I Told My Kids I Ate All Their Halloween Candy

by Karrin

Late night show host Jimmy Kimmel asked parents to send in recordings of them telling their children that they ate of the Halloween candy. The montage has been floating around the Internet and, like anyone with a keen interest in children development and diet, I can't help but add my two cents.

The kids different degrees of addiction, their relationship to authority, as well as their primitive responses were insightful. Watching the kids cry was an example of sugar withdrawal in action. We are in deep denial as a culture in relationship to sugar and our attachment to it. 

The parents admitted to being "wrong" in eating all the candy and they offered nothing in return.  Most kids didn't see any hope in finding any resolution to their own parents deviant behavior - they didn't negotiate or suggest that their parents replace the candy.  They would rather take the blame and become enabling to their parents rather than stand up to authority and hold them accountable.  

Spoiler Alert: The final two boys were the smart ones.  The older boy kept his composure, his body posture was impeccable, hands behind his head, looking his mom right in the eye.  He actually tried to make his mom feel guilty. The little boy called it straight up, "You sneaky mom!"  I imagine these two would be reminding their mom that she ate all their Halloween candy every time they wanted a treat, for months or possibly even years to come.

Once again, kids are brilliant, they show us who we are, and help us get our priorities straight.

P.S. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when the kids found out their parents were just playing a practical joke on them!

Own Your Own Attitude

by Karrin

An attitude is a priceless gift; it's a gift you give yourself.  Learning to think for yourself and taking responsibility for your attitude is life's utmost priority.  If you can learn to own your own attitude you will never be alone.  You will express yourself with more freedom, have the wisdom to know who to share what with, and realize it’s up to you to be grateful.

Attitude is something that people nurture, like a clean room, or polished presentation.  It is something that one nurtures within oneself.  When people naturally loved themselves they feel grateful and express their love to others.  Since we fluctuate between different attitudes it’s important to nurture the attitudes we wish to become habitual. 

As we begin to own our own attitudes we become more responsible for our own feelings.  Learning to have a loving attitude towards ourselves, no matter our feelings in any given moment, is a lifelong task.  When we blame our feelings on outer circumstances or other people we come to a dead end.  If we are not responsible for our attitude, who is?  

We become a victim every time we blame our feelings on others, instead of taking responsibility for our range of emotions.  No matter how we feel, it’s okay.  If we own our own attitudes we can change them as we gather more information.  Owning our own attitude is the key to compassion, creativity, and co-creation.  

Own your own attitude, express how you feel.

On the Road and Under the Lights

Photo by Annie Conzemius 

by Shelsea

When you have been riding and riding, and riding and riding, tumbling wheels like tumble weeds through deserts, past agave fields, soaring up and down and across Mexico like it’s a dream, you must be careful not to lose yourself.

Sometimes, I have to remind myself that my life is not imaginary. That this is not some tiny model of Mexico that I am riding my hotwheel-sized little toy van across. In my little snow globe world, even Mexico is tiny and everyone I pass becomes the next door neighbor.

Last week, the Education team and I at Up With People did a youth forum for Tech De Monterrey in the city of Toluca, located just east of Mexico City. Tech de Monterrey is one of the most renouned universities in the country, and all of the high class citizens send their children there, and then brag about them over brunch. These students were a perfect match for us: they spoke English, they had international awareness (most of them had traveled at least to Europe if not many other places), and they could afford to travel with us if they wanted to.

The Youth Forum was a government simulation. The concept was that if all of the 19 countries we had represented were to become one country. The students took on the roles of political parties, citizens, and media, and we conducted a mock campaign to elect the next political party.

I was astounded by the comments made by the students. Some hot topics discussed included gay rights, abortion, prostitution, and the most popular topic, the environment. All of the students we heard from believed that gay people should be allowed to be married. Many of them thought that gay people should not be allowed to adopt because it could damage the child. Most of them believed that abortion should be legal in out hypothetical country.

I found it so fascinating to hear these young adults speaking so passionately about topics that are so controversial in such a Catholic community as in Mexico. I wondered what the generation before them would have thought about these topics. I wondered if they would have felt safe enough to share their opinions.

We conducted the forum two times in one day, reaching out to 600 participants. Both times, the environmental party won. The other competing parties were personal freedoms, economy, healthcare, and international relations. By the end of the forum, I felt refreshed, with a new awareness that things are changing. I am excited to see the potential of this generation come to fruition in the coming years. For a girl who has seen her fair share of destruction and poverty, her fair share of need in the world, it is so inspiring to see that shiny glimmer of hope that lies within the hands of today’s youth. 

Thank you Tech De Monterrey Metepec and Toluca for inspiring a girl who hopes to never become jaded and for reminding her of deep sense of humanity that rests in every pocket of our world.

