Hardship, Healing, Hope

Explaining the hardships of the past five years is not a task to be haughty for one to think they speak for all. I can only speak for myiself as each of us experienced these past five years uniquely. I will try to take my perception and express it in a manner that each one who reads will find a point or two that we can agree upon. It’s on these agreements that we must grasp onto and move forward to unify ourselves as a community and not as rival gangs.

I remember the excitement building for a moment in our country’s history to step higher in our climb to more Freedoms. I thought it  was time and we were ready to break down another wall that divides and forever change our future.  I believed that others envisioned a more unified and aspirated citizenry building on our dreams of being United. My dreams for the United States of America fell heavy in my gut about five days before the 2016 elections on Tuesday, November 8. Hope of a change in our history would not come.

Hindsight will eventually sort out the truth about the four years that followed. For myself, it would be four years of sorrow. Four years of ‘stepping aside’ because my cognition was shell shocked. And, it was a four year period in The USA where many would be shaken and the world at large unsure of what Americans were doing.

One truth was our nation was polarized by two ideals. Two completely different viewpoints of history, of our Constitutional interpretation, of our morality, our humanity, what ‘inalienable’ means, and to our surprise realizing our Democracy was cracking. Yet we thrived as a country of Capitalists. Which brought about the truth of the extreme inequities that were built in when The Constitution was signed.

Looking back, the past four years may be a blessing in disguise. Each side went through their own hardships. Fighting for ‘our side’ couldn’t be defined. Fighting for some were protests, almost repeats of past issues we thought had been laid to rest. Seething into these protests became a new rioter, ones who sought to advantage themselves and stain the message protesters desired to be heard. And the ‘anti-protestor’ that wanted to refocus the protesters issue to a mirror image of theirs that did not exist.

Our government was no longer unified in a structure that was familiar to anyone. It was an upheaval of the formal and a toss into the chaos of ‘everything is fake’. Trust was shattered for us all. If we didn’t trust the Administration and it’s subtlety of propaganda, or trust the media and its struggle to discover a truth that was changing daily, if not by the hour. Most of this fell to the admiration of our Populist, Charismatic leader or to our complete disdain for him. Even now if we dig deep we can see that this man was a hardship for America.

I first saw doom and gloom and despair and agony. Mostly because the other future I saw was ‘rosecoloured glasses’ with unicorns. It also would have been just as divided. Just as violent. And just as hateful for our country. Though in this other timeline the hate would not come from the top. It would have come from average citizen’s who perceptions were rooted into the concrete of 35 years of hate from the RNC.

It is only now tat I can view these hardships as a blessing, believing that we now understand we must face ourselves in the mirror and ask who we want to be.

Do we want to remain a leader in the world of democracy? Do we want to hold up to widest expanse the simplicity of the core Freedoms and structures of The Constitution. Do we want to be the opened gates willing to accept our nations true Glory, it’s humanity. Standing at the gates is a beacon of HOPE, The Statue of Liberty. She is ‘the mother of exiles’, a worldwide welcome. Actually holding a disdain for the wealth and power of nations that use it to oppress their peoples. Instead, she says ‘give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free(dom). Send these homeless, tempest-tossed (war torn) as she lifts her lamp beside our golden doors.

She is what represents the American Dream. Not wealth. But humanity.

I desire for our nation to take these next four years and reflect on our core, who we are and who we desire to be.

Those born here as citizens have not taken an oath to The Constitution as the immigrant who becomes naturalized. As a naturalized citizen from birth, I have privilege. My duty to America is not questioned as the immigrants is, though they paid a price to become a citizen.

Truly, why do fight each other? We The People lost their way when they lost faith in our democracy believing the lie that a vote does not count. Believing our words were not being heard. That our elections fraudulent. Look at history. Change has never come without hardship. If We The People truly believe our election results are fraud. We The People should accept the aid that we place upon other nations. International oversight meant to verify that everything was done to protect each person’s vote.

