What I have in common with Meghan Markle

This week, millions of people were delighted to learn of Prince Harry's engagement to Meghan Markle.

Folks who know me will tell you - I don't keep up with pop culture. I didn't know much about this young woman, but I wanted to learn. I came across this video of a speech she gave at the 2015 UN Women's Conference.

The story she shares here reminds me of something I did at about eight- or nine-years-old. I spent part of my allowance on a cherry Tootsie Roll lollipop (my favorite.) When I got to the lollipop's center >gasp<  there was NO Tootsie Roll center! It was all lollipop.

I told my mom about my disappointment. She encouraged me to write a letter to the company, which I did. Together, we found the company's address, included the chewed-up stick and the colored wrapper as evidence with the letter, and mailed it off. Lo and behold, a couple weeks later, a package arrived addressed to me. Inside was a large box of Tootsie Roll lollipops with a letter of apology.

Now, I didn't keep the company's letter. The size of the box was probably smaller than I remember.  But one thing remains with me decades later - the lesson. I learned that complaining to people around me will do no good. I learned the power of speaking out against a wrong, be it small or large. I learned that the only way things will ever change is if I am part of the solution.

Based on her speech, that is a belief Meghan Markle also holds close.

Once bullied for her love of bugs, 8-year-old co-authors scientific paper

Before I start, please check out a piece I wrote a while back. It's the 'teaser' for this fan club's upcoming magazine issue. I hope it brings a smile to your face. British Beatles Fan Club: All I Need Is Love…and The Beatles

Now, onto my blog. 
Eight-year-old Sophia Spencer adores bugs. Grasshoppers are her particular favorite, and she was often seen giving one a ride on her shoulder. Classmates made fun of her for this habit, calling her weird and gross for her love of insects. Sophia's mom Nicole, didn't want Sophia to turn from her natural interest because of the teasing. In fact, she wanted to encourage Sophia's passion. She wrote to the Entomological Society of Canada (ESC) for support, hoping for penpal for her daughter. 

ESC did one better. A tweet went out to their membership. 

A young girl who loves insects is being bullied & needs our support. DM your email; we'll connect you! #BugsR4Girls pic.twitter.com/kjtfSJSlre

— Ent Soc of Canada (@CanEntomologist) 

Responses poured in, giving both Nicole and Sophia assurance that a bug-loving girl was not weird, that it was in fact totally cool. Then Sophia joined forces with an entomology grad student named Morgan Jackson. Together, they wrote a paper about how to use Twitter to promote women in science. So yes, this formerly ostracized 8-year-old has a publication credit to her name. 

Let's hope her classmates don't bug her anymore. (Sorry, I couldn't resist.) 

Cruelty, inaction, and a pro-active project for change

An outstanding college student and musician, Tyler Clementi had just begun to open up to loved ones about being gay. Then his roommate at Rutgers captured an intimate video of him on a computer's webcam and shared it online. Others who saw the video didn't report this cyber-bullying, and Tyler became a target of ridicule. When he learned of this invasion of privacy and the rampant hate-speech against him, Tyler jumped off the George Washington Bridge.  

Like the rest of Tyler's home community, 10th-grader Christopher Rim was devastated by the news of Tyler's suicide. But Christopher didn't want to just sit back and be sad; he decided to act. He formed It Ends Today, a group of 18 students from his high school who traveled to different middle schools and high schools to educate teens about the importance of bystander intervention and the dangers of cyber-bullying.

The project grew and attracted the attention of celebrities including Lady GaGa and her Born This Way Foundation. Within a few years, It Ends Today operated 26 chapters in six countries with over 350 volunteers.



When Christopher went to Yale, he connected with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. They paired with Facebook and created InspirED, "a portal where educators, community leaders, young people, parents, and government officials can connect to positively impact school climates and the overall well-being of teens in the U.S."

Christopher's original project has expanded to now reach tens of thousands of people every year.

All because one teen decided to act.

Father Rupert Mayer

When Katie and I visited Munich, we toured a number of beautiful churches with soaring architectural details that made grand, impressive statements - tile and copper roofs, bell towers, leaded glass, and uniquely shaped design.

So when we came across the Burgersaal Church with its relatively plain exterior, we followed the stream of tourists and entered, expecting a relatively plain interior to match. We couldn't have been more wrong. The ceiling frescoes were stunning.

Just as surprising was a display in the church detailing the life and ministry of a person I'd never heard of, Father Rupert Mayer. He was a Jesuit priest who served the Burgersaal Church between the two World Wars. His dedication to the poor and estranged of Munich earned him the nickname "The Apostle of Munich." Were he a man of lesser convictions during those times, his legacy may have ended there - a gentle priest who worked tirelessly to feed and clothe the poor.

But Father Mayer was a man of strong convictions, strong faith in his Catholic beliefs, and an insistence on the rights and dignity of each individual as a child of God. The Nazi regime with its oppression of free speech, its targeted pogroms, and its intolerance for faith-based viewpoints was unbearable for Father Mayer. He preached against the Nazis from the pulpit, in individual meetings with parishioners, and when he led small study groups.

Warned several times by the Gestapo and twice arrested for his outspoken behavior, Father Mayer might have ended up as other Christians did during the Nazi years - a martyr for his faith. But the Nazis saw the strong support Father Mayer had in mostly Catholic Munich, his leagues of dedicated parishioners and how word of his work had spread through Bavaria. They feared that killing him would only strengthen his cause. Instead, they banished him to an Abbey where he was basically a silenced prisoner for the duration of the war.

I never heard of Father Mayer before I stepped into the Burgersaal that day. Since then, I've come across his name dozens of times during the research for my two historical fiction novels set in Nazi-era Munich. Since he was so integral to the people of Munich during that time period, I'm considering including his character in my current Work In Progress.

Father Mayer was beatified in 1987 and now has the title of Blessed. His story has been made into a 2014 film starring Stacy Keach and Darryl Hannah. I hope to find it soon on Netflix or at a Film Festival near me.

If you're offended by talk of politics and religion, don't read this

This is unlike my usual blog posts. You've been warned.

If I learned one thing in my travels through the history of Nazi Germany, it was that the world needs more words and actions which support justice. Only through voices speaking in love and truth will change come about, injustice eradicated. 

We've all heard of the United Methodist pastor in Pennsylvania who performed the marriage service for his gay son and his fiance. The pastor underwent a church trial and has been defrocked for performing the service which violated the rules of the UM Book of Discipline. There has been quite a bit of discussion about this event on the UM Church's website and some eloquent, passionate pleas for a more loving approach to controversy.

I am not a pastor, nor am I schooled in the content of the Book of Discipline. But I am a member of the United Methodist church by choice. I try to live as a Christian, making mostly vain attempts at following Jesus' example of a loving, generous spirit.



The Jesus we know from Scripture spent his days ministering to the outcasts of society, those whose rights were limited by law and status. And he often blasted the Pharisees, the church rule-makers, for their hypocrisy and for attempting to speak for God. I have no doubt that, were he here in the flesh today, he would support gay marriage and bless it within a church. And he'd blast the use of a book of rules to make decisions over the use of God's love to accept and nurture his children.

Our days can be lonely, and commitment is hard to come by. Yet God created us to be in community, beginning with committed pairings and expanding out from there - couples, families, neighborhoods, church communities - people who will watch out for each other. Having others beside us as we dance with joy or slog through the muck of grief is what it's all about. It's what God planned for each and every one of his children.

As a member of God's family, I intend to honor that plan. I support Pastor Schaefer in his performance of the church marriage of two gay men, just as I support the church marriage of two committed people of any gender.  

Amen.