Who WE Become

If you encounter HATE SPEECH or BIAS or PREJUDICE –

And then respond to it with hate speech (which you will see as being true, not hate), bias, or prejudice -against those not like you . . .  YOU have become that thing you originally stood against and denounced.  You have continued that thing you wished to dissolve.  And you have lost sight of the fact that what another does, thinks or believes . . . comes to us not TO CHANGE THEM . . . but first and foremost, to define US.  So that WE can choose, in that moment, what WE live – what our actions say about US – and who WE choose to be.

You cannot defeat fear – with fear.  You cannot erase bias – with more bias.  You cannot eliminate prejudice – with more prejudice, simply wearing a different, perhaps more erudite, cloak.

And you cannot hope to understand another – nor to determine if there is any value or worth or wisdom in another’s view which is so different from your own – if YOU see THEM as less than you.  Arrogance and elitism takes many forms.  It’s not just racism, based on one’s color.  It happens based upon another’s upbringing, another’s life experiences, another’s religious beliefs – and strangely enough, even sometimes with our more educated, intellectual training. If living in large metropolitan areas suddenly gifted people with higher consciousness and more elevated wisdom or more “enlightened” knowledge and lives . . . more loving, more wise, more intellectually correct, more RIGHT about life, and MORE connected one to another . . . our largest cities would be our happiest, most harmonious places.

For most cities, that would seem to NOT be the case – especially to those living within them.  They often have the most diversity, and yet the least harmony; the greatest economic capacities and yet the most crime.  If we want to truly be A DIVERSE, INCLUSIVE, many-splendored country . . . we will have to begin that process within ourselves.  We can begin by making it our mission to extend respect, understanding, and compassion – not just to our chosen “pet” groups deserving of inclusion and support – BUT TO ALL GROUPS.  All kinds.  All Beings.

Otherwise, you don’t create a better world – just one that looks more like you, and reflects only your thoughts, values, and views.

There can be creative solutions and wondrous contributions to society brought forth from every life path – from every Being – from every consciousness on earth.  There can be deep blessings and powerful gifts discovered in those we – at first – fear could hold or harbor neither.  And there can be surprising abilities to see, to feel, to navigate uncharted waters . . . by those who may seem to have the least tools for doing so.

What really matters is this:  WHO ARE WE?

Who do we each, individually, choose to be in the face of something we mayfeel we did not choose or do not deserve – or even that we did.  In truth, a higher intelligence and a deeper heart . . . sees both moments as the same.  They each will hold the same opportunity – to choose how we see the world, especially those most not like us.  And to choose what we give to them, what we infuse those moments with:  our love, our hope, our belief – or something less.

We all choose.  With every breath – every thought – every action.

WE CHOOSE our future every moment of our path.  WE chose this one.  And we’ll choose the next.  With our actions, with our inner dialogue, and with our outer vocabulary.

By choosing . . . WHO WE ARE.

I know who I am – intentionally loving, decidedly patient, with a cultivated ability to see all sides, something I work intently on every day.  I’m quite certain you are THE SAME.  Being awake, aware, compassionate – requires our attention.  In every moment.  To choose with our  heart.  And to understand the deep and far-reaching ramifications of the energy we create for our family on this planet – with our thoughts, our words, and our deeds.

And I know who I am not – someone that will choose to hate or to denigrate another because they are different than me – ESPECIALLY POLITICALLY.  More liberal or more conservative – makes no difference.  I will try with all my might to understand how you see, how you think, how you behold our common world.

We all hold worth.  We all hold value.  And we all hold potential.  Let’s live that.  TRULY LIVE THAT – in our every breath, every word and our every deed.  And just see what kind of world WE are truly capable of creating – when we bring OUR BEST and HIGHEST SELVES forward in each moment, for the task.

OUR POWER comes not from using harsh language or harsh actions – our power comes from cultivating within ourselves an ever deepening ability to see . . . through all  eyes.

Let’s try that.

Anything less has NOT served us well,

Given our global state of being.

We can do better.  Let’s try!