The central cliche of America is the "melting pot." Earlier generations have documented how Italians, Irish, Germans and Jews, among others, have smashed up against one another and found their way in this strange new land.
Today, in my neighborhood, other groups are encountering each other, with mixed results. The Mission is mainly a Latino neighborhood, complete with the competing graffiti of the Bloods and the Crips to prove it, but many others also share this space.
There are black families, Asian families, and the Generation X and Y'ers still hoping to survive the ups and downs of the Internet economy well enough to start raising their young families here.
On Saturday, on 22nd Street, a stately former German church was the site of one of the post-modern cross-cultural encounters we've come to take for granted hereabouts. The International Buddhism Sangha Association (IBSA) was celebrating the publication of a new book, H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III: A Treasury of True Buddha-Dharma, which contains the headline-worthy news that the original primordial Buddha has been reincarnated and has returned to earth.
The IBSA organized an impressive performance of dancers and gymnasts to celebrate this joyous event. Those watching, from across the street, were mainly Latino residents of the neighborhood, not at all clued in to what the fuss was all about.
But they did know a good show when they saw it. The dancers performed truly wonderful feats. No one was disappointed. Whether anyone got the message that the Buddha is back is another question, however.
Which raises a legitimate news question: What if your message is so big that our conventional media cannot process it? My advice, FWIW, is this: Keep dancing.
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