Category: Uncategorized

History is being made this week at New York’s Metropolitan Opera — for the first time in its 138-year history, the company will present an opera by a Black composer. After closing its door for the past 18 months due to the pandemic, the nation’s top opera house will open its new season with Fire Shut Up in My Bones, composed by Terence Blanchard. Blanchard is a renowned jazz trumpeter and composer best known for scoring Spike Lee films, for which he has been nominated for two Academy Awards. He has played with jazz legends like Lionel Hampton and Art Blakely. But, at a recent rehearsal at the Met Opera, Blanchard was stunned by the scale of the production. "I never thought I'd be in a situation like this, to walk in a room and there's like 40 singers singing something that I'd written, and they're rehearsing it," he told NPR. "And then in the next room, there's 16 dancers choreographing to a piece of music that I've written. And then in the other room, the principal singers are blocking—I keep waiting to wake up." Blanchard refers to Fire Shut Up in My Bones as “an opera in Jazz.” He says he is bringing jazz to the opera world, but not using the entire piece to make a statement about jazz.  The show was first performed two years ago by the Opera Theatre of St. Louis. For the Met production, new scenes and a chorus were added, along with a troupe of dancers. The opera features an all-Black cast and mostly Black creative team. "It's an interesting thing because of what it means to society," he said. "It's not just about me being a composer. These people understand that this production is going to make a statement about our community, and how our community has been overlooked in the operatic world. There's not a soul in this production who doesn't get it." Image source: The New York Times

Jenifer Colpas grew up in Barranquilla, Colombia, where she was mostly unaware of the poverty in her country. After college, she moved to India for a job in information technology and became aware of the extreme social inequalities that people face. “Something inside me (was) saying, ‘You need to do something about it,’” Colpas told CNN. So, she switched career paths and moved home to Colombia. She planted roots in Cartagena and began volunteering with community organizations that helped those living in poverty. “I felt very saddened to see that people were living without the most basic things,” she said. “People don’t have clean drinking water, indoor plumbing, electricity.” So, in 2015, Colpas co-founded Tierra Grata, a non-profit that provides access to clean water, solar-powered lights and electricity along with eco-toilets and showers for remote rural communities throughout Colombia. Colpas and the Tierra Grata team now serve 35 communities and the organization’s efforts have helped improve quality of life for more than 10,000 people. The 31-year-old explained that more than 50 years of war led to Colombia becoming the country with the highest internal-displaced population in the world. For Colpas, putting local women in leadership positions was especially important. “We are working with women because, for us, it's very important to empower them and to re-signify their role inside the community,” she explained. “So they will be not just social leaders, but also problem-solvers.” Colpas hopes that providing life essentials will allow people to wake up and dream, rather than survive. Image source: CNN

Susan Thompson-Gaines recently held her third-annual “Kindness Yard Sale” at her home in Arlington. If you drove by, you may have noticed a teddy bear larger than a human, shelves full of books, racks of clothes and tables covered in toys. All of these items are for sale, for whatever price the customer chooses to pay — there is no judgement in Thompson-Gaines’s yard. You will simply hear “Thanks” and “Have a nice day.” [caption id="attachment_1130" align="alignnone" width="580"] Susan Thompson-Gaines, a Òkindness activistÓ who lives in Arlington, Va., has held a Kindness Yard Sale for the past three years to raise money that goes toward supporting acts of kindness all year long. Some of the funds raised last year went to host a virtual beach party for people living with Alzheimer, buying camping supplies for a teen who had never been out of the city, and fulfilling the Christmas wishes of children who wrote letters to Santa. Her most recent yard sale was held Sept. 18 and 19. (Theresa Vargas/TWP)[/caption] Thompson-Gaines believes that “kindness ripples” and that kind acts spread from one person to another; she refers to herself as a “kindness activist,” according to The Washington Post. “I am a vigorous advocate of KINDNESS!” she writes on a blog where she explains how the yard sale earnings are spent. “I hunt for it. I appreciate it. And, whenever I can, I SPREAD IT!” The funds from each year’s yard sale go toward acts of kindness throughout the year. After last year’s sale, Thompson-Gaines helped buy camping gear for a boy who had never left the city, threw a virtual beach party for a group of people with Alzheimer’s disease, and kept an outdoor pantry stocked with food The earnings also helped purchase a fetal Doppler for a pregnant woman whose husband could not hear the child’s heartbeat at the hospital due to coronavirus restrictions, paying a woman’s DMV fees while she went through the process of transferring the car title of her deceased father into her name, and adding coffee pods to a teacher’s lounge.  They even went toward helping Thompson-Gaines play Santa for the kids in her neighborhood. “It was so fun,” she said. “I’m hoping we’ll be able to repeat that this year. And I know the kids in the neighborhood are counting on it.” Thompson-Gaines, who works as an American Sign Language interpreter, said the event has evolved tremendously over the past three years. It is now a communal effort that relies on volunteers and donations.  “This year, it was just like an army of people saying, ‘I’m here, what do you need?’ ” she said. She has also taken note of the many people that now use the collective “we” when talking about the event. “People will say, ‘How did we do today?’ It’s become a community thing, which I love.” Image source: WTOP, The Washington Post

