Similar Diversity

Just read that my friend Shannon went to Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire* this weekend and saw "A Midsummer's Night Dream" performed in English and Bengali. The moment I read that line I stopped. You should too. In fact, go ahead, read it again ... Shakespeare in English and Bengali. . . that's kinda like the King James Version read by a hillbilly. Nothing wrong with it but definitely taking on a whole new flavor with sound alone.

Diversity must have been the word of the day for this weekend on the Universe planning calendar.

On Saturday I was struck by the spectrum of personalities, professions, and backgrounds represented at the AIDS hospice -- A veteran shares a room with a formerly homeless man (and isn't it ironic that someone without shelter finally finds it in his dying days). A man whose Indian relatives want to fly him home even though he's being eaten alive by cancer in the most gruesome way you can imagine is in the next room. A mother and grandmother who barely looks old enough to be the mother part of that is there as is someone who most likely earned her living on the streets (and I don't mean collecting cans). One man has the happy knowledge that he's just there for a few weeks since he gets to soon go home after we make sure he's really ready to be back on his feet. And then . . . there's the 18-year-old who was born with AIDS. I had to gasp when I heard. Is it possible? Yes. Was I ready to hear that AIDS babies were now grown ups? Not really.

So position my Saturday morning in the midst of my Friday and Saturday nights when I was delving into the world of politics and social activism by way of private parties and big events and you've got quite the diverse weekend. Add in my stop by my community in Tomball and one more late night gathering of "folks representing the spectrum" at some friends' house and well . . . Shakespeare in Bengali might not seem so strange.

One more thing ... if you've never danced with a partner who is wearing a feather boa, then you've not really attended a charity event like I get the pleasure of experiencing.

You might not want my life, but you certainly would have a hard time arguing that it's not interesting!

*Please note that this post has been edited because of the diverse knowledge base of this blog's readers (see comments). . . Not much of a surprise that I was once again geographically challenged!