kicks off the beginning of spring break. I have the interesting vantage […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
For the Love of Children: Unsung Heroes
As a society, our children are our most precious resources, with nurturing and protecting them one of our most sacred duties. Children deserve safe, happy childhoods and it is up to all of us together to make that a reality. This week we honor children and those who care for them during the Week of […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
An Open Letter to the Person Who Killed my Son
April 15th, 2020 To the person responsible for murdering my son, I am writing this letter to encourage you to come forward in order to bring peace to yourself and my family. Your friends and family may tell you that you are free and to disregard me, however, I know that you are not free in your […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Bright Side of the Moon
We are moving into week four of shelter in place in Humboldt County and much has happened in a week, again. Many of our school districts are informing us they will indeed be out for the rest of the year. Perhaps the districts that haven’t yet committed are holding on to the same hope we […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Eyes of a Child
Well here we are, and it continues. The impact of COVID-19 on daily routines, home environments, family livelihoods, how we move through our communities, how we educate our children and how we communicate with family, friends and coworkers — everything shifting in the dynamic landscape of “shelter-in-place.” As a community, we come together to “flatten […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Distance Connected Learning
A friend was lamenting the other day that both she and her husband were working 12-hour days from home. Their two school-aged children, she said, mostly had to fend for themselves. She explained that she felt like she was failing them. I could relate. It’s hard to divide your attention between work and family, even […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Milken’s Unpardonable Redwood Felonies
Some crimes cannot be forgiven. There’s Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assaults, the Sackler family’s (alleged) opioid proliferation and, for Humboldt County, Michael Milken’s junk bonds. So when President Trump pardoned “Junk Bond King” Milken for his criminal offenses last week, the message to Humboldt was clear: No matter how many ancient forests you plunder, it’s an […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
A Reasonable Ask
I place another log in the wood stove, sit down at my dining table, mug of hot coffee at my fingertips. The fire puts out a steady warmth. Windows fill three of the four walls of this great room and I wonder if the light leaking out from my lamp bothers the neighbors. I always […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
Terra-Gen Electrified the Conversation. What Now?
Terra-Gen’s Humboldt Wind Project was flawed but it would have offered this: a large and sudden pulse of low-carbon energy, enough to fill approximately 56 percent of Humboldt’s total electricity needs. With its demise, our odds at reaching our global climate goals become more distant while our challenge to achieve 100 percent clean, renewable energy […]