While my first intention in starting a blog was to document my daily thoughts and reactions to life around me, it is increasingly depressing to do so. Economically, things are dismal indeed. The rich are getting richer while those working hard get further into debt due to the rising cost of EVERYTHING. The money issue impacts the
vast majority of people on a daily basis and creates so many other challenges.
There's a lot of blame to go around for the current state of things, and I certainly hope some truths – hardcore truths – come out in the U.S. general election. Whoever kicks ass the most instead of pandering gets my vote. And, whoever takes steps to hold accountable those in power who have gotten us to this point (in my opinion intentionally) gets my vote. Sadly, it seems 98% of those holding office, and nearly all corporate media, are complicit in the current State of Our Union.
The Internet may have its own cesspool, but at least if one puts forth effort and uses some brain power you can get to some of the truth.
I don't know, people. I fear it's gonna get a whole lot worse before it gets better. But, sometimes things have to break wide open before the healing can begin. Speaking of which…
I'm fascinated with the potential for learning and healing involved with the Obama nomination. I am the consulting editor for the novel,
The Book of Obeah (
www.bookofobeah.com - see video below). One of the key messages in this novel is "a different perspective can change your perception of reality." I see this message coming into play on a daily basis as I follow U.S. political and economic news, global news, etc.
It's a fact of life that women have a different perspective than men, based on their life experiences; financially wealthy people have a different perspective than those with little money, based on their life experiences; people with certain challenges (physical, mental, etc.) experience the world differently than those without such challenges; and, in general, black people and other people of color have a different perspective than "white" people based on their life experiences. (The whole label thing drives me crazy. I'm going to rant about this soon...black, white, liberal, conservative, working class, tree hugger, blah, blah..oy.)
I never thought about it until this very moment, but this presidential election is bringing several conflicts to the surface: men vs. women, black vs. white, young vs. old, and even east vs. west (Obama's heritage). Interesting, VERY interesting when you look at it all in this light. From this PERSPECTIVE. ;)
Now, none of this means one should embrace a victim mentality or lay the blame for life experiences wholly on another. I'm real big on accountability and being responsible for one's choices in life. But, it seems wise to keep in mind that our life experiences and perspectives affect how we react to things and how we view life. Even little phrases or actions that some find completely innocent can strike someone else as offensive, based on their life experience. The ladies of "The View" started this dialogue a few months ago. Whoopi has done an excellent job, and I hope she continues this enlightening dialogue.
I think we're going to see more and more of this as the different racial groups (at this point white and black) are exposed to the others' perceptions and perspectives through Obama's candidacy. Not right or wrong necessarily, just different, based on life experiences. And, it's often not the
individual person's life experience which has shaped their perspective; often it's been shaped by their ancestors' beliefs and perspectives based upon
their direct life experience.
For example, how one views the pitiful aftermath of Hurricane Katrina can be traced to one's life experience and perspective. It's like those ink-blot tests. Two people look at one image; one person sees a beautiful flower, while the other person sees a mutilated corpse (that's extreme, but you know what I mean).
There's a lot of healing to be done. Perhaps it's time for it all to rise to the surface, even if painfully, to finally be healed.
The black-white healing is the beginning. That's a powerful underlying message in
The Book of Obeah. There are other ancient conflicts ready to come to the surface to be healed before any true balance can be achieved on this Earth. There are indeed four pivotal conflicts throughout human history to be exposed in the Obeah four-part series. Four conflicts…four years…. 2012. I believe this series is a mirror of what shall occur - or what has the potential to occur.
Believe me, I realize putting one foot in front of the other at times is a huge challenge, let alone wrapping one's brain around the bigger picture – and the underlying foundation of the bigger picture. Yet for something to TRULY be healed, not only is truth and transparency required, but you have to get down to the core of the problem. The symptoms are often the focus in our society, but we must get to the root cause of the pain.
I hope you care. I do. We can't hide from these root causes any longer; we can allow ourselves to be distracted, but it will continue to fester under the surface until it's fully exposed.
I care. Even if I don't know how to DO anything just yet.
