Way of Life ( VOA Connect Ep 192)

VOA – CONNECT EPISODE # 192  AIR DATE: 09 17 2021   TRANSCRIPT   OPEN ((VO/NAT)) ((Banner)) Florida’s Wetlands ((SOT)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) Alligators are actually more afraid of us, humans, than we are of them. But if you all ever see an alligator with its mouth open, just don’t put your hand inside it.  ((Animation Transition)) ((Banner)) A Community Cornerstone ((SOT)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) I started selling papers when I was eight because I wanted extra money in my pocket. And here I am. I'm seventy-nine years old and I'm still selling papers. ((Animation Transition)) ((Banner)) Making A Path ((SOT)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Our children, they do have the best of both worlds in having a Black father and a white mother. In life, they don't have to think about choosing a side.  ((Open Animation))   BLOCK A ((PKG)) EVERGLADES ((TRT: 05:01)) ((Topic Banner: Life in the Everglades))  ((Reporter/Camera: Jeff Swicord)) ((Map: Everglades, Florida)) ((Main character: 1 Male))   ((NATS/MUSIC)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) I’ve been around the Everglades my entire life. My father used to drive airboats with a couple of his buddies back in the 60s, 70s, 80s. He used to take me bass fishing all the time. Go out there, spot alligators. Started running tours seven years ago. Started my business three years ago. Definitely a blessing to be out here. It’s a very, very beautiful place at the end of the day, holds a special place in my heart.  ((NATS)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) A lot of people actually think the Florida Everglades is, you know, marsh, wetlands which it is. But it’s actually the world’s slowest moving river. Even when Native Americans lived out here, it was also named ‘The River of Grass’ because the sawgrass on the outside area dominates the majority of the area on the marsh. There are certain sloughs out here in the Everglades that can be a little bit deeper than the prairies and the outside area and the water only moves about a 100 foot [30 m] throughout the entire day. ((NATS: Maurice Cullen)) Morning! ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) So, the majority of our vegetation around us, this is all lily pads out here. And green and red lily pads that we are sitting in right now, and the yellow flowers, all grow off of the same root system. The purple one to the left-hand side, that is pickerel weed, also known as purple water garden lily. It sticks about a foot and a half [45 cm] above the water surface out here.  Fruit-bearing tree right here. Pond apple tree, also referred to as an alligator apple tree. And once the apples do fall off the tree, the vibration they produce do draw curiosity on alligators. Certain alligators will actually go by and eat it, see if it’s something they are interested in eating.  ((NATS: Calling Alligator)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) Alligator. He’s actually a pretty good-size-guy. That gator would be every bit of 11 foot [3.35 m], if not a little bit bigger. Have tons of vibration sensors all across the front and sides of their face which act very similar to a metal detector for us, more or less. So, at night, when you can’t see your hand in front of your face, it being that dark out in the Everglades, it’s what makes them the exceptional predator they are. He can sit dead still in the water, pick up on any vibration from a fish swimming by, turtle going by, bird wading in the water, doesn’t really matter. Once he locks in on that vibration, makes a beeline towards it. Those animals never know what was coming.  ((NATS: Maurice Cullen)) Oh, look. He got a pond apple, actually got one. ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) And alligators, man, they have tremendous biting pressure. There has been some record that a large male could have close to 3,000 pounds [1360 kgf/cm2] anywhere. So, to give you guys the idea that us, human beings, full grown adults, push out a 175 pounds [79 kg/cm2] of biting pressure. Alligators are actually more afraid of us, humans, than we are of them. But if you all ever see an alligator with its mouth open, just don’t put your hand inside it.  ((NATS/MUSIC)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) In the Everglades, everything plays a big role, whether if a species of fish disappears, birds in general. The purple gallinule is the more exotic one. Consider it like a swamp hen or a swamp chicken due to some of their features. Their feet to bodyweight ratio are kind of perfect to the point that this bird can pretty much run right across all the vegetation, the lily pads, barely have to fly or swim. The feet on them are identical to chickens, beaks very similar to chickens.  So, and the one that is behind the purple gallinule, is one of their juveniles that is about two months right now. And it’s pretty cool because the purple gallinules will have two nests in a year. They double clutch all the time. Six to eight eggs per laying. Six has been the magic number this year.  ((NATS/MUSIC)) ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) I started running airboat tours and this felt like it was always my calling. I feel like I am one with nature. I meet a lot of people, communicate with everybody on different levels, know the ins and outs of airboats. Just like a white meadow that would be surrounding us out here.  ((Maurice Cullen, Owner, Everglades Airboat Expeditions)) Know a lot about the wildlife at the end of the day and all the animals out here and vegetation and water and the Everglades has always fascinated me.  