Archive - June 15, 2023

Participatory Interfaith Dialogue     By Yossef Ben-Meir (Morocco 1993-95 & APDC 1998-99) Twenty-nine years ago, I was a Peace Corps Volunteer living in a mountainous High Atlas village called Amsouzerte, near the southern side of Morocco’s Toubkal National Park. Back then, the journey from the village to the nearest city centers took almost 20 hours along unpaved roads and mountain passes. At the foot of a mountainside, fifty kilometers from Amsouzerte, I would sometimes catch sight of an old, white mausoleum that seemed misplaced among the earth-brick homes characteristic of rural Moroccan landscapes. Looking upon this eroding mountain area, I could envision huge swaths of terraces constructed above the mausoleum for the local Muslim community to build tree nurseries and derive generational benefits. Tree nurseries are very valuable for Moroccan farming communities because 70 percent of agricultural land in the country generates only 10-15 percent of agricultural revenue. Fruit tree cultivation . . .

She’s secretly burned for him for years. Derek Severson left his career as a firefighter after tragedy shook him to his soul. Running his uncle’s beachside bar on a south Texas island gives him the chance to heal, find peace, and avoid entanglements. That is, until Macey, his childhood friend, tracks him down. After two years abroad in a developing country, Macey Locke is ready to dive in to her Peace Corps-inspired foundation. But when she learns Derek is suffering, she can’t turn her back. Six weeks on a tropical island to help the guy she’s loved for years? No-brainer. Derek can’t help but notice she’s not the same girl he used to know. She’s more. More self-assured, more determined, more irresistible. But is she enough for him to let go of his newfound fragile peace and give in to the passion sparking between them? Playing with Fire is a . . .