Graduation at UMM with US Ambassador and Obama Contest

I know how neglectful I have been of the blog, but it is not for want of interesting events to report.  I will need to catch up!  The blogs from now on will be coming from me, Maria, since Bob has gone back to America.  But I had the pleasure yesterday of being at one of the three graduations this university holds each year, as it welcomed the US Ambassador to Indonesia, Scott Marciel to give the commencement address.  

Ambassador Scott Marciel and students

Everyone here, the Indonesians that is, say that he is much better than the last one, who was a "military sort."  And indeed, he as well as the Consul-General, Kristin Bauer, who has become a friend, have very warm, open personalities, not at all intimidating.  His speech was mercifully short, emphasizing the importance of the connection between our two countries, and how important Indonesia, such a large country with so many human and natural resources, is to the world and to America.  I was proud of my country and its ambassadors.
  But the most interesting part came afterward, when "Scott" and his staff went over to the "American Corner" (one of only a few in the country spreading the word about American education, culture, etc.) and participated in judging a contest of caricatures of President Obama done by high school students around the region.  I had watched the day before as the students sat for two hours on the campus doing the drawings.  They were amazingly good.  Even the likenesses of Obama were excellent.  But of course I was most interested in what they would say about how they perceived our president and his role in the world.  They were at least to my viewing universally positive.  One showed Obama filling the sacks of the world's poor countries with bread, peace, and freedom--a tall order for any human being, no matter how idolized.  Another, my favorite (and apparently the Ambassador's though not the Indonesian judges') showed Obama looking on in front of a background of mosques, churches, and temples while a Buddhist (I asked the artist who it was) wrapped arms around a Muslim and a Christian.  I told the young woman that one was close to my heart.  Ambassador Marciel gave it a "distinction" award.  I thought they were all wonderful, and such a window into the hearts and minds of the young people of Indonesia.
  I promise that more blogs will follow, so don't give up on me!

On Retreat in Bali

Just returned from an amazing week in the mountains of Bali, complete with a visit to the village of Batubulan where fellow Fulbrighter, Richard Fox, lives with his family amidst a Bali family.  As we drove from the airport up higher into the mountains, accompanied by Fr. Yoseph, whom we were going to know and love during this week, all images of resorts and beaches dropped away.  Instead, we saw much natural beauty, green rice paddies, small villages with family "sanghas," beautiful little shrines for offerings of fruit and flowers right in the family compounds, and of course the mountains. 

Over the course of the next week, we were taken on "tour" to the lake temple, the "botanical gardens," lovely forests which stretched for miles, lush green rice fields, and even to Ubud for art gallery shopping and sightseeing.  In between, we had time to join the Carmelite priests and brothers twice each day for morning and evening prayer and for Mass.  The retreat house itself, built entirely with donations and with great beauty and simplicity, was like a hotel.  We couldn't have felt more welcomed.  In fact, Fr. Yoseph was so sad that we might leave after three days that he invited us back after our visit to Batubulan to see Richard (more about that in the next blog).  So we returned and had a chance to join a group of retreatants from Denpasar who were attending talks by a well-known priest-scholar from Malang who has invited me to his school of philosophy and theology.  Making these connections with the Catholic community has been very helpful to me as I hope somehow to link the Catholics of Malang with the Muslims I will be teaching and working with.  All that will be challenging, I suspect, but I am more hopeful now that I know these ties have been created before.  Just sitting face to face can undo so much distrust and suspicion, all too common I am learning in parts of Indonesia.  I have a feeling I will be back to this healing space before I leave Indonesia.