It just began time. It was always an encouragement for me to start my own business. And it’s been a blessing. The Everglades is my home. ((NATS)) TEASE ((VO/NAT)) Coming up ((Banner)) A Local Institution ((SOT)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) 60 percent of our customers, clients are, you know, over 50 years old and it’s an age that still likes to feel the paper, feel the magazine, sometimes feel that smell.   BREAK ONE                                                                   BUMP IN ((ANIM))                       BLOCK B  ((PKG)) A NEWSSTAND’S LAST STAND ((Previously aired February 2021)) ((TRT: 07:27)) ((Topic Banner: A Newsstand’s Last Stand)) ((Reporter/Camera: Arturo Martínez)) ((Map: Los Angeles, California)) ((Main character: 2 male)) ((Sub characters: 5 male; 2 female)) ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) I am Eduardo. Everybody calls me Eddie and I work at the newsstand. I am a salesman, the morning guy. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Good morning, ladies. Good morning. Happy Monday. ((Pedestrians)) You too. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Thank you. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) It will be my 17th year, very happy. Since I started to work here at the newsstand with Mr. Al, very happy. Almost all the locals, all the neighbors, everybody knows me. It’s like a little family. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Mr. James. Good morning, sir. How are you? ((Customer)) Good. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Everything okay so far? ((Customer)) So far. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Good, sir. Okay. Happy Monday, sir. Okay? Thank you, sir. Happy Monday. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) New York, Wall Street, Financial Times, New York Post and L.A. Times. ((Customer)) Correct. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Financial Times and Wall Street. ((Customer)) Perfect. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) We have a cookie for Mr. Jake. Here it is Mr. Jake. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Hey, Maggie. Good morning. How are you? ((Customer)) Good. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Good, good. She likes all French magazines. So, she’s looking if we have something. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Yes, I bought here too Mr. Al. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) How much was it that you collected from him? ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) $15, plus tax, $16.43. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) I started selling papers when I was eight because I wanted extra money in my pocket. And here I am. I'm 79 years old and I'm still selling papers. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) My name is Alan Brooks and I own Al's Newsstand. I am one of the last standing newsstands. We opened this in ‘89. It was like a little gold mine. And people, they were hungry for a newsstand in Beverly Hills. And I had a total of eight different newsstands. But I made a great living. I put two kids through college. I was very, very happy with it. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) And you’re nine years old? Yeah. You are like George and Archie, my grandsons. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) I just like talking to people. I like doing business, making money. And that's just a nice sense of community that I enjoy when that wells up. That's what sort of nurtures me. ((NATS)) ((Customer)) Thank you so much. We just live around the corner. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) You’ve got it. Okay. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) But the newsstand business has definitely changed. It's become prehistoric and that's because of the internet. A lot of magazines went to online only and people said, “Where's my Glamour magazine?” And I'm saying, “You have to go online to get that.”  ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Good morning. Al’s Newsstand.  Oh no, miss. Not yet. No more, miss. Sorry. Used to be we sell that paper but no, no more. It’s easier if you go digital or internet because I don't know that somebody has that print paper. You know, in the good times, we used to have five or six very good magazines. Now, you know. ((Customer)) No print magazines. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Yes. You know, now, digital, internet. It’s not like it used to be, sir. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) 60 percent of our customers, clients are, you know, over 50 years old and it’s an age that still likes to feel the paper, feel the magazine, sometimes feel that smell. ((NATS)) ((Benny Platt, Customer, Al’s Newsstand)) This, happiest day of my life. Los Angeles Dodgers, world champions after 32 years. Awesome.  I come here all the time because when big things happen like, the Dodgers, when they won the World Series, that was a big seller here. And then, recent election, when Biden won and you wanted to get the issue of it, you know, you got it. Yes, everything's on the internet now but it's nice to physically hold something in your hand and stuff like that, so. I don't think my kids will. My kids are glued to their phones. So, everything's still on their phones but I'm in my late 50s. So, I'm still old school to a certain extent. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) Up until the pandemic hit us in March, we were holding our own. But there's a lot of stores that have closed or been shuttered on South Beverly Drive, and that's affected us because we don't have the traffic flow that we had two years ago. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) Grab an elbow, friend. Come on, don't be afraid. Come on, do you play baseball? I still get the people that will bring their kids by and people that we have are regulars. But the traffic pattern isn't what it was back in, you know, three and four or five years ago. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Quieres el de la niña, verdad? 