When that struggle rises above the hardship to become guidance, not only must we believe we must hope that it will benefit our future. Hardships that overcome are meant to bring healing and we must allow the healing.

We must believe in our democracy.

We The People must put hope that this experiment of a republic for the people and by the people is our HOPE. Our responsibility to The United States of America is to create an American Dream for all now and a legacy for our progeny.

Past, Present, Future

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Humans have a need to understand our place in the universes timeline. I wanted to talk how our moment of struggle to; fight for change, understand why we are where we are, why the history of this legacy is still negatively affecting our society and what we must do to create a world of equity.

Einstein had several theories on time. How humans created it. How humans view it. Mostly if time was linear or an infinite loop of repetition. In his statement, now called a sound byte, there can be many debates. Today I choose to write about my viewpoint of its simplicity.

Currently in The United States of America a 400 year timeline of oppression is a focus in the forefront and it is for our moment to face it, to deal with it and to solve it. As they say, ‘Once and for all’, a statement I believe has no infinity.

We have been joined by people around the world that understand this stumbling block is a global issue. Look at apartheid, did it solve the disparity, freedoms and equality of all citizens in South Africa. It did not. Much of the issues remained as they have in the USA when slaves were ‘freed’, but were they free? They most definitively were not equal and not offered the promise in the USA Constitution to “…promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity….”

Many say there is no White Privilege. I say that privilege was exclusively inalienable to the white Europeans that conquered North Americas USA territories. This has been and continues to be the norm. Yes, it is not currently anyone’s fault yet it is now our opportunity to correct this offence which has morally corrupted the USA’s flag and it’s meaning, unity.

This issue in the USA has been seething as an undercurrent and there is no amount of law that can bring it to the surface and solve its abasement. It is for We The People to wrestle it with a viewpoint of love not hate.

It is the moment that will decide our past, present and future.

Immigration, Insulation, Integration

One of our current political obsessions in the USA is focused on immigrants entering the country without obtaining documentation beforehand. This is not a new issue, nor has it not been addressed and enforced in the past with mixed outcomes. Attempts to curtailing these immigrant entries today are creating the exact opposite effect intended. More immigrants are now here.

Immigration in the USA has always been a mixed bag of successes and fears. A new nationality is fleeing from persecution, war, famine or just trying to have a better quality of life. What is the citizen response, typically it has always been the same. Fear. Taking our jobs. Foreign language. Foreign customs. Leaching off the government. Citizens yell, immigrants fear too; but in time everything settles and the fears subside. Until the next wave of immigrants.

The United States of American has consistently been compassionate in its responses and most typically attempt to aid the inclusion of the new immigrants. Immigration laws have changed as the country has grown, quotas being set and longer waiting periods to be nationalized. There was a time when you could be nationalized in a day. Now, it typically is 10-15 years.

Insulation is the current reaction to the fear of those fleeing their countries and hoping for a better life in the USA. In their desperation, and because they do not understand a democracy and how it works, their fear drives them to drastic behavior which is not only dangerous for them (remember the father and his child drowned in the river), it gives Americans a reason to fear.

Under the current administration which is ran by a fear and bullying politics, they have convinced Americans that only by Building a Wall can we stop this invasion. It is my opinion that by the time the wall is built, the ‘invasion’ will long be over and the money will have been spent in vain. That is why diplomacy first and drastic measures only if absolutely necessary.

During The United States of Americas history of immigration, immigrants tend to cling to each other and typically end up living in the same areas and building communities based on a mix of their culture with the added shine of Americas opportunities.

Integration is one of the most important components of our ‘melting pot’. Integration works well on an individual immigrant basis. Those that are here on student visas, work visas or have been accepted to apply for citizenship before leaving their country. These immigrants come alone and experience the immersion of American culture.

Historically there has always been lesser integration when large groups come together. Even as citizens, we push them into corners by name calling and disassociation. The exact opposite of what our Constitution desires its citizenry to be. And, likewise, from the immigrant view there is safety in numbers, so they move in numbers until they settle in a place where they can build community.

