There are those who have been comfortable in the dim and the dark who will shout to turn off the light. For far too long, we listened to them.
No more.
It's been 2 years since I posted anything on my blog, not for lack of something to say, but for being overwhelmed with what to say. I cannot not say anything any longer.
For far too long, there's been an US vs THEM mentality in the world:
Village X is better than Village Y.
Social Status X is better than Social Status Y.
High School X is better than High School Y.
College X is better than College Y.
Sport A team X is better than Sport A team Y.
Job X is better than Job Y.
Country X is better than Country Y.
Gender X is better than Gender Y.
Sexual Orientation X is better than Sexual Orientation Y.
Religion X is better than Religion Y.
Skin Color X is better than Skin Color Y.
This won't change over night, but it needs to change.
Shine your light. Shine bright. Lumos maxima!
---------
I grew up white. My school books taught me that white people created practically everything. I grew up with white Disney princesses. I grew up with white Jesus. So, like most white people, I didn't realize there was anything wrong with life on Earth.
I grew up listening to older people use racial slurs as a matter of course and laughing about it.
There was 1 black kid in my grade school, and we were not nice to her. I was probably one of the meanest people to her. I had been bullied by other kids. When she showed up in school, she had some quirks and a demeanor that made her seem weaker than me, so I bullied her and did my worst to make her feel like less in order to make myself feel like more. I started bullying her about her quirks, but I laid into her skin color. The racial slurs that I had heard come out of other people's mouths were coming out of mine. I have no idea what happened to her. She was not in my Junior High, or High School. I hope she's okay now.
I had some healing to do. I had some learning to do.
I grew up before the internet was a thing. So, it's not like I could just go on Google to learn real history instead of the white washed version I'd been taught.
People were/are part of my growth process. One of my friends in grade school was of Mexican descent. One of my friends in Junior High was of Japanese descent. One of my friends in college was of Chinese descent. And my best friend, whom I met in Junior High, was born in Iran (she is now a naturalized citizen). I'm not trying to virtue signal here. These people are how I healed. These people are how I learned.
Not everyone I tried to be friends with so that I could learn was all that into wanting to let me. Too many questions. Too intense. Too much. Not their job to teach me. Mad at me for not already knowing stuff. Even some of the people who were friends with me for awhile, got burned out.
The one person who lasted, the one person who is still in my life today, is the one person who is the most patient while I ask questions (probably a bit insensitively at times). She is my best friend, and like a sister to me. I am thankful for her.
Not all of my awakening and learning was from people/friends. I needed to heal me. I needed to do the work of looking within. I needed to fix what was broken within. I needed to realize that I cannot control life, nor can I control people. I needed to concentrate on finding the real me.
The real me realizes that the world does not revolve around me. The real me realizes that being compassionate towards others takes nothing away from me. The real me realizes that I lose nothing of myself by allow others to also be themselves. The real me realizes that there is no US vs THEM. The real me realizes that there is only WE. The real me realizes that I am you and you are me and we are one.
Though I consider myself woke now, I realize that I still have learning to do.
For example, when Colin Kaepernick first took a knee at an NFL game during the national anthem, I was right there with most white people asking why he was disrespecting the flag and the country. It wasn't until I heard the explanation of why he took a knee that I understood. Go Colin!
And, when Black Lives Matter first started, I was right there with most white people saying that all lives matter. It wasn't until I heard explanations that I understood. One of the explanations that helped me was something about burning houses (I wish I'd bookmarked it). The explanation was something to the effect of a neighbor's house is burning, and while all the houses in the neighborhood are worth saving, this one house that is burning right now needs the attention of the firefighters.
Right now, life on Earth is changing. For the better. We are coming out of the dark. No matter how dim your light may be at this moment in time, your light can grow. Keep shining your light. Keep learning.
1 Peter 3Today is a great day to learn something new. The world is our largest school and everyone in it is a teacher. What did you learn today? pic.twitter.com/r1CUtaW7vU— Artists for Peace and Justice (@artistsforpeace) March 9, 2020
10 For Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit;
11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it.
No comments:
Post a Comment