15 dollars. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) Just make change. ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Yes. Okay, Mr. Al. Yes. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) If I'm allowed to bring in items that will help make a profit: cigarettes, candy, miscellaneous, water, chips and increase my revenue, we’ll stay. And if not, I would have to think of selling it. But my passion right now is, I like old, retro magazines. I have a bunch of older Life, Posts, Saturday Evening Post, Life and Look, my old classic Playboy magazines, comic books and baseball cards. People are gratified that they can see something that they haven't seen for 20 or 30 years and pick it up and buy it. I find a way to deal in those. ((NATS)) ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) And I don't want you bending the cards at all. Because the moment you bend them, it’s going to lose its value. ((Alan Brooks, Owner, Al’s Newsstand)) We've lost part of the interaction with people. We've become so technologically absorbed. I mean, you miss a lot of the realism of touching and tactileness with people and interchanging. You need to have conversations with people that share your ideas with me. I may not accept it but I'm hearing a point of view that could be beneficial to me in the long run. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) The other day came one family from overseas and I remember one of the kids, about maybe seven years old, told his Dad, “Hey dad, what is this? What is a newsstand? What is a newsstand? I don't know. What is a newsstand?” So, we'll see but it was very funny. ((NATS)) ((Eduardo Becerril, Salesman, Al’s Newsstand)) Take care, okay? Happy Monday. See you later. ((NATS)) ((Popup Banner: Only a handful of newsstands remain in Los Angeles. Alan remains hopeful he will withstand the pandemic.)) ((NATS)) TEASE  ((VO/NAT)) Coming up ((Banner)) Raising Kids ((SOT)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) We want them to be whole brain thinkers. We want them  to think  beyond someone's color of their skin or  their eyes or their hair because if we solve one  problem, there's always going to be a next.  And we're  always going to find  something to talk about with someone and  to judge.   BREAK TWO                                                                  BUMP IN ((ANIM))                    BLOCK C     ((PKG: INTERRACIAL COUPLE))  ((Previously aired January 2021)) ((TRT: 9:52)) ((Banner: Breaking Expectations))  ((Reporter/Camera: Deepak Dobhal)) ((Map: Lincoln, Nebraska))  ((Main Characters: 1 Male, 1 Female)) ((NATS)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) ((Courtesy: Ron Taylor)) We were at the Union at the university. That's  basically a  place where people come and relax and you check your emails and your class schedules. And I just  happened to see this head of curly hair and I had to get  closer to her. And the  closer I got, the better she looked. And I had to introduce myself. So, here we are 20 years later. ((NATS)) ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother))  I have three kiddos. Isaac is our oldest. Ian is  our middle child. Isabella is our youngest.  She's seven-and-a-half. We homeschool them. We have for the last five-and-a-half years. ((NATS)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Our children, they do have the best of both worlds in having  a Black father and a white mother.   In life, they don't have to think about choosing  a side. ​ I’m originally from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines which is in the eastern Caribbean.  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) ((Courtesy: Ron Taylor)) I was evacuated due to a volcano in 1979. I was seven years old at that time. Came to United States, lived in New York City for few years. And I also was in the military myself. The only questions that the kids have asked us about race is, “Dad, why is your skin darker than Mom's?” And so, I went ahead and took a DNA test and I  explained all that to  them. Okay. Daddy is 50 percent Nigerian.  Daddy is 25 percent from Sierra Leone. Daddy  is 11 percent  Scottish. Daddy has four percent Native  American. Daddy has three percent Asian. So, I break it  down for them.  As far as what we're teaching them, it's what's  appropriate for their age. We don't put them in that environment where they can be harmed or anyone can share their negativity with them. So, we  protect  our children. They're still trying to learn how to  do their  multiplication tables, you know. So, the issue of  slavery and systemic racism, you know, that's not at their level at this point. ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) But we're not clueless that it's there. And in due  time, as those discussions come into play,  he's like you're old enough, you're mature enough, it's  time for you to learn this. And it may come up because our child has a question or it may  come up because of something they're exposed to.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: Ron Taylor))  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) Couple months ago, there was protests right  here in our  neighborhood. They chose South Lincoln  neighborhoods, where we live, because they felt that they  needed to expose South Lincoln. So, the kids got to see that first-hand right here at the end of our street and what that looked like and it was a peaceful protest. But then when  they see something on the news that's violent  and people are literally  hurting each other and causing vandalism, that's not a  peaceful protest. That's literally riots. And so, I've talked to them about  knowing that we live in Nebraska and in some  regards their exposure looks very, very different than if we lived on the East or the  West Coast.