Labor Day Musings

On this U.S. holiday of Labor Day, thoughts are coming to me of what my ancestors did to come to America to work.  My maternal side of the family has a longer history in the US than my paternal side.  The tracings that I have are that my Great Great Grandparents travelled across the country from New York to Wisconsin, in a covered wagon.  Somewhere I have a photo of that - I'll have to post it when I unpack that box!  They built a beautiful log home, and brought with them many fineries in that wagon.  Yet they toiled hard to make their life work.  Just thinking of the thrill of leaving and going out into the world with no true idea of where one would land is exciting to me.  I think I inherited those genes!

My Great Grandfather, maternal side, was a builder.  Hmmm...more inherited genes?  My Mother has records of who owed him what during the Depression, and she reminds me that he was kind and not demanding of people for payments.  Apparently my Great Grandmother was also a self starter, and she was involved in direct sales - imagine!  This, too, must be in my blood with my love of Celadon Road, the organic, sustainable, fair trade products that I bring to the world. 

My maternal Grandfather was an electrician early on in his career, then became a minister in midlife.  It is interesting that my own Father was also an electrical engineer, and, that through Building (Bau) Biology, my focus for many years has been on the electro-magnetic radiation.  Whew...this is getting eerie - can it possibly be just coincidence that all this background has merged into what I pursue today in my own work?

Paternally, my Grandparents were the first of their family to come to the U.S.. Sent here, without their family, by their parents, at a young age.  I believe my Grandmother was barely a teenager when they married and she started having children (while working!).  Her life was more challenging than my other set of Grandparents, having 8 children (losing 1 at a young age), working, cooking, and a husband who also worked. They both worked in factories, and toiled long and hard.  I can hardly imagine what thoughts they had of work.  I think what kept them going was family.  Work was just a means to an end.

Today we live in a country where people still give up much to come to and live the American Dream. Many Americans are wondering just what happened to their own dream.  I always believe that things happen for a reason.  It seems to me that what has happened economically in our country created a realignment of values.   The happiest people that I know are those that appreciate everything that comes to them in their lives.  Including their jobs.  Which brings me back to today. Today let's honor all who work, and want to work.  Be thankful for what you have and help out your fellow American when you can.  Happy Labor Day!

Healthy Homes for Children

Look upward: Set thine eyes upon the heights

And striving ever towards the distant goal,

Faint not, but have the faith supreme to know

A glorious destiny awaits thy soul.

Margaret Boswell

From the notes of Chauncey J. Pobanz, “Poems and Sayings”

There is a huge shift in the air. I have felt it in my own life. A move to a new home – that is always a major shift. But even more, I have been drawn to focus more on children – to bring information to their parents, their grandparents – information that can help them help their children have healthy, productive lives.

In the past 15 years I have seen a lot of people affected by the environment they were living in. The things that have stayed with me the most were those homes where the parents did not realize that where they placed their children’s bedrooms, and what they placed in and outside of it, had enormous potential for health impacts on their child. I’ve seen children with all sorts of illnesses, many which we concluded were a direct result of the environment.

It could have been elevated electric fields; it may have been the water quality. It possibly was due to the paint and carpeting in the child’s room – or perhaps it was the materials that their toys were made out of. It is difficult to pinpoint the cause after the result is in place – and this led me to realize that I need to do whatever I can to educate before the results go in the wrong direction.

So now I am on an exciting new journey. I’ve embarked upon a journey to find those families that want a healthy life for their family, especially their children. There are many directions that I can go in to reach people and this – this requires goal setting and mapping out the path.

This leads me back to the poem that started out this blog, at the top of the page. My Grandfather, Chauncey J. Pobanz, a man who became a Methodist minister in mid life, kept a journal that I am fortunate to have in my possession. This particular poem reminds me that all of my goals are being directed by my soul. And that, my friends, is glorious.