Monthly Archives: February 2012

Fasting for Peace – Day Forty-Three

By: Adam Moss, Counsellor with the Wright Institute

Adam Moss (right), counsellor with the Wright Institute, fasted on 2/27/12.

I felt it a great privilege to have the opportunity to participate in my 24 hour shift of the 75 day relay fast with the students, faculty, and community of Life Academy.  It was a challenging day for me, consistently confronted by physical discomfort and having discussions with my community about the violence that the family of Life Academy  faces both directly and indirectly on a daily basis.

During my fast, I clearly felt a great hunger for food, I listened with compassion to my growling, aching stomach.  However, I also listened to the growling and aching of my heart, which did so with much greater fierceness.  The most powerful hunger I witnessed in myself was a hunger for peace.

I adopted the “I statement” created by BAM and RAW that inspired my focus on my own relationships both on and off the campus.  This was a profound intent for me to hold as I felt a great deal of grumpiness as I grew weary at the end of my day.  I thought of how easy it would have been to be snappy or impatient with those I related to.  Moving beyond my own discomfort, and focusing on my intent to be compassionate and loving in all of my relations was a powerful practice for me on my fast day.  It struck me as a critical first step in moving away from violence and towards peace, on a personal as well as communal level.

Thank you to the community of Life Academy, and especially the students and faculty involved in BAM and RAW for creating this powerful experience.  May our community move towards greater peace and love for all.

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By: Guicela Sanchez, Sophomore

Guicela Sanchez (right), Life Academy sophomore and RAW member, beginning her fast on 2/27/12.

Guicela Sanchez (center) breaking her fast on 2/28/12.

During my fast, I wanted flavors in my mouth. But, I remembered that I wasn’t the only one suffering; other people out there in the world were suffering even more. Some people don’t even know how a piece of gum or candy tastes. I realized that I am fortunate for the things I have and that I have people supporting me during my fast. The fast gave me time to reflect and appreciate life.

During my fast, I had to go to FACES (my internship) in the afternoon, and it was hard to ignore my hunger because in the afternoon I usually eat a lot of delicious food. While I was ignoring my hunger, I was reflecting on how other poor people don’t eat because they don’t have a job or money. That must be very painful for them.

Fasting for 24 hours was difficult, but it was worth it because the pain of my hunger made me think about the pain of life. For example, I thought about the pain our community feels when we hear about someone losing a loved one due to violence. That’s more painful than fasting for one day!

The “I-Statement” that I chose to reflect on was: “I pledge to defend others who cannot defend themselves.” During my fast and having this statement running through my head all day, I felt that we should pay more attention to the people around us in order to show them that we care. I have committed myself to letting people know that everyone should have the chance to live a good life and to not be afraid of anything.

The Season of Peace-Building is important because it shows that the youth of Oakland (and of Life Academy more specifically) are willing to take a stand for our community. We show this by fasting and spreading the word around different schools. We all know that it will not stop the violence, but this is the way to show the people around our community that we are care and that we are not just sitting around and waiting for the violence to stop. Instead, we, the youth of Life Academy, are taking actions to make the world a better place.

Edited By: Eva Oliver, RAW Co-Coach, and Yuvitza Rivera, Sophomore

 

Fasting for Peace – Day Forty-One

By Emily Rigotti, Life Academy Teacher

Emily Rigotti (center), Life Academy science teacher, fasted on 2/25/12.

To be honest, I was a little worried about my own will-power to be able to fast for an entire 24 hour period (as a lover of food, I knew it was going to be very challenging for me).  I definitely approached it head-on.

The first 5 hours of the fast I didn’t really feel the effects. However, after hour 5, I really struggled to stay true to the fast. What really kept me going was knowing that I was part of a larger vision of people that had followed through with this amazing feat.  Additionally, I reached out for support from close family and friends to spread the word about the significance of the Season of Peace.

This really got me to reflect on our own Oakland community, especially with the 18 shootings that happened all in the last week.  Supporting each other in as many positive ways as possible is one of the most important methods of battling the injustice that plagues our neighborhoods.  

Thank you for allowing me to participate in this extremely meaningful movement!

