oh hey bob, how're you doing? good. good. wife and kids okay? good. how bout them colts? good to see you bob. take care and give my love to the family...
and on and on the [bs] goes. just stop and think about 90% of the conversations people are having these days. it's all news. weather. sports. we are living in a current affairs society. there is nothing wrong with a news-weather-sports conversation except that, for the most part, it's all anyone is willing to discuss.
the stuff of real life seems to scare people away. no one really wants the honest answer to 'how are you?' these days. no one wants to hear ' well, actually dave, i think my marriage is falling apart and we worried how it will affect the kids.' neither does dave want to fess up that he misses his estranged brother and his heart hurts more every day because of it.
you see what i'm saying? even some of the simple real life stuff is too much for some people. the other day i was at a function and i got into a chat with an acquaintance and when i 'got crazy' (as i often do) and started talking about how difficult it was to adjust to a new social climate with racial and socio-economic tensions she almost tripped and fell as she RAN away from me. i am not being facetious, i think it was just too much for her. these are not the sort of things people should talk about at a party (?? i guess ??). i should have stuck to the weather.
i am just getting to the point where i am tired of pretending. acting like everything is abfab when sometimes - hey, sorry lala land citizens - it isn't! unless you live in a vacuum or a fairy tale, (and even in the fairy tales) you are guaranteed that the shizer is going to hit the fizer at least once for you. it's a guarantee. and if we continue to pretend with everyone all the time, we don't develop the ability to really need someone else to lean on. and for that to be okay.
but being in community is messy. it means that we have to be able to love each other through the shizer. just what God has called us to do. at the end of the day your situation may be different from my situation but sadness or anger or disappointment, even elation - these are all common emotions. i can and i want to be there for you through these things.
thankfully i have been blessed and/or lucky enough to find two friends (apart from dear Nathan) who give me the safe space to be me and i don't feel as though i will be judged by them.
i can't tell you how these women have shaped my simply by being the warm, open, loving arms of God without a hint or trace of judgment. this is how Christ's face is reflected. love your neighbour (no disclaimers or adjectives attached; i.e. not love your STRAIGHT neighbour or love our COMPATRIOT neighbour or love your BLACK neighbour - simply just love your neighbour.) and never stand by and let injustice prevail. do something. and not because it's 'the right thing to do' (that's ridiculous.) do something because you love the person or people upon whom the injustice is being perpetrated. because they ARE your brothers and sisters. (i'd like to note here that i think that if Jesus were walking on earth today, He'd probably be at the forefront of the gay rights movement.) (flinch)
(okay this is turning into a sermon but i just have to finish this thought and then i'm exiting the pulpit stage left!)
... bottom line: the fact is we are all ONE. i don't know how many different ways how many different people can say it but it is a fact. we all emanate from the same Spirit Who is the very breath that keeps us alive. The proper pronunciation of YHWH is the sound of an inhale/exhale. which means that every single person that breathes is calling up on the name of God. are we not then, all the same? brown pink beige yellow man woman rich poor smart not-so-smart gay or straight - we are all born of the same Creator in His and Her image.
i had this wild thought the other day when i was trying to work through my being-comfortable-in-my-skin issues and the thought is this: if we are made in God's image what if when I finally meet Her on the other side of this life, what if She looks just like me? And in the same token, just like you? and to every single person, they would see themselves in this God/Goddess. isn't that wild?
peace | love | love some more
No comments:
Post a Comment