I got a call from an old friend the other day. I really appreciated the call. I also received some cards, flowers, and well wishes, that felt good too. It's good to know people care about you, and it's good to care about people too.
Every so often, it is good to consider who cares about you, and also to think about how you show your care too.
It is also good to consider who doesn't care about you--the people that work against you, why they work against you, and what you should do.
Sadly, when it comes to people who don't care about me, there is more of a systematic thread than a personal thread. In life, some systems were set up against me as a young girl, woman, teacher, and caretaker--those systems, in many ways, were focused on the ambition of a few rather than the the mission of an organization, community, or group. I am thinking about this oppression that I experienced, and the oppression that others experience in systematic, harmful ways. I am thinking about how we can rid our culture of oppressive systems--the kinds of systems that obstruct human rights and good living.
I heard a Capitol police officer talk during a television interview today. I ached as I listened to the systematic racism, oppression, and danger he experienced at the Capitol Insurrection. I was sick as I thought of the fact that many national leaders sanctioned that violence, harm, and racism. What can we do?
For starters, it is essential to recognize everyone's right to live their best possible lives free of racism, oppression, hate, and injustice of any kind. Too many in the world today still cause great suffering amongst people--we have to work against this.
In our own lives, we can begin by standing up to and working against any acts of injustice we face or support in any way. And we also need to join organizations that also work against this inhumanity. Further we have to educate ourselves about how to work for betterment, how to obstruct injustice and inhumanity, and how to work for better living for all.
Leaving my teaching career, in part, because of unjust actions, I have a new vantage point. I am adjusting to this new place and the fact that I see the world differently. I am finding my new paths, and as I travel this road, I want to be cognizant about who cares about people, justice, and good living--those are the kinds of people I want to look to for leadership, camaraderie, and positive challenge. Onward.