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

Visit us on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Life-Academys-Season-of-Peace-Building/266295463437265

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/raw_bam

Edited By: Yuvitza Rivera, Sophomore

Fasting for Peace – Day Forty

By Kevin Guardado, Sophomore

Kevin Guardado (right), Life Academy sophomore and BAM member, fasted on 2/24/12.

 

I felt really hungry and I couldn’t concentrate on what I was doing so I played games to take my mind off of it. The best part of my whole day was that I drank lots of refreshing water.

“I pledge to be mindful of my relationships and my actions both on and off campus.” I realized all my mistakes that I committed in school when I wasn’t in B.A.M, so I started to fix those mistakes by staying away from all my bad friends and being around my good friends. I demonstrated good actions by being mindful of my mistakes and fixing them to represent what a good  B.A.M member I am.

I got some pledges done but not all. I did not invite anyone to my fast but I did tell my mother that I was on a fast so she could remember I wasn’t going to eat until Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

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By Samira Yeganegi, Skyline Student

Fasting was a pretty interesting experience. I felt more tired than usual. Consequently, I wasn’t in the best of moods at all times. You’re not really aware of being hungry after a while, but sometimes I would find myself planning what I was going to eat later (I do this a lot because if I don’t know what I’m going to eat I basically can keep eating forever), and then I would remember that I couldn’t and would feel silly.

I think it did good for my patience and also made me really appreciate how tasty water is! People were pretty nice about it in general. Nobody fasted with me, but I did get some people to be interested in potentially doing it in the future. I got a few people who were thinking about doing it and I basically told them it was pretty alright and encouraged them to try it.

 

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

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Edited By: Yuvitza Rivera, Sophomore

Fasting for Peace – Day Thirty-Nine

By Raynetta Van, Sophomore

Raynetta Van (second from the left), Life Academy sophomore and RAW member, fasted on 2/23/12.

During my fast  I never really was hungry. The only time I became hungry was when I told myself I was hungry, but  when I said no I am not, my hunger went away. Throughout the day I was my regular self. The best part of the day was sleeping because  I had the best sleep ever. The worst part was my constant headaches. I get headaches really easily so it hurt badly, but it wasn’t to the point where I couldn’t focus on doing my homework.

I felt really thankful knowing that I can wake up and have food whenever I want to while some kids can’t. It’s sad, but true.

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

Visit us on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Life-Academys-Season-of-Peace-Building/266295463437265

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/raw_bam

Edited by Yuvitza Rivera, Sophomore

Fasting for Peace – Day Thirty-Eight

By: James Monroe, Sophomore

James Monroe (right), Life Academy sophomore and BAM member, fasted on 2/22/12.

When I fasted, I did not feel the effects of not eating until the next day. Then, I was hungry! The best part of the day was when I was sitting in class, and people thought I was dead because I was not moving. I was not moving because I was so hungry! The worst part of my fast was when my mom was talking about food a lot. She knew that I was fasting and that I normally eat a lot so that was frustrating. But, it was definitely worth it.

Edited By: Eva Oliver, RAW Co-Coach

Fasting for Peace – Day Thirty-Seven

By Najely Gomez, Senior

Najely Gomez (left), Life Academy senior and RAM member, fasted on 2/21/12.

The moment I received the armband, I automatically felt honored to be part of this intriguing community of the “Season of Peace-Building”. This fast relay should not be just set as one day to build peace but in people’s everyday lives. I believe that a change starts off by someone being motivated to create awareness and dedication.

Through this fast relay, I began to recognize the place I come from. I come from Oakland. Not just plain Oakland, but a place where I would only hear people say that “Oakland is a very dangerous place where many youth die every day from Oakland notorious crimes.” I won’t deny this because it is true. Many youth my own age die from shootings, murders, etc. However, many youth do not evidently choose to live a life full of struggles. They are influenced through the acts they see around others. Anyone can change themselves and distinguish between what is right and wrong.