7 Billion: It's all about sex

by Rosemari

Yesterday I went to National Geographic's headquarters in Washington, D.C. to attend "7 Billion People: Unleashing the Power of Women and Girls." In partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), National Geographic, the U.S. State Department, the International Women's Health Coalition, the Aspen Institute, and other organizations, the event consisted of a few diplomatic introductions followed by a lively panel, discussing how to address our rapidly growing global population, which is estimated to hit seven billion some time around Halloween.

Here's an amazing video that captures the challenges we face as we reach this benchmark.



The panel focused on the importance of women and girls equality and empowerment and access to health, education, and decision making.  Fundamental topics included prenatal care, safe child birth, the ability to be integrated into a community while menstruating, and family planning.  


I was thrilled to hear panelist Alexandra Garita, Program Officer at International Women’s Health Coalition, reframe the conversation. "The word that no one is mentioning is sex," Garita stated, advocating that investing in young people means educating them about comprehensive sex education, "young people need to know what that is."


We have a lot of work to do.  We need to shift the paradigm that "issues" regarding population, women, and girls as issues, instead, regarding sex, gender, and sexuality.  And I am so glad that Garita repeatedly brought comprehensive sex education to the center of this important conversation.


More information is available at 7 Billion Actions.

Blogger Debut: Shelsea

by Shelsea

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Shelsea Ochoa and for the past two years I have been traveling around the world, doing hundreds of hours of community service, staying with over 100 host families, and performing a show for tens of thousands of people. 

Today I am in Boulder, CO, to educate students and work with refugees, in a few months I will be in Mexico cleaning slums, teaching kids, and eating quesadillas for breakfast with my host family. Come fall, I will be in Manila, the Philippines, trying to order food from a cart in broken Tagalog. What I do is called Up With People.

Source

Up With People is a global education program that brings the world together through service and music. We take 100 international young people on a tour around the world, stay with host families, do community service, and perform a show that supports the service work we do. We also educate our participants on global citizenship, communication, and leadership. I am the Education Manager for Up With People.

As the world spins around me, a 24-year-old San Diego girl, I have gone through ups and downs, hopelessness and triumph, and as all of my security blankets fall away, I find myself at the core of who I really am. In a world of constant change, the only thing that is constant in my life has been me. And now, my dear friends and readers, it’s you, too.

Transporting the cast

More often than not, my life is not as glamorous as it seems. I spend a lot of time moving the cast of 100 people from one location to another (a group of 100 people can be slower than molasses), organizing who will go on what community service crew, in rehearsal for our show, and lots and lots of time on buses. Still, I appreciate the uniqueness of the Up With People experience, and I am learning so much every day. Through Notes from the Ombligo, I hope to keep the outside world up-to-date and to share tiny morsels of wisdom that I picked up on the road and under the lights.

Who is Jo Calderone?

Photo Souce

by Alisha

I'm sure you've heard of Lady Gaga, you know, that crazy lady who's always wearing a poker face and calling people on the telephone? The real question is, have you heard of Jo Calderone? My guess is probably not... 


At the 2011 Video Music Awards (VMA's), Lady Gaga put on more than just her poker face, she performed a different gender. It's not uncommon these days for celebs to have alter egos, Beyonce is also known as Sasha Fierce, and you might refer to Katy Perry as Kathy Beth Terry. They're widely accepted because these women are still playing by the social norms of femininity, but Gaga's no longer doing that. 


Lady Gaga is known for breaking boundaries, she's previously dressed in raw meat, as well as an outfit inspired by condoms. What's different about this one, is that it is NOT obscure. This time, she's a Drag King (here's a link to a great book about Drag Kings if you want more info on the subject).

People perform gender differently all the time. By giving her approval to things outside the norm that people will actually do, (because lets be honest, no one will show up to school in an egg-like-coffin contraption) it gives power to minorities, and the American culture is afraid of that. In a society upheld by patriarchal values, anything attainable and outside norm is "degrading" (just ask Fox News!). So let's hear it for Jo Calderone for stepping up for something he believes in, because while he may be "performing" for just one night, there are thousands in the LGBT community who do it for a lifetime...

Should we really always guess C?!?

by Alisha

The school semester is starting and with that comes the use of brain cells many of us have put into hibernation over the summer. As we enter into new classrooms it makes me wonder what type of new thinking will be encouraged.  It seems that students are constantly taught to the test; thinking critically is not often encouraged. We're not taught to ask questions, but instead memorize text books or powerpoints and fill in the appropriate bubble... remember: if you don't know, always guess C!

So what's the benefits of thinking critically and why is it so important? Check out the video above and you'll find out why, but here are a few key points. 

1. It's the key to intellectual independence
2. It helps us solve complex problems:  If we only think of problems as black and white, then we will never find the proper answer. As stated in the video, "if we think in false dichotomies, we draw false conclusion.s" 
3. It helps us to move away from mystification and rash conclusions
4. We widen our knowledge bank 
5. It allows you to accept personal responsibility for your own knowledge 

So my challenge for you is to start changing ignorance to knowledge. Think critically, ask questions, use your brains cells, have engaging conversations, and love life!