These States, August 2007, and team communication

We had a training on race and ethnicity for 2 days this weekend. To spare you from the emotional exhaustion, here is an idea I have about the future of this country and racism: how about... everybody goes back to their countries of origin (includes all us Euro mutts), Native Americans take back their land (all of it), and we all go back to our original cultures and become good countrypeople. Us white "Americans" are so detached from our original European cultures, and I think a lot of that is because we didn't have and still don't have any damn idea as to how we can live in harmony with other cultures and ethnic groups, even within our own "race." I am at least Irish, German, Scottish, and Welsh- probably more. It would be so hard to find out who I am and how I can honor and take pride in each of these groups both separately and jointly. So what do I do? Do I say, "God Bless America", and just accept that I live in this ridiculous, unbalanced, unfair, unpeaceful country/melting pot and continue to encourage others to do the same in order to have some visceral peace? I don't want to. How could we screw things up so much? Hmm... maybe if we all did, indeed, start over in separate countries, the same things would happen again. Some ethnic group would end up wanting to acquire land via violence and humiliation, and there would just be another bunch of jerks in this country (if not white people again) and we would be back where we started from. Dang. What a crappy situation. I think we should re-draft the Constitution and have equal numbers of all ethnic groups, men, women, who live in the States. Guh.

My identity as a child of the Living God should suffice, and the bottom line is that it does. But... I'm in this world, and despite all the pain and idiocy, there is a lot of beauty. And there is plenty of work to do. I'm trying to figure out what it means to be in this world but not of it (wherever Paul said that in the New Testament). I can't just ignore all the racism and crap in the world like it doesn't exist (i.e. a typical white response) and be totally idealistic. I have to fight against it head on, but at the same love my neighbors: red, yellow, black, and white. Such a simple command, but not simple as in "easy." Oh Jesus, have mercy on us sinners.
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And then onto what I will do after this program is over in August.

1. I'll stay in Philly and maybe finish up my undergrad (international something or other? social work? + ESL certification)

2. I'll go to China and teach English. I miss it a lot.

3. I'll go to Europe and figure out who my ancestors were.

Oh, the options!
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Hmm, strangely enough, I don't even want to talk about team stuff. I'm too tired of dealing w/ all this other stuff. Let's just say, spring break couldn't come any sooner! And that if a relationship is redefined, it take time to reel from what that means for interaction between two people afterwards, and how the dynamics have changed and such. No, this is nothing about romance. Sorry.