I decided that through fasting just one simple day I would feel that I am creating a change. I am immersing myself to change this current generation and future generations to come. I want to be set as an example to many youth in Oakland and aspire them that there are other alternative roads and not only one that many are force to follow. In addition, violence shouldn’t be set as an action but as abstain. Families should not be destroyed nor suffer but live in peace and in harmony. Building peace can initiate many positive aspects that will generate a new life for those who were caught in the wrong direction.

Throughout this fasting relay, I began to reflect of my cousin’s situation. Back in 2005, I can still mesmerize the day when my cousin was arrested because of Oakland’s violence. He was caught right in front of my home without realizing how that very moment it would not only impact me emotionally but my whole family as well. Now that he has served 6 years in prison, I came across wanting to show my cousins, friends, and peers that life shouldn’t be ended through violence. I work hard to maintain not only that 4.0 honor roll but to be a role model to students in my school. Being a role model to them, can change them to becoming students who want to make a change in their own lives by graduating from high school and going to college.

I did not only reflect on Oakland and on my cousin’s issue, but I also fasted because I wanted to realize what it was like not eating a whole day.  It was definitely a different transition, because I did not follow my everyday routine of eating breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Now that it is 7:56 pm I am in the mood of eating at least a fruit, but no because I am dedicated to this commitment and I am proud of doing. This I can connect back to those people in underprivileged countries that do not even have a piece of bread to eat or clean water to drink. It saddens me to realize that many places around the world people are dying from starvation. This should not be happening to the world where gaps are created between rich and poor people. Poor people should have the same equality as people who live in urban areas. More than anything, this reflection has made me realize that I want to ameliorate Oakland’s violent situation and not see the same Oakland we are used to seeing.

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

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Edited By: Yuvitza Rivera, Sophomore, and Eva Oliver, RAW Co-Coach

Fasting for Peace – Day Thirty-Six

By Suneal Kolluri, Life Academy Teacher

Suneal Kolluri, Life Academy Humanities teacher, fasted on 2/20/12.

At first, it didn’t seem clear to me as to why not eating helped decrease violence in our city. As a resident of Oakland, however, the gunshots I hear too regularly render me wholeheartedly committed to this cause. So whether or not it made sense at first, on February 20th at 12:30, I decided to stop eating for peace.

At 12:20, I had just finished making tostadas. I had ten minutes to eat as many as I could. Oh boy, did I eat those tostadas quickly. At 12:30 exactly, I had beans all over my face that I was not allowed to put in my mouth. That was pretty tough, especially since I make such delicious beans.  That wasn’t the toughest part of the fast, however. The hardest part was my inability to get any work done for my classes from about 5 PM to about 9PM. I really needed to get work done, but everything I saw looked like a burrito. I couldn’t work. Then around 8 PM, I fed my dogs. I was really jealous of them because they seemed to be enjoying their food so much. It took all of my strength not to lick the spoon that I used to serve them their delicious lamb mush.

It was also during this time, however, that I did the majority of my reflection. What’s beautiful about the fast is that times of struggle can often teach us the most about ourselves: both our present and our past. The forced struggle made me think most about Indian revolutionary Mahatma Gandhi, who went on numerous hunger strikes to end oppression in India. As I fasted, I admired, more than I ever had before, the strength that it must have taken to starve oneself, almost to death, for a worthy cause. While I was nowhere near death, I had a greater understanding of what some of my own personal heroes endured for future generations. It is thoughts like these and the opportunity to share those thoughts with a caring community that can truly bring substantial change to our community. I am so proud to have been part of the Season of Peace movement, and I am confident that the connections that have been built through shared experience and reflection will make Oakland a better place to live.

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

Visit us on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Life-Academys-Season-of-Peace-Building/266295463437265

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/raw_bam

Fasting for Peace – Day Thirty-Five

Marc Hua’s reflection in coming soon!

Marc Hua (second on the left), Life Academy math teacher, fasted on 2/19/12.

 

Marc Hua (second from the left) passed the fast relay off to Najely Gomez (left), Life Academy senior and RAW member.

Please comment on this post if you supported today’s faster or fasted in solidarity with our movement.

Visit us on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Life-Academys-Season-of-Peace-Building/266295463437265

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/raw_bam