Guinness World Records has certified that two Japanese sisters are the world’s oldest living identical twins and the oldest ever identical twins at the age of 107.  The sisters, Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama, were born on Nov. 5, 1913 — so, they were 107 years and 300 days old on Sept. 1, when their Guinness World Records were confirmed.   The twins were born on Shodoshima island in western Japan — born third and fourth of 11 siblings — but they were separated after elementary school, when Kodoma was sent to work as a maid in Oita. She later married there, while Sumiyama remained on the island where they grew up and had a family of her own. Growing up, the sisters said they experienced bullying because of prejudice against children of multiple births in Japan. They did not see each other much until they turned 70, when they began making pilgrimages to temples and enjoyed reconnecting. Their families told Guinness that the sisters often joked about outliving the earlier record holders, Japanese sisters Kin Narita and Gin Kanie, who won the hearts of many in the late 1990s for their age and humor. Japan is a country known for its supercentenarians — a person who is 110 years old or older. The current oldest person living, Kane Tanaka, 118, is from Japan. Image source: NY Post, Japan Times

On July 21, Melanie Newman made history as she and four others — Sarah Langs, Alanna Rizzo, Heidi Watney and Laren Gardner — became the first all-female broadcast crew for a Major League Baseball game. Newman, who was the play-by-play announcer that night, will call a game with Jessica Mendoza, a longtime baseball analyst for ESPN, on Sept. 29, making the pair the first women to solely broadcast a MLB, NFL or NBA game. “Honestly, each earmark is just another page,” Newman told CNN Business. “I feel fortunate to be the one handed this chance, it’s our responsibility until there are no more firsts and it's just an even playing field of all-qualified professionals who happen to look different.” Mendoza, a Latina and former New York Mets special adviser, understands the importance of representation in baseball. "For young girls, women and Latinas, to hear a voice that represents them is so impactful for not only the sport to grow its audience, but to continue to broaden the opportunities for more young girls, women and Latinas to do the same," she told CNN Business. Mendoza is a former Olympic gold-winning softball player and the first woman to be an analyst for a nationally televised MLB game. She was also the first woman to be an analyst for a World Series game. She has been with ESPN since 2007. Newman will contribute to ESPN’s pennant race coverage for the final stretch of the season. “Representation absolutely matters,” said Newman. “The number of younger girls who have felt they couldn’t be a fan of sports in general solely out of not seeing women in front still amazes me.” Image source: Baltimore Sun

Seven decades ago, a young couple took a trip to London, Kentucky when they unknowingly parked illegally. Instead of receiving a ticket, the police officer left them a note. The man kept the note for the past 71 years and just wrote a letter to the London Police Department thanking them for their kindness. “To London Police Dept, Back in 1950 my bride and I stopped in your city for lunch & when we left, this little card was under my wiper. For two 17 yr. olds we didn’t have extra money for a parking ticket. My wife carried this card in all her wallets since then & we often talked about how kind your city is. I have lost her & just wanted to send this. Thank you.” This is the card that the couple was greeted with back in 1950: Police Chief Darrel Kilburn said they do not pass out these cards anymore, but that small acts of kindness will always be part of their culture. “Without cards, most of our stops I would say would probably just be giving some warnings,” said Kilburn.  Kilburn said the thoughtful letter made him emotional. “Little teary-eyed for sure. I just thought how powerful it was,” said Kilburn. “He’s heartbroken, but at the same time I can tell he’s been a very blessed man and I’m sure 71 years ago, they’ve had a great life together.” Kilburn said he plans to write a letter back to the man. The police department is also creating a memorabilia wall, where the letter will be hung “front and center.” Image source: Instagram, Fox Lexington