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: Ron Taylor))  ((Popup Banner:  George Floyd, an African American man, was killed in police custody. His death led to widespread protests against racial injustice in the US.)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) We explained to them about George Floyd and what happened and that's when I showed them  the video.  ((Courtesy: Reuters))  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) And then we all went through the steps of, okay, who was wrong at this point, who was right?   Not the color of their skin but, you know, who did something wrong at point A? Who did something wrong on point B? So, we  went from A to Z.  ((Courtesy: Reuters))  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Ultimately, once you're in handcuffs, the police  have you  apprehended. Your job is to put someone in  handcuffs, take him to jail and then the judge will take care of the  rest of the process. ((Courtesy: Reuters))  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Due process happens in the court, not on the  street.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: AP))  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) To actually participate in a protest, I don't know  that I have  enough information to make an educated  statement on that. But when I look at those  things, I say  where did this come from? Who started this? What is their goal? Who's funding it? What is the purpose of this? So, I  ask a lot of those questions, which is why, I  mean, I myself, I'm not going to go intentionally be a  part of that if I don't align with that. But that has nothing to do with my view on race. And so,  to intertwine that would be mangled.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: AP))  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) The political side of some of these matters have  been cloudy. It's something that people that want to  manipulate  the process and cause confusion as opposed to  dealing with the issue.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: AP))  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) Of course there's empathy, empathy for those going through that is  generated from  ((Courtesy: AP))  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) sincerity and heartbreak and recognizing, hey,  I have no idea what it felt like to be [Civil Rights icon] Rosa Parks that day but do I need to teach and train the  children how to be strong,  courageous people like her or how to be a Dr. Martin Luther King and  speak up and be able to use his voice?   That's not just  history. That's who do you want to be today. So yes, I empathize  with that because I care and I want our kids to be able  to live their life in that way.  ((NATS)) ((Courtesy: AP))  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) Much of what people are seeing and hearing  today is based on the hate. And when hate is  represented, it  doesn't matter what form you're seeing it in, it's a matter of the heart. These are  interpersonal  relational conflicts that have been stirred up. In some people, it just started. Some people, that was inbred in them from the  day they were born. And heart issues can only be resolved  within someone's most inner thoughts. We can't go around and fix other people's heart.  ((NATS: Rachel Taylor)) This doesn’t go in a basket, sweetie. You keep it up here. ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) My job is to figure out how to keep the five of us and this  family  focused on who holds our tomorrow? Where do we go from here?  Because if this  is our last conversation and the world ends  today, is what we've shared and reflected and  discussed upon without our children, something in  which they can then make an educated decision  without us. ((NATS)) ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) When you use faith as your foundation in your  discussions as a family, it's really simple actually to integrate that into the relationships that you  choose to expose them to. So, instead of shielding them from life, we've just chosen the tribe of people that we want to associate with.  ((NATS)) ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother)) Their exposure is so diverse. We were talking  yesterday  about who their friends are and where they're  from. And I'm like, I feel like we could pull the  whole  United Nations to the park for a gathering if you really look at color as who we're exposing our children to. It's not a selection pool. It's just who we have grown to  love and who the Lord's brought in our path to be  friends with.  ((NATS)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Our goal is to, you know, not pigeonhole their  thinking. We want them to be whole brain thinkers. We want them  to think  beyond someone's color of their skin or  their eyes or their hair. Because if we solve one  problem, there's always going to be a next. And we're  always going to find  something to talk about with someone and  to judge.   ((NATS)) ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) Based on what we're experiencing now and the  divisions that we have in our society, I have to be above that. If I were to dwell on what I look like and what somebody thinks what I look like, I won't be successful as I am right now.  ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother))  Hmm. I think you look good. I am just saying like, I don’t know. ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) But, you know, we shouldn't deny that there's something going on and it's  bad. ((Rachel Taylor, Homeschooling Mother))  Yeah.  ((Ron Taylor, Production Manager)) You know, we need to focus on how can we make it better? ((NATS))    CLOSING BUMPER ((ANIM)) voanews.com/connect   BREAK THREE                                                                      BUMP IN ((ANIM))    CLOSING BUMPER ((ANIM)) voanews.com/connect SHOW ENDS