Back to the Bare Basics
"We polish one another, and rub off our Corners and rough Sides by a sort of amicable Collision. To restrain this, is inevitably to bring a Rust upon Men’s Understanding ... a destroying of Civility, Good Breeding, and even Charity itself.” Lord Shaftesbury (philosopher, moral thinker)
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| This Poi tree sheds its flowers at the heart of the University of the West Indies campus: a wonderful visual metaphor for the beauty of balancing Nature and nurture. |
At least, that’s how I always promised to herald a return to the media; alluding to my strident, long time ago ended column, “Bitch’s Brew.”
What a loud, brash, indomitable word-warrior I used to be. So naked. So brave. I'm not quite that anymore, except in traces, shadings, corners of me from which I sometimes still come out to play.
But I think I'm stronger now, and weaker; less sure of what I am, but far more sure of what I don't ever want to be ... feeling my way forward like so many of us today, in this country, in this world, the way they are.
But I think I'm stronger now, and weaker; less sure of what I am, but far more sure of what I don't ever want to be ... feeling my way forward like so many of us today, in this country, in this world, the way they are.
The thing I want, more than anything, is for writing to be smooth again. For it not to be the troublesome, breaking, bittersweet labour that it has become. Writing used to be easy, as easy as closing my eyes. Now, after the rapes, it’s not easy any more.
Ah, made you sit up.
Ah, made you sit up.
Rapes? What rapes? The rapes perpetrated on me all along my life. The rapes perpetrated on you. The rapes more and more of us are now turning around and exacting on anyone who seems weaker than ourselves, on anyone who will let us.
These rapes are literal, metaphorical, psychological, emotional, cultural, political, medical, professional. Just know that today, when you look into any stranger’s eyes, that person has had some kind of rape inflicted on her/him ... as surely as you have had on you.
We have to make the rapes stop.
We have to make the rapes stop.
But how the hell do we do that? Not the way we’re going, that’s for sure.
Do we each honestly ever feel ourselves open and caring enough so that another person can look into our eyes and see empathy; hear our voice and words and sense kindness; face our smile so sincere they can only respond in kind?
More like war
When we look at many of our politicians, big business leaders, teachers, law enforcement officers, ourselves in the mirror, can we say that our intention toward our fellow human goes beyond making them fear us, worship us, desire us, come under our power or give us their money?
People see this happening. People feel this happening. People react to this happening.
This state of happening is more like war than peace. We are each a country besieged: hunkering down, hyper-vigilant, hurt yesterday, hurt today, already hardened against the hurt tomorrow – the hurt we have been conditioned to expect.
Thus, as in any war-torn time, at all levels of society people are exerting energy to attack, defend or protect themselves.
So this is where we are ... and we cannot keep hiding from it.
What do we do? We do something. I know that sounds simple, even silly; but it is simply sensible.
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| Differences can come together so beautifully and brighten up the bland |
Listen, it seems terribly impossible to think of baring your Self. Yet, that’s often what people do when they intend to make love.
So each one must try to take off, as best you can, all the hurt-crafted armour you’ve assembled around your true, loving, able, joyful soul, and let that better, less burdened, more deeply empowered you-know-who-you-are shine through.
Then seek out purpose and meaning in everything you willingly, or even not so willingly, have to engage in as you live this life.
If each of us, in whatever way we can, decide to do what we do towards the goal of making something better somewhere, sometime, for someone; if we do this all the time, or as often as we can, or just one time a day (one day at a time?), it is a mathematical fact that all these little “somethings” will add up to something more.
Take your talent, take your talk, take your time and make something good happen each and every day.
Doesn’t seem like much when said that way? Super. Then it should be easy to make a start.
Your mission: Strip. Search.
