Julia's JAM

In Peace…

Julia — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 15:06:28 +0000

Rest in peace, and peace to those who loved and knew Michelle far better than I did. A thought, prayer, and moment for http://projectmichelle.com/blog/…

Birthday Wishes

Julia — Thu, 07 May 2009 15:06:01 +0000

I wish…

I wish you were here to wish me my birthday wishes.

I wish you were wishing for a wish to which you might still be here.

I wish, a wish that wishes it would never have had to be wished at all.

I wish…for my birthday all over again.

We Pray, and Pray, and Pray a Little More

Julia — Tue, 05 May 2009 01:33:56 +0000

For another who lives strong, a little prayer and a thought in our busy lives.

http://projectmichelle.com/blog/

And a prayer…

Julia — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:35:43 +0000

How come the ends/beginnings of months seem so tragic? A small post, for Erica Murray.

6.

Julia — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:16:23 +0000

Julia
- John Lennon

Half of what I say is meaningless
But I say it just to reach you, Julia
Julia, Julia, oceanchild, calls me
So I sing a song of love, Julia
Julia, seashell eyes, windy smile, calls me
So I sing a song of love, Julia

Her hair of floating sky is shimmering, glimmering
In the sun

Julia, Julia, morning moon, touch me
So I sing a song of love, Julia

When I cannot sing my heart
I can only speak my mind, Julia

Julia, sleeping sand, silent cloud, touch me
So I sing a song of love, Julia
Hum hum hum hum… calls me
So I sing a song of love for Julia, Julia, Julia

An Ugly Life

Julia — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 19:17:37 +0000

Another beautiful poem by our Julia – I think it speaks for itself.

—————————————————-

I wished for you,
an ugly life.
The story of a stolen daughter,
The kind full of poverty, addiction,
and illness.
Of broken hearts and crushed dreams.
I wished for you,
an ugly life.

My wish would bring to me,
reason.
Would bring me family once loved
A tragic story could explain our loss
Our reunion, could have been my gain.

Instead, I’m your shame.
Your rich life, your four new ones,
hiding under it all,
I can find you there, I know.
but I can never find myself,
in your beautiful life.

“The Hummus Place”

Julia — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:09:58 +0000

Yesterday, I was able to meet up with Julia’s good friend from college, Sara and her husband Aref. As they’ve recently moved out to the urban metropolis of St. Cloud, MN (^^), they had a craving for some quality hummus. We made our way to “The Hummus Place” – which also happened to be a favorite of Julia’s.

The first time I went, I was wandering aimlessly in the Upper West Side talking to her on the phone. She brought up the location on her computer, and proceeded to tell me all the ins-and-outs of hummus – and apparently there are many! Partial list follows:

DO NOT:
Order just one.
Forget the pickles, olives, and onions.
Use utensils.
Lick your fingers.
Forget the Gold Star.

DO:
Order more than you can eat.
Eat regular, not whole wheat pita.
Eat it right away, while it’s still warm.
Eat with friends.
Drink lots of Gold Star.

As you can see, she was a fan of the Israeli beer they sell there (I think she had memorized the menu, both food and beverage side) – GOLD STAR (she would’ve killed me for using this picture – LOL). She kept telling me to order one, but unfortunately on that particular day I was nursing a bit of a hang over.

I also refrained from partaking yesterday, but next time love, cheers to you and GOLD STAR – wherever you are…

Who From, Where Going?

Julia — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 00:40:59 +0000

We all know what a naturally gifted writer Julia was, but she also used poetry as a medium to express herself. She was fearless in this, as well as in blogging, but she often kept the poetry very private. It came to my attention that she had written drafts of poems in a copy of Lee Herrick’s newly published work of poetry, This Many Miles from Desire (WordTech Editions, 2007), that he had sent her. I thought I’d share one here today, I’ve been less than creative in titling the work myself.

Who from, where going?

- Julia Mendelson

What does Buddhist blood look like?

Does it look like mine?

Or is it my soul? Have you seen my soul?

Could you see it when you scanned me, poked me, opened me?

Jewish? Christian? Buddhist?

Where did I come from and where will I go?

You walk into my room, spew out all of this information about me,

meaningful numbers and codes, indications of what’s up inside,

but is there a blood test, a scan, that can tell us from whom I came,

where I am going, and what I’m made of?

I don’t care about the levels of acids and treatments anymore,

I don’t want to hear another blast count or pulse rate,

just tell me, who I came from…

… and where I’m going from here.

I’ve Remembered

Julia — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:43:25 +0000

I remember. I watched your memorial service, 2-months to the day, later. And I hurt, and I remember.

…”I don’t know what to think, and I don’t know what to do, so I do nothing, as if in doing nothing, hope will blossom in its emptiness.”…

Julia’s Memorial Service – KoRoot House, Seoul, South Korea

Julia — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 12:46:59 +0000

June 6th, 2008

Jane Trenka, KoRoot House proprietor, Reverend Kim, and Daewon Wenger organized a service for Julia held at the adoptee house – KoRoot – in the northern section of Seoul. None ever met her, but they were still driven to hold the memorial as they would for someone of their own, our own family. As fractured as we may envision our community life, Julia somehow managed to create a shared experience, as sad and tragic as it was. She would’ve completely hid from the spotlight, shunned being held up as some iconoclast, and I hoped the service would reflect that sense of humility, anonymity, yet show her enduring affect on people as individuals, and on people as a family/community.

She was born in Korea, raised in America, treated in Israel, and remembered again in Korea.

I have not yet watched the video, but I realized that shouldn’t mean those who knew and loved her shouldn’t watch either.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6163897008918717901