This process is repeated over and over and our current influx from Central and South America is no different than Jews, Poles, Italians, Europeans, Persians, Armenians etc.. Mexico is a part of North America as the USA and Canada. Diplomacy with Mexico has been crucial in slowing the tide, but lack the resources.

Instead of Insulation from Immigration, lets take the money from the wall and spend the billions on humanitarian efforts across the border. Instead of chaos and fear, this would aid in a steady Integration.

 

Mapping, Managing, Migrating

Many of us lose our way towards our destination, destiny or dream. And, sometimes it’s much larger than we are. As our country has the Constitution of the United States of America to be the map for its direction, we should be mapping our way towards where we want our destination to be.

The USA’s history is filled with wrong turns, missed turns and overturns of previous legislation, that needs modification, keeping our eyes on the Constitution for guidance. Here in the 21st century We The People are more divided about our direction than at any other time in our history. And it’s had an effect on all of us and some of us are questioning our leaders maps and if they are looking at the Constitution or their own philosophies or fears. This can happen with our life personally and that is a time to stop and step back, to not force forward without a clear and concise understanding of your map.

Managing a country takes a huge amount of resources; a Legislature to represent We The People as the powers of the Constitution has mapped, an Executive Office to question the Legislature and direct the countries course according with the powers it has been given in the Constitution , and a Supreme Court to tackle judicial challenges to our countries Constitution, Legislation and changes that must be justified as our country changes within the world around it and We The People change within it.

We too need managing of our map to keep our course corrected. Finding your compass does not have to be a ‘me’ thing, make it a ‘we’ experience. Yes, just flip the letter m upside down and your vision expands. Open up to others and ask questions, share yourself to your family, counselor and friends. Find a mentor who you feel is where you would like to be. As you change and your course needs correction, you will have assistance to plot new bearings and manage them.

Life doesn’t sit, even those some of us do. Life moves swiftly and we migrate by its shear energy. Sometimes unexpectedly. Sometimes planned. Migration is natural to the human species. The true Native Americans migrated with the seasons and learned from the earth, plants and animals around them guide their migrations. Simple and synchronous with time.

Managing life’s path can be as simple if you use your map to guide your migration.

 

Dilemma, Discipline, Dream

Forget about 2018, it’s over. In our Dilemma’s we maintained our positions and our goals, through Discipline we charted paths towards our Dreams. Through Dreams we will prevail in 2019.

Firmament, Feeling, Faceless

What does your Firmament consist of? For some it is on that which is within. For most is our family and friends. For a blessed few it is exploration-Free Thinking; travel-cultural exchange; open eyes-open minds. None of us however come close to understanding the vastness that our firmament is part of, all the peoples, all the world, all the universe. The humanity and in-humanity.

Most live in our Feelings of what the world, our firmament is. These feelings have been shaped by our culture, our primaries; family and friends, cities, counties, states and countries, sub-groups of the whole.

We are limited by our experience and exposure, making rash, sometimes bigoted and unfounded decisions about the larger firmament of our planet and all of its’ peoples without any true knowledge obtained. Mostly it based in fears and segregation.

With Modernity and its technology, we can no longer look into a Faceless people in a distant land emotionless, unless there is no humanity nurtured with us. That person has been suppressed within us by oppressive, closed minded and bigoted authorities in our lives.

Turning our heads or burying them in the sand is no longer an option. Building walls is no longer and option. War is no longer an option, unless we choose not to change our Feelings and remain in our shells segregated from humanity at large.

Our options, now, are: diplomacy, understanding, empathy and love. Without seeing the worlds faces we not only deny their humanity but also our own.

Energy, Essence, Eternity

Take a look in the mirror. What reflects back to you is the radiance of your ‘rest mass’, your energy as a stationary object.

This energy that you are comprised of has no creation and no destruction. Your organism is alive with your energy as your body is in constant movement. Your energy is a burning fuel that heats and radiates from you.

All functions of thought, auto functions of lungs breathing, heart beating, actions of walking, running, eating all expend energy in forms of kinetic, gravitational, electric, magnetic, elastic, chemical, thermal and radiant. Energy is your beginning, but not your ending.

Essence is what you have become, what you are here, now, in this moment. Essence is intrinsic, indispensable, abstract and what makes each of our ‘characters’ unique. Essence in this forum is your past meeting y our present, requiring you to participate in your prospective future.

Your essence is what radiates from you and is observed and experienced by others. Your essence is fluid, it can be altered by your nurturing and nature, by truth and propaganda, by trauma or comfort, by your intention, actions and reactions. You are in the ultimate control of your essence, how you alter it whether effectively or negatively.

Since energy never dies, is always fluctuating essentially you are eternal. Eternity is a measure that has no ending. Eternal, as the continuance of your energy is perceived differently between cultures, within cultures and may be a question never answered during this life’s moments.

Some of the different beliefs are of eternal existence in a place of comfort and abundance or a place of pain and scarcity. Others believe your energy is reconnected in a different form returning to live a new existence as a new creature, or that you pass from this consciousness into Nirvana, a state of universal consciousness where you are absorbed into the whole and no longer an individual.

Whatever the journey is, it is of energy from beginning to no ending.

Story, Situation, Solution

You are the author of your story. Each day you have lived is a page in your book of life. Writing this book within your mind you are creating your self, a character, your stories protagonist.

Being the thinking, creative beings that humans are, our selves are not one dimensional. Living in today’s world information is unlimited, education is universal, opportunities abound and experiences seem unlimited.

Your self has many chapters, situations of today, this moment in your history. In this situation, who are you? Are you your hero? Are you healthy and proactive, creating a character to be admired or even idolized. Do others look to you for inspiration, do you inspire  your self?

Or, are you your own antagonist? Are you struggling with issues from previous chapters. Are you creating obstacles? Or, are you trapped within a chapter that you can’t find the words to write your way out of?

Do you have and ending for your story? A solution. You will deal with situations each day, write your story and through your actions make solutions.

Maybe you have a goal, a long term solution that will take several chapters to write. Solutions are endings to the challenges in your life. Day to day, month to month, year by year you are solving your life.

Solutions are always ahead of you, waiting for you to write them.

 

Universe, Utility, Unknown

 

Your universe is made up of all your experiences. It started small, through dim eyes that had little focus and was controlled by forces beyond you. Your senses took in your environment and analyzed; cold, hot, soft, hard, sensual or painful. Your universe is what has made you and your universe grows, you become aware, you mature.

What you make of it is your utility. You have the ability to harness great power or be shocked into numbness. What is your utility? What benefits you? What is useful for your growth? What is profitable for your potential? It is in each moment of your utility that you have the power. You have the decision to act, to commit, to be silent, to drift.

What is unknown is where this power to take control will lead you. The unknown can be fearful. We can be paralyzed by it. The unknown can be exciting. We can be inspired by it.

 

 

Truth, Today, Tomorrow

Each of us have truth, the experience of life that you have come from. It is unescapable. It is a place that began out of your control. Where, when, what, who and often why are elements of life that as children we are thrust into.

When you were born you are placed in a historical point you can not change. Where you were born decides the culture you will be raised to believe and be grounded in. What events happen are in general out of  your control as the world is large and chaotic.

From these you stand today as a person affected by each of these. Much of what you believe, your perspective is trained into you by your surroundings. Who you are today may be engrained. But it is not unchangeable. Who you are, today, you can change to be something different tomorrow.

Why would you want to change? In this moment, today,  are you Happy? Sad? Loving? Hating? The elements you are in do not matter. It is your comprehension and questioning of the thoughts that shape the who and open you to the possibilities of why?

When today you question the why, you open up endless possibilities for your tomorrow.