After weeks of anxiously waiting, the Afghan girls soccer team got the call on Sunday that a charter flight would transport the girls and their families from Afghanistan, but the destination was unknown. “They left their homes and left everything behind,” said Farkhunda Muhtaj, captain of the Afghanistan women’s national team who left her home in Canada to spend the past few weeks helping arrange the girls’ rescue. “They can’t fathom that they’re out of Afghanistan.” The girls, ages 14-16, have been fearing what their lives might become since the Taliban took control of their home country. Late Sunday, they landed in Portugal. The rescue mission, called Operation Soccer Balls, was in coordination with the Taliban through an international coalition of former U.S. officials. “This all had to happen very, very quickly,’ said Nic McKinley, a CIA and Air Force veteran. “Our contact on the ground told us that we had a window of about three hours. Time was very much of the essence.” Operation Soccer Balls had several setbacks, including many failed rescue attempts. Another issue was the large size of the group — 80 people that consist of 26 youth team members and their families.  “The world came together to help these girls and their families,” said Robert McCreary, former congressional chief of staff and White House official under President George W. Bush. “These girls are truly a symbol of light for the world and humanity.” Wida Zemarai, a goalkeeper and coach for the Afghanistan women’s national soccer team, said the girls were emotional after their rescue. “They can dream now,” she said. “They can continue to play.” Image source: Associated Press

 Although a wildfire has been burning nearby for two weeks, the ancient, huge trees of Sequoia National Park’s Giant Forest are unharmed. “As of right now we don’t have any damage to any of our trees,” said Mark Garrett, a fire information officer. Two lightning-sparked fires have merged into one massive wildfire, the KNP Complex, that has spread over 39 miles and feeds on trees that live in the high-elevation slope of the mountain range. Giant Forest contains about 2,000 sequoias, including the General Sherman Tree, which is considered the world’s largest tree by volume and is a popular destination for visitors to the park. Recently, the fire reached the edge of the Giant Forest near a group of huge trees called the Four Guardsmen, but the trees were protected by crews that wrapped their bases with fire-resistant material and cleared vegetation that would spread the fire. Firefighters monitored as the “low-intensity fire” passed by and ensured it did not affect the sequoias.  For decades, officials have set and controlled fires to burn away vegetation that could be harmful to the trees or become fuel for a fire like the KNP Complex. “The fire behavior is not as extreme as it was a couple of days ago,” said Thanh Nguyen, a fire information officer. “Those trees are beloved.” Image source: Associated Press

Virginia Waller-Torres was stranded in her car outside of Arlington National Cemetery during a flash flood on Sept. 16 in Washington D.C. A bus filled with Marines pulled over and six men waded through the knee-high floodwaters to help the woman. She recorded the rescue and posted it on TikTok. “Marine power!” Waller-Torres can be heard saying in the video as the Marines approach her vehicle. “This is the most American thing ever.” "If there’s anyone who’s going to help these people, it’d be us," Cpl. Mitchell Wojtowicz, one of the Marines, told FOX5 DC. "We were the right ones for the job and hopped out without hesitation." “We figured it would be a good ideato just lend a helping hand and help out our fellow American,” Cpl. Jared Tosner told the station. Waller-Torres said that the rescue impacted her emotionally because her grandfather, who was buried at Arlington, was a World War II veteran, and her father served with the Navy during the Persian Gulf War. “It was something so different. It was something that I can’t explain in words,” she said, as she thanked the Marines. “I am so grateful.” "And if people just reciprocate that, and do good unto others, I think our country is headed in a good direction," Tosner said. Image source: USA Today

In 1984, Japanese school students put messages in glass bottles and dropped them into the ocean as part of an experiment. 37 years later, a bottle washed up on a Hawaiian coast and a 9-year-old girl found it. The message, titled “Ocean current investigation,” was written by students and placed in the Kuroshio Current close to Miyajima Island in Western Japan, as part of a school project about ocean currents.  The message inside is dated July 1984, and the author asked whoever found the bottle to return it to Choshi High School. 9-year-old Abbie Graham found the bottle on a family trip to a beach near Hilo, Hawaii — meaning the bottle traveled nearly 4,350 miles.  In a press statement, the school said it released 450 bottles in 1984 and 300 more in 1985 as part of the ocean current research. So far, 51 bottles have been returned, but this is the first one to be found since 2002. Other bottles washed up in Washington state, Canada, the Philippines and the Marshall Islands inthe central Pacific. Image source: KCRA