A Collision of Ideologies
Sometimes, I sink into thinking that we may all be a bit too far apart to ever come together again.
It's a sad little space I often occupy these days. But then, on an afternoon walk, we saw this house.
The two signs in the photo (one saying "Black Lives Matter" and the other saying "A Woman's Place is in the Resistance"), were placed right next to a "Pritzker Sucks" sign in the same yard, but out of frame.
JB Priztker is the Democrat governor of Illinois, who has been slowly opening the state, and advocating for mandatory masks... Just for some context if you do not live in IL.
I wasn't sure what to make of the variety. Black Lives Matter, feminism, and sentiments I regularly associate with republican and conservative values?! All hanging out, doing their thang in the same yard?!
It was a total head-scratcher for me.
I was completely thrown by the spectrum of ideology being boldly expressed in the same household.
It was beautiful and transformative.
If I am being honest with myself, I feel like I might have always had something to prove (cringe), even though I'm not even sure what it was I was trying to prove, or where that impulse came from... and that might have been the mind-soil in which I planted, harvested, and survived from.
And by "might have", I mean "definitely probably was". Pretty sure.
I would hope since always, but especially from here on out... I'm listening with an open heart and mind, and always-always remembering that you and I are technically one in the same... You are my brother and my sister. Your voice is important.
And when I speak, it will be from a place that is not trying to prove anything, but rather, a humble heart-to-heart share in the hopes that you will grow from my perspective, as much as I grow from you, and looking at life through your lens.
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Conclusion: I am so beyond grateful for the variety of spirit we all bring to the conversation. I apologize for any ignorance I've ever shown anyone at any point. I promise... I'm working on it, my love.