If I didn’t know you…

Posted on by serenitisparkles

By knowing one another intimately, empathy develops. Empathy is the ability to understand and share feelings of another. It is experienced as one human being moves through the world and connects with other humans and life forms. It is the only tool that can combat hate toward one another. It can not be taught and must be individually learned.

There are countless stories of people becoming friends after generational family racism and hate. All it took was for one person to sit at a table with the other. Every moment captured in the presence of someone who differs from them is a moment that can change the course of a that person’s life.

The reason so many generations before us relied on separation and hate was because in many instances, integration and true connective moments didn’t exist.

There are still places in this world where one type of person has never met another type of person. Whether the difference be race, religion, gender, or sexual preference, there are some communities that are simply ignorant to being in the presence of the other.

Ignorance is the greatest threat to empathy. It is necessary that we are able to find a common ground for all of humanity to realize that we are much more similar than we are different.

Our deepest wishes and hopes for ourselves and our family members almost mirror that of anyone else despite their differences.

Once a person walks with another through different life experiences, that person begins to see the world through the other persons eyes.

Our differences make us interesting, but our similarities will allow us to have the compassion that we need to not destroy each other.

In the end, we bleed the same, dream the same, and fight for what we love.

Choice and Acceptance; Our Human Right

Posted on by serenitisparkles

Does anyone really know what is best for you? Does anyone understand what is in the depths of your soul? Probably not. Because everyone of us is given a different perspective, drawn from the moment we enter into this existence.

So often we hear of governments, religions groups, our own families telling us what to choose and what is accepted.

Is that their story to tell? What is it about anyone or anything that could possibly give them the right to define which way your life should go?

Think about it. Think hard. When you lay awake at night, in your deepest thoughts, are you thinking about what others want, or do you think about what you want and what YOU feel?

When you think about these desires, are you held back from them because of another person’s opinion? What makes them have so much control over you. Why would you give them authority over the one most sacred human right; Your Choice? Your choice will define your existence. The voice in your head and heart will continue to tell you the way. How could you stop what is for YOU? What type of power in all of human existence should be given to one over another?

Choice should be recognized as our most basic human right.

You do not have to agree with my choices, you do not have to understand the why behind them, but you must accept them. They are mine and should be mine alone to make. If I choose to do something to benefit the feelings of another person, then I must make that choice. If I should choose a path that a religious group doesn’t agree with, it is still my choice for them to accept.

We are not given many freedoms in this world. In fact, at every turn, power, money, and government , chips away at our choice and enforces their own. But when we hold the control to walk in the direction that most fulfills us. WHO should have enough hold over us to take that away. CHOICE IS FOR ME ALONE, ACCEPTANCE IS FOR YOU. The path of my choices will teach me what I am to learn, and no one and nothing should be able to take that away. Live in the custom reality that was made just for you, and don’t allow others to take you from that.

We create the box, and then try to fit

Posted on by serenitisparkles

However metaphorical this blog seems, it is actually a very simple concept of what we as humans have become. Once born, we enter the world with no preconceived notion about the world around us except what has been in us for eternity. Our souls are as pure as nature and all its elements. Yet, we as a human race grew into this existence with one defining truth of whom we would become. Our energy flows just like the river. It finds its feeling in the movements of us as living beings. It is taught everything it will become as it develops.

Our human existence has the ability to be in the state, whichever state it chooses, yet we as people decided that we would put restraints on every aspect of our nature. Rules, regulations and laws, though finite in principal are merely a creation of the laws decided on amongst ourselves.

Our natural state as humans is to feed off of the energy of the world around us and every living being it crosses paths with.

So now let’s talk about the box or boxes that were created just as boxes are made. They are structured and definite in nature, and sized in relation to those who create it. They are not meant to be fluid or adjusted as they are a fixed element on earth.

We have created many boxes in every category of human nature. Love, feelings, appearance, speech, and thoughts have all been targeted as elements to fit inside of these set boxes.

The reality is, that what lives in us is much more abstract than that. Every single human on this planet has what is called the human factor, or the ultimate level of consciousness. A piece of every one of us that falls outside of each box. Every human, no matter how much they try and define themselves, find it hard to fit in much of anything. It isn’t we are not “normal”. It is that we were never meant to be.

