Taking Off the Blinders

Acceptance is seeing with your heart,

Not with your eyes.

Anon

The quote above hangs outside my grandson’s 3^rd grade classroom.  What a great piece of wisdom for a young mind to catch each day.

I’ve talked with my grandson, as have his parents, about this quote and about bullying and doing the right thing - even when it’s the hard thing and about using words rather than fists to settle disputes. I suspect you, too, have shared some similar insights with the children in your life. I know educators do the same. I can’t remember if there was such a focus on all this when I was in grade school, but I also can’t remember any Columbines or Virginia Techs.

How did we come to a place in time where children kill themselves because of slanderous “posts” or “tweets,” and kill each other because their pain is too big to contain, where the elimination of prejudice seems to be going backwards not forward, where our government is tied up in time wasting power plays, where being the top dog means more than being the good dog?  We seem to have misplaced our knowing and have disregarded our connection to, and need of, one another.

We have forgotten that whether we’re a type A or B employee, a teenager insisting on wearing a snow cap all year long – inside and out, an overweight mom, a husband who prefers TV to dance class, we have, every one of us, the same basic desires:  to support our physiological needs with access to clean air, clean water, fresh food and basic healthcare, to be safe and secure where we live, work, play, and socialize, to belong and be loved by family and friends, to experience esteem through respect of ourselves and others, and to achieve a purposeful life.

And, we seem to have forgotten that every one of us, whatever the color of our skin, our religion, our sexual preference, our ethnic origins; whether we’re rich, poor, fat, slim, brilliant or average, is born into this word with just one emotion, love.  Everything else is learned.  Courage, integrity, honesty, patience, tolerance and right action are taught values.  As are, hatred, greed, cruelty, and bullying.  Every act, word, interaction we engage in is a lesson.  Nothing we do or say goes unnoticed. 

So, we must, every one of us, remember that we are teachers to not only our children but also to our partners on this earth and take responsibility, everyday, in every way to do the right thing and to be intolerant, not of people, but of ignorance and injustice. 

The capacity to bring about change is not just in the hearts of a few…it’s in every one of us.

The video below was the inspiration for today’s post.  I hope the music and images touch and inspire you as much as they did me. Enjoy!

Namaste -

Dorothy

 

 

Dorothy:  As the school year comes to an end, I’d like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the outstanding efforts of my grandson’s 3^rd grade teacher.  Her commitment, joy, patience, and love made this an amazing year for all of us!  Kudos, as well, to the rest of the remarkable men and women who dedicate their lives to the children who hold our future in their hearts and minds.  I am forever grateful to all the teachers…both paid and unpaid…who have, and continue to grace my life.  I am better for all your lessons.

Susan:   Thank you to all of the wonderful teachers that have come into my life and the lives of my family.  Each of you has had a profoundly positive impact.

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