New Mexico... a land of many colors: red and green (chile, of course), turquoise (our state gemstone, and one of my favorites), brilliant blue (that amazing sky), watermelon pink (the Sandias at sunset!),
New Mexico was admitted to statehood just over 100 years ago - on January 6, 1912. I'm glad that as a state, we've taken the entire year to celebrate this important milestone, and remind ourselves of the beauty of the state we live in, and everything it has to offer - and to share that beauty with those who haven't experienced it yet!
However, I also think that, in this centennial year, we should keep in mind one of the reasons New Mexico was only admitted to statehood 100 years ago. It's certainly not because there was no one here - New Mexico has been populated by its native cultures for many centuries, and by the Spanish for hundreds of years - Albuquerque celebrated its tricentennial a few short years ago.
There were many reasons New Mexico's statehood was delayed - a quick Google search will yield a full complement of factors, for those who are interested. It is true, though, that one of those reasons had to do with the level of poverty among many citizens of this state at the time. That poverty may not be as widespread now as it was then, but it is still here. The 2010 Census indicated that nearly 20% of New Mexicans live below the poverty level - that's a pretty sobering statistic. There are many among us who still live in poverty, who still struggle with not knowing where their next meal will come from, or how they will provide for their basic needs.
Poverty in and of itself is a terrible thing, but it also leads to other things that tear our society down - things like violence. Things like human trafficking. Things that come about when people who are desperate to get by resort to desperate measures to do so, or fall victim to those who prey upon their desperation. Lives are destroyed in the process.
No, there's not an easy solution to the challenges we face, and there aren't necessarily good answers for all of the hard questions these things pose. But as members of the same human family and children of the same God, I think we do have a responsibility to help those we can, when we can, in whatever way we can.
This is my home - perhaps it is yours, too. I love it here, for all its greatness and all its flaws - it may sound crazy to some, but there is really nowhere else I'd rather live. It is a place of both unique beauty and unique challenges - beauty that we must protect, and challenges that we must stare down and solve.
Here's to the next hundred years being the best yet!
Poverty in and of itself is a terrible thing, but it also leads to other things that tear our society down - things like violence. Things like human trafficking. Things that come about when people who are desperate to get by resort to desperate measures to do so, or fall victim to those who prey upon their desperation. Lives are destroyed in the process.
No, there's not an easy solution to the challenges we face, and there aren't necessarily good answers for all of the hard questions these things pose. But as members of the same human family and children of the same God, I think we do have a responsibility to help those we can, when we can, in whatever way we can.
This is my home - perhaps it is yours, too. I love it here, for all its greatness and all its flaws - it may sound crazy to some, but there is really nowhere else I'd rather live. It is a place of both unique beauty and unique challenges - beauty that we must protect, and challenges that we must stare down and solve.
Here's to the next hundred years being the best yet!
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