Think Again

When we give international aid do we impose our values and cultures on others to their benefit or detriment? What charities are truly beneficial in the help they offer? How can we know? We are fortunate to have someone experienced and studied in this arena lead our January dialogue: Zendina Mostert   Born and raised in Canada, Zendina started exploring cultural and development issues by taking a break from traditional university and traveling alone through Africa and parts of Asia.  She served a humanitarian mission for the LDS church in Ecuador, returning to school to finish a Bachelors in Anthropology and Masters of Sociology while conducting research with the Women’s Research Institute; collecting both qualitative and quantitative data on the impact of development programs in 78 villages of rural Mali.  She has worked with child welfare services in Salt Lake City, Utah advocating for children’s and parent’s needs in the courts and in the welfare system....

Gratitude: This month we invite you to come and share what you are grateful for at this juncture in your life. We will start off with Mitch and Tiffany Spence sharing what they are grateful for as well as relating the history of this illustrious group called Think Again that they founded in Boston many years ago. Giving: 'Tis the season as they say. Tiffany's first LDS mission companion, Lalaine Calda, is from Leyte (in Tacloban District, which was hardest hit in the Philippines). Her 5 siblings' families all lost their homes and all their belongings. She and her oldest sister, Ate Myra, are hoping to go to the Philippines in January for a month to deliver supplies and to help provide support to all the people of their village Tolosa. They need our help. Because they speak   fluently all dialects as well as English, they feel they can be a real asset in rebuilding their homeland. They lost many fellow villagers, including their uncle and aunt, who have two m...

Jenny Morrow  is a licensed Marriage and Family therapist, and has worked for the last six years helping people overcome addictions, among other things. She has been researching and incorporating ideas of neuroplasticity and how it can be helpful with day-to-day living.  Prior to opening a private practice, Jenny did therapy for ARCH (Addiction Resource Center for Healing), & Family Services in Logan. She has run groups for Youthtrack and the Family Institute. Jenny is currently a member of the American Association for Marriage & Family Therapy. You can learn more about Jenny and her work  here .  Below are some links to get you thinking about addiction and the brain in preparation for our discussion: What the Bleep Do We Know Awe Brene Brown on Vulnerability

Due to an unforeseen conflict, our prior presenter is not available for this next Wednesday. We scrambled and were able to locate someone willing to present to us. Mark England mentioned to me a few months back that he felt we weren't often considering viewpoints that were contrary to what we believe or know. I had had the same thought which is one of the reasons I suggested discussing atheism.  So this month my son Aaron Griffith has graciously consented with a weeks notice to discuss a topic near and dear to his heart: Anarcho-capitalism.  After high school Aaron continued (began is how he would say it) his education non-traditionally through reading and online. He has hitchhiked with a small back-pack, staying in hostels, couch-surfing, and camping through many parts of the world. Aaron spent nearly half a year helping build fishing boats for Thai fisherman after the tsunami.  Aaron lives with his common-law wife, Lexie Reder, who has accompanied Aaron on...

For September, we're excited to have John and Jane Day lead a discussion about blue zones -- areas of the world where people live measurably longer lives. John and Jane took their nine-year-old son Joshua and journeyed to one of these blue zones in a remote region of China and interviewed centenarians and Chinese health-seekers who travel there to be healed.  They spent nearly two years researching the question:  How do the centenarians in China's Longevity Village manage to avoid the myriad of diseases from which millions of Americans are suffering? Some readings to prepare for the discussion are below.  Date: Thursday, September 26, 2013 Time: 7:30-9:30 Place: Mark and Elizabeth's home, 1194 South 500 East, SLC ****************************** John and I grappled with which readings might be most interesting for the group.  We decided to share summaries of books that have inspired us. If anyone is looking for a good read, we recommend  ...

Our August discussion will feature a field trip to the home of artist Ben Behunin. We will also move to Tuesday for this month only. Below is an article and a video to watch before the discussion, followed by Ben's bio. We're so pleased to have this opportunity to talk with Ben and see his remarkable home. Date: August 27, 2013 Time: 7:30pm Address: 1150 East 800 South, 84102 www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GkG_ Clzk5I www.cityweekly.net/.../ article-414-15573- the - house- that-built - me .html Ben Behunin began working with pottery as a freshman at Highland High. He thought it would be an “easy A”, but his experience proved to be neither easy, nor an “A”. That experience began a 25 year long dance with the clay that has taken Ben to exotic places, such at Idaho, North Carolina, France, Switzerland, Germany, England, Italy, Austria and Hawaii in pursuit of his education and his passion. For the past 16 years, Ben has been making his living exclusively as a slin...

We'll start with a short discussion about the craft of memoir writing and then have a few writing prompts. Bring something to write with -- pen and paper, a computer, or whatever you like to use to write. Readings: Introduction to Memoir Writing https://docs.google.com/ document/d/ 1tg6rUbuWrNbWaCDOwYKGcRABq6227 oIkMDA2lOFv1Bo/edit The Sacred Journey by Frederick Beuchner - Introduction and excerpt  (A coming-of-age memoir by a Presbyterian writer and minister) https://docs.google.com/open? id= 0B7UbQMI3woZqTTZ1NnEtMjFSeE0 The Sacred Journey by Frederick Buechner - "Giants of our childhood" excerpt https://docs.google.com/open? id= 0B7UbQMI3woZqVTJXNFc5dXlEWnc Other good examples of memoir (you don't have to read them all, just choose one or two if you're short on time): The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls - excerpt  (First couple chapters of her memoir of a crazy childhood) https://docs.google.com/open? id= 0B7UbQMI3woZqSEJ...