A Runner's Blog

Run4Homeboy 2011

Last month my mother gave me an audio copy of “Tattoos On The Heart, The Power of Boundless Compassion,” by Father Gregory Boyle.  It is the recorded version of the book she and my father’s spirituality/discussion group in Utah read last month. ‘G,’ as his congregation calls him, describes how he has spent the last twenty-five years as a priest in some of the toughest neighborhoods of Los Angeles and his partnering with investors to create Homeboy Industries, Homegirl Café and other businesses to help employ, educate and support inner city youth in southern California.

In today’s world working with inner city youth usually means gangs and the cruel violence that follows them.  The bloodshed in these social circles has taken the lives of more than 150 of the Homeboy congregation and for what would be an overwhelming emotional strain on a normal person G has been there to pray over every one of them.  These deaths don’t make our evening news, but in the pages of G’s book the victims of these crimes speak volumes.  For the most part all they wanted was some love and a little support for a chance to live.  Heartbreaking at times and inspirational at others their stories in the context of G’s compassion touched me.

I have lived in Los Angeles for the last 27 years.  I saw what the streets of this city became during the late 80’s when our government cut social programs and ended subsidies for the poor.  Boxes lined city sidewalks and became home to families and single mothers with shoeless children.  In the nineties those sidewalks began to clear as safety nets returned and social programs were reinstated.  In 2011, the box cities have returned and the streets are once again filled with those who not long ago had a future.  Violence, that had been declining, is on the rise too.  After reading father Greg’s book I once again found myself wanting to do more.

I visited the Homeboy website in the hopes they’d have a page for volunteers or something similar.   Among the links I found an entry form for their 2^nd annual Run4Homeboy 5k event.  This was something I could do that would not only be fun but could also raise funds for Homeboy Industries.

Run4Homeboy 5k

My mother’s group was her inspiration for passing G’s book on and so I went to them to ask if they’d sponsor me as a runner in their place.  They were very gracious with their wallets.  So on a beautiful October morning, the 5k started and I ran hard finishing 7^th in my division (40-49) and 22^nd overall (Results).  I don’t know how many actually ran the race but it was more than twenty-two so I think I did the group in Utah proud.

G’s ministry will continue of course.  I waited for him at the finish line.  He crossed it surrounded by three or four of the young men he helps, his homeys, as he calls them.  They walked most of the way around only running the last 100 yards to the cheers of many.  He was all smiles and couldn’t have been nicer, posing with me in the early sunlight and asking my wife if she got the shot.  I thanked him as other runners approached with hands outstretched and cameras ready.

After I got back to the car and looked at the photo I realized G had run the race wearing a t-shirt that was inscribed with the words “In Loving Memory of Lorenzo Smith.”  Lorenzo was shot and killed at a party in the early morning hours of April 17^th.  Only three weeks prior to his death he spoke for the first time in public in front of a group of 200 Boeing employees.  He told his life story and about how Homeboy and father G had helped to set him on the right path.  He’d gotten his life together.  To this date his killer has not been found.

I didn’t know Lorenzo nor do I know G but for me today’s race is what his ministry is all about.  In his words, “Hope for the future and the importance of fighting despair through the power of unconditional love.”  The hundreds that ran and came to cheer us on are proof that what he started will continue to grow.  It was a great event and I’ll be there again next year and hope the spirituality group can join us too.

Tom and Father G - Run4Homeboy October 29, 2011

Sunrise in Mumbai

To me, International travel is one of the great perks of my job.  I’ve shot in over 12 countries on 5 continents during the last twenty years and still find it exciting to wake up in a foreign land.  Some of the places I’ve been to I never want to go back and others are like old friends that beckon when you are lonely or just need to talk.  The time I shot in Paris, and found a whole day in my schedule to wander the cobblestone streets and experience the history and art that seeps from every weathered pore of the city’s fabric, I knew I’d return someday with family or friends to share the rich history.  When I did go back, it was my father who was hosting, and we lapped up the city’s vibrant food, culture and past with a veracity that any adventurous traveler would admire.

This morning I woke up in Mumbai after a 24 hour travel day.  We flew from Los Angeles to Dubai in 15.5 hours and then had a layover and another three hour flight to Bombay.  I’d been dreading the return to this city.  Six months ago during my last trip I ate too much curry and damaged my stomach.   I love the spice but it doesn’t love me.  By the time I left I’d lost almost ten pounds and was reduced to eating bland pasta from a pseudo Italian place near the editorial house.  I left thinking this place was one that I didn’t want to return to.

Our rooms are nice and each is complimented with a floor to ceiling window running the width of the room.  A motorized blackout shade helps to keep the light out during daylight hours and I’d lowered it when I climbed into bed.  When my alarm went off two hours later so we could attend a location scout, I pushed the button again and watched as the soft light of a Mumbai dawn chase the shade all the way to the top of the window frame.  Outside a huge crane perched atop a new skyscraper was backlit against the smoke filled dawn.  The diffused sunlight, an amber orange color, bathed the whole of my view with the warm hues of a summer afternoon.

My room came with complimentary fruit.  In more than one city, I’ve learned the hard way not to eat that fruit.  I decided a still life would have to do.  And as the sun rose higher and the crane with its workers went about their jobs several stories above the bustling streets I heard myself thinking, Hello Mumbai, thanks for a nice sunrise.

Wulumuqi Sunset

This trip was a blast and very successful.  The client and agency are excited about the footage and we made some new friends.  We went from the dusty roads of the Gobi desert to a mine in the highlands above it and finally to the snowy forest of Tulufan.  Some of these experiences I will remember until I die, others will fade as time passes but most of all the people will remain with me. It seems forever and a day since I was home and I’m really looking forward to getting back to Barbara (my wife) and a regular western diet but these tough and resilient people possess an overall happiness that I envy in the turmoil of modern life.  Their government is nothing if not brutal in its totalitarianism yet they persevere and smile through it all.  Emamu’s crazy antics and maniacal laugh kept us entertained throughout.

This video sums up his personality:

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Here’s another small taste of the journey.

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Locals dry tons and tons of peppers on the desert floor.

The other day I tried chicken feet at one of the local restaurants.  They were pretty gross.  Rubbery with a bone in the middle. I didn’t want to try them again but yesterday on set they served us what the locals call – unfortunate wild chicken.  Basically they take the whole bird, chop it up, put it with about 10 pounds of hot peppers, ginger, star of anise and boil the whole concoction for about 3-6 hours.  The result is a very, very spicy kind of stew full of bones, feet and all.  I think it might have been one of the worst lunches ever.  Local and fresh are the buzz words in the US these days but I think I’ll pass if they serve this again.  Thank goodness for powerbars and cup-o-noodle soup!

Here’s a video from the pot.

chicken_lunch

One of our cooks!