I know I promised a story on Anxiety. And believe me, it's being written. But after some recent events I was inspired to take a break from what I was working on and write this...If one person is inspired then I am grateful.
Of Elephants and Donkeys
Most of my close friends know that I was never really into politics. I've had a few people come to me recently asking "Why the switch?" Well, becoming a parent changes a lot. My worry and concern for my child's future has become paramount. All Children really.
Last month I met an older gentleman in a restaurant at the airport. It was the night of the police shootings in Dallas. As we watched the horrific reports on TV we started to talk. This man said something that really inspired me and made me wish that our world could one day think like him.
He told me he was and has always been a die-hard Republican. He went on to say that he thought Bill Clinton was a fantastic President. He said he voted for George W. Bush his first 4 years and then did not vote for him in his second term as he no longer thought he was the correct person to be Commander and Chief. He told me that he had always voted for the person not the party. He went on to mention many Presidents through history that he respected and thought did a wonderful job. He surprised me when he then said he could not even remember what party some of those Presidents represented. I thought "Wow! how great would it be if everyone was like that?"
There are many things that the Republican party represents that I support and agree with. There are just as many from the Democratic party. I feel I am truly an Independent. And I don't know what's wrong with that. I have recently been blasted from people from both parties for what they call "Cop Out" political beliefs. They have basically said that by not choosing a side I am sticking my head in the sand. It's astonishing to me because that is exactly what I feel they are doing; just going along with the status quo and accepting things "The way they are". I stand firm when I say that just because this is the way it's always been does not mean it's the way it has to remain.
Some of the smartest people I have ever known seem completely ignorant to this. I do not think it's an opinion. Things are not working this way. The two-party system has become an absolute joke. And those of us who get that are the ones laughing...sometimes crying to be honest. When 9/11 happened I had never seen such unity and total commitment and love for each other. People who you'd never met would literally just hug you out of nowhere. No one cared what color your skin was, if you were gay or straight, Democrat or Republican. We were all hurting Americans and we had a passion to comfort and support one another.
Almost 15 years later that has all been forgotten. We are now pitted against each other, demanding what we want and have no interest in listening to the needs of others. It's ugly and heartbreaking to behold. The change we need will never be accomplished by one man or woman living at The White House. The change will come from us; You and the man that sits next to you at work; Me and the lady in front of me at the grocery store; Our children, who are taught to love and respect themselves and others.
To those people both Republican and Democrat who tell me this idyllic way of thinking is naive and can never be accomplished, I will ask you how you know this assessment to be fact? And then I will inquire from you this; What if Susan B. Anthony accepted she was "just a woman" or what if Martin Luther King kept his dreams to himself? What if Harvey Milk did not stand up and proudly claim who he was? Where would we be if these courageous dreamers had not decided to challenge the system they knew to be wrong?
Change starts with me...and it starts with you. We all bleed the same color and we are all born with love in our souls first.
I will end my post here and with one of my favorite quotes.
"It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
As always....thank you for reading.