Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, is quoted as saying "change is the only constant in life." Change is something we either deny or embrace. But it still exists whether we like it or not.
My grandfather's tractor is still parked in his chicken house (now void of chickens) because he kept it running one way or another. It was the simple fact that we couldn't afford to buy something new that would prompt us to make or fix things with our own hands. We were resourceful and were taught to never waste. "They just don't make 'em like they used to" is a very apt adage when referring to my generation. Things were truly made to last when I was a kid. But times change. Eventually the manufacturers figured out that things must break in order to keep selling them and make a profit. And in a capitalist country that's what it's all about. But can capitalism last forever? Eventually it becomes top heavy and falls. (Insert argument with my high school economics teacher here) Does communism really work? It seems to me categorizing and controlling people goes against the human need to explore and expand mentally, physically and spiritually. And fascism offers the same problems. So what's left in a democratic society? Some would argue that democracy is dead in this country. Personally I think it's gotten pretty beat up but it's still here. In my generation many of us were taught that socialism and communism go hand in hand. But this is not necessarily true. Especially when we are talking about democratic socialism. The meaning of the word social is "as a society". And we are a society of citizens of the United States. With rights and privileges that many other countries are not afforded. And we should never abandon those freedoms. Witnessing the last political election, handing over of the office, powers and responsibilities that go along with it, made it clear to me; approximately half the people in this country are desperately grasping to hold on to the past. The irrational grasping for a by-gone era is inevitable in a country (and world) in transition. But we cannot move backward any more than we can put rain drops back in the clouds, we will move forward into a new era of unknowns, like it or not. These unknowns, as all unknowns, provoke fear. Fear tends to increase the insecurities and our grasping turns into panic as though we are falling over a waterfall, to what? I believe we already know. The transition into a global economy is inevitable. Change can mean upheaval to some degree, and there will be differences in opinion on exactly "how" to move forward. Some have mentally reverted back to a time where, in their mind, America was great and are trying to go back to those social rules and boundaries causing the hard work of women's suffrage, equal rights for people of color and the advances in the general health of the planet, (and much more) to backslide. Creating more fear, more frustration and more work to find our way back to even ground. The pendulum has swung far to the right and as history has shown us it will swing back to the left. As a Buddhist practitioner I see this as a fabulous opportunity to practice the middle way. History has also shown us that neither extreme will work. Only finding a middle way through open minded compromise and listening to each side with an open and compassionate heart will we find a way to move forward. Like playing tug of war with a rope one side is always pulled unwillingly to the other. But what happens when both sides stop pulling? The rope goes slack and each side can come together and find a way to bring our country, its economy, and the people, all the people, gently into this new era. When fear takes hold of us we react in fight or flight or go into a state of denial where we refuse to accept what is. But we need not be ruled by fear. In the face of injustice our denial is most often expressed in the form of anger. Fortunately anger is not always expressed in violence. We can temper our anger with compassion and give ourselves the ability to rise above the injustice with virtuous strength. Using compassion toward ourselves for feeling angry, and compassion toward the oppressor and the oppressed allows us the opportunity to see all sides without violence,opening a door to solutions. With the cohesion of anger softened by compassion we allow the flexibility to change rather than the hard line of ultimatum. Realistically we will never all agree. But we can find a way to peacefully disagree while we work things through. The countries of this world have given us many history lessons over the millennia and hopefully we have learned a great deal. How we choose to move forward into a new era will be unstable at first. Like a newborn calf standing on wobbly legs. Yet we know we can stand with strength and on solid ground, if we stand together with compassionate and open hearts. *Joanie Lane is a Meditation Teacher, Reiki Master/Teacher, Spiritual & Life Coach, and Healing Movement Qigong Leader. She lives in Kelseyville, Ca. at her meditation center "A Positive Light". For more information visit her website at apositivelight.com **These are original writings by Joanie. Any quotes by others that have been included have been identified.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |