Sept 2nd, 2012
Life is good here. No, it’s FANTASTIC here. I thought I was walking into this to offer my help and knowledge. But it seems I have learned far more here than I ever counted on.
Never before have I been surrounded by people who…despite the fact that they barely know me…call me ‘family’. My soul has ached to be in a community like this for it all these years. They go completely out of their way to help each other. They are so inviting…so living the spirit of ubuntu (“I am who I am because of who everyone around me is”)....so enlivened by faith….so good at solving problems. Not ignoring conflict, but taking them head on without disrespecting the other party/parties. Centered on restorative- rather than retributive- justice.
And so good at taking action.
Because I very much admire Gandhi, I brought an entire stack of his quotes with me to Africa. Some of my favorites have to do with taking action…rather than waiting for God to intervene…or worse, doing nothing. We, in the US, have become huge push-overs. We are the poster children for ignoring the elephants in the room. Worst of all, it’s hard to ignore the soaring numbers of people who say they are ‘angry’, ‘outraged’, ‘saddened’…and yet, they are little more than words. If you see the issue and yet do little more than talk about it or even say a prayer for it…well, that’s all good and well, but that’s easy. Taking action, putting your emotional health on the line, making sacrifices, using your hands & feet to bring change…that’s hard. You can’t cower behind words alone and expect a pat on the back. Why? Because you have to be willing to be in the minority, to stand up when others may stand against you (even if this means your family and friends), you have to be radical enough to- as gently as you can- ruffle some feathers in order to cause change.
“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.”-Mahatma Gandhi
Anyone can see a problem, but only the bold actually do something about it. You don’t have to run what you believe over people with a bulldozer, but hey, you have to stand firm. I know someone will probable read this message and be offended by it, but hey, at least I stuck up for justice, right?
Please, take a minute to really take in the following quotes (all by Gandhi). It is my hope and prayer that every one of you writes their meanings deep in your hearts.
“To give pleasure to a single heart with a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer”
“To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest”
“For me, every ruler is an alien that defies public opinion”
And my favorites…
“If you are neutral in times of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has it’s foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality”
“A ‘no’ uttered from the deepest conviction id better than a ‘yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.”
I wish I could shake this man’s hand.
I don’t by any means have the intention of bashing the US. I love my home and I am proud to be an American. But I also believe that if we were to adopt some of the aforementioned concepts, it might suffice to wipe out a large chunk of the problems in our country. I look at the problems they have here in Africa and see very tangible problems….lack of food, clean water, shelter, absence of disease. And yet, you can not find the kind of joy that the Tanzanians have anywhere in the US. Why is that?
Because we have forgotten how to solve conflicts, and instead opt to walk away. We choose to see problems, but do nothing to stop them. Because we expect God to do all the work. Because independence has because more important than interdependence. Because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
“Action expresses priorities.”- Gandhi
Is your priority to smooth over injustice for the sake of keeping harmony, or is your priority to cause change, trading temporary insecurity for the greater good in the long run?
I raise you all a big, bold move.
Life is good here. No, it’s FANTASTIC here. I thought I was walking into this to offer my help and knowledge. But it seems I have learned far more here than I ever counted on.
Never before have I been surrounded by people who…despite the fact that they barely know me…call me ‘family’. My soul has ached to be in a community like this for it all these years. They go completely out of their way to help each other. They are so inviting…so living the spirit of ubuntu (“I am who I am because of who everyone around me is”)....so enlivened by faith….so good at solving problems. Not ignoring conflict, but taking them head on without disrespecting the other party/parties. Centered on restorative- rather than retributive- justice.
And so good at taking action.
Because I very much admire Gandhi, I brought an entire stack of his quotes with me to Africa. Some of my favorites have to do with taking action…rather than waiting for God to intervene…or worse, doing nothing. We, in the US, have become huge push-overs. We are the poster children for ignoring the elephants in the room. Worst of all, it’s hard to ignore the soaring numbers of people who say they are ‘angry’, ‘outraged’, ‘saddened’…and yet, they are little more than words. If you see the issue and yet do little more than talk about it or even say a prayer for it…well, that’s all good and well, but that’s easy. Taking action, putting your emotional health on the line, making sacrifices, using your hands & feet to bring change…that’s hard. You can’t cower behind words alone and expect a pat on the back. Why? Because you have to be willing to be in the minority, to stand up when others may stand against you (even if this means your family and friends), you have to be radical enough to- as gently as you can- ruffle some feathers in order to cause change.
“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.”-Mahatma Gandhi
Anyone can see a problem, but only the bold actually do something about it. You don’t have to run what you believe over people with a bulldozer, but hey, you have to stand firm. I know someone will probable read this message and be offended by it, but hey, at least I stuck up for justice, right?
Please, take a minute to really take in the following quotes (all by Gandhi). It is my hope and prayer that every one of you writes their meanings deep in your hearts.
“To give pleasure to a single heart with a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer”
“To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest”
“For me, every ruler is an alien that defies public opinion”
And my favorites…
“If you are neutral in times of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has it’s foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality”
“A ‘no’ uttered from the deepest conviction id better than a ‘yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.”
I wish I could shake this man’s hand.
I don’t by any means have the intention of bashing the US. I love my home and I am proud to be an American. But I also believe that if we were to adopt some of the aforementioned concepts, it might suffice to wipe out a large chunk of the problems in our country. I look at the problems they have here in Africa and see very tangible problems….lack of food, clean water, shelter, absence of disease. And yet, you can not find the kind of joy that the Tanzanians have anywhere in the US. Why is that?
Because we have forgotten how to solve conflicts, and instead opt to walk away. We choose to see problems, but do nothing to stop them. Because we expect God to do all the work. Because independence has because more important than interdependence. Because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
“Action expresses priorities.”- Gandhi
Is your priority to smooth over injustice for the sake of keeping harmony, or is your priority to cause change, trading temporary insecurity for the greater good in the long run?
I raise you all a big, bold move.