With the age of social media, so many of us have been more enlightened than ever. We’ve opened our eyes and our understanding to humans across the globe like never before. We have seen into the eyes of someone on the other side of the planet and they are relatable in one way or another.

We were meant to be relatable, and different at the same time. We were made with the uniqueness of our inner self. We are finally finding our voices to break the systematic boxes set before us by the “Rules”. The world is heading toward a new day. The day we finally accept that we all have that factor within us that allows us to bridge the gap and break through the boxes. I can’t wait for a more conscious world and more accepting humans.

I love you, despite your ignorance…

Posted on by serenitisparkles

As the people of the world grow more intolerant of things they do not agree with or understand, I say, this is not going to end well. Ignorance of the unknown is all this boils down to because the power of human interaction is much stronger than that.

For example…

Little Jimmy grows up in a household where the theme is everything white. He is taught that ALL white people are good people and anyone that looks different must be watched out for. His family lives in the country with a few neighbors, all of caucasian decent. Jimmy plays with big toy trucks and has his boxer puppy as a companion. Jimmy is also slightly mentally disabled and has a hard time interacting with others. He says racist remarks towards others without understanding what he is saying. He watches as his parents celebrate the hate he spews. All Jimmy knows as he grows is what surrounds him in his small world.

Then there is little Shayla. Shayla grows up in the projects where all that surrounds her is black. Her mom and grandma teach her that the white man is the reason for all that is wrong with their world. They teach her that white people can’t be trusted. The only interaction Shayla had with white people is when the white police officers come to harass her neighbors and brothers. Shayla is taught to stay away from the police because nothing good ever comes from talking to them. Shayla grows up only seeing the world from her perspective.

Jimmy is now a grown up who works in a factory. He still lives in the country and is even more pro-white because of the many years living within his surroundings. He joins in on hate speech on a regular basis. Jimmy now has 2 little boys that he is raising with his wife. He is responsible for their teachings and what they will become.

Shayla is still living in the same projects she grew up in. She wasn’t doing well in school so she dropped out early and now lives with the father of her new baby. She has also grown up with the understanding that white people haven’t done anything for her and they are not to be trusted. Everything around Shayla is depressed. She doesn’t see a light at the end of her tunnel so she keeps perpetuating the lie that all white people are bad.

Within these two scenarios, can you see how their story could change? Can you see an opportunity to give them knowledge other than what they have been brought up to know?

I can. What if Jimmy met someone that was black and that person didn’t shy away from him because of his ignorant comments or lifestyle? What if Shayla met a white person that wasn’t offended by Shayla’s beliefs about white people? What if those people loved Shayla and Jimmy despite their prejudice? What if they continued to try to understand where it all came from? What if they decided to stand by Shayla and Jimmy no matter what to show them that good people can come into your life in many different shades?

If more people went toward the hate, enforcing love and understanding, we would have a chance to change perspectives. But if you just allow Shayla and Jimmy to sit in their world and feel that you hate them back, they will never have the opportunity to change. Hate combatting hate is the same as putting fire on a fire, it will only get bigger until it destroys us all. Combatting hate with love and putting water on the fire is the only way that we won’t implode.

That is why I say to all people, I love you, despite your racism…

Is COVID-19 proving the Gaia Theory?

Posted on by serenitisparkles

The Gaia Theory proposes that living organisms interact with their inorganic surroundings on Earth to form a synergistic and self-regulating, complex system that helps to maintain and perpetuate the conditions for life on the planet.

The theory states that as Earth’s population increases, and becomes overpopulated, the Gaia (mother nature), will rid the Earth of inhabitants by things such as natural disasters, tragic events caused by man, environmental change, and disease.  

It is quite simple to understand when you think about it.  Though you can’t see it happening, every minute of the day we lose about 30,000 to 40,000 dead skin cells off the surface of our skin.  New skin is constantly being created on our bodies and because of this natural shed of skin, our skin maintains it’s purpose.  The new skin cells gradually push their way to the top layer. When they reach the top, they die and are “weathered” by the environment and your daily activities.  Eventually, the dead cells break away from the epidermis and fall off, making room for newer cells growing up from below.

It is the natural cycle that lives all around us.  

Let’s use another example of Earth’s natural cycle.  Our body temperature is controlled by thermoregulation.   Your brain controls thermoregulation. When it senses your internal temperature becoming too low or high, it sends signals to your muscles, organs, glands, and nervous system.  It responds accