I
have asked this before, but I still want to know.
What
does any of it mean? Why are we here? Why do we so easily give in to hate and
resist giving in to love? Why is aggression okay but the way of peace is
not? Why are we all so afraid? And of
what?
Are
we, as religion teaches, just evil at heart? Are we already ruined at birth? Is
it in our DNA to make wrong choices, so that we require an outside force, God
or Karma or Allah or whomever, to coerce us to do good, through threats of
punishment, suffering, damnation, and hell? Are we not able to do that on our
own without being forced?
I
believe we are. I know too many good, decent people who are not driven by evil
and selfishness. But unfortunately, they are always overshadowed, especially
today, by an ugly, arrogant, mean-spirited crowd of self-aggrandizers, who are bitter,
angry people. People obsessed with fears and prejudices and resentments.
These
people are all around us. In the government. In the media. In churches. On
Facebook and Twitter. In our communities. Neighbors. Co-workers. Employers.
I
am not interested in shallow thinking and petty arguments. I’m tired of
strutting bullies and imposters, ego-driven people thinking they are above the
law, that morality is only what serves them, that having a set of personal values
you attempt to live by make you weak and helpless.
Give
me people who are open-minded, who love nature and the magic of life. Surround
me with those who can laugh at themselves and whose laughter makes me laugh,
too. Bring me those who are not afraid to love, who have overcome their
defeating fears and have the courage to respect those different from themselves
and their own beliefs.
I
want to know people who still follow the law, who respect justice for all, who
believe the government is not a menace but a system to help keep America a land of
freedom and opportunity.
I
have no use or need for loud bluster, for the shrill voices of crooks and
incompetents, of blowhards and pretenders. Of those who think they are always
right, that everyone else is a lightweight and a pushover. I want them to have
another think coming.
Give
me beautiful souls, people who have explored their own hurts and failures and
have grown into a larger life. These are the heroes who can show us the way.
I
don’t want children today to believe it is only a dangerous world where people
all around them are ready to hurt them. I don’t want teens and young adults to
think there is nothing sacred in life, that everything revolves around them,
that they have no responsibility to themselves or others. And fortunately, there are massive numbers of progressive young people today who are already proving they are responsible, that they love their country and they will with courage and resolve fight for climate change and peace in the world.
There
is so much wisdom to be absorbed. There are books of substance, and older
adults who have lived well and have stories of love to tell. There are people
of faith and no faith who have lived out years of caring living and still shine
with an aura of dignity, joy, and compassion. There are community leaders who
don’t complain and argue and find fault all the time, but who have a vision of
unity, of togetherness, of shared goodness that creates multiple opportunities
for prosperous, healthy living and neighborhood growth.
Give
me those people as my friends, as mentors, as those who make life a wonder and
a treasure.
Aren’t
we all hungry for that? Don’t most of us want to live a life of meaning that we
share with people who inspire and teach us, who affirm our gifts and don’t
enable our fears and anger?
I
cannot stop thinking about what the poet Tyler Kent White wrote, “I promise /
if you keep searching for everything beautiful / in this world / you will
eventually become it.”
If
you want meaning in life, as I do, let’s follow that.
©
2019 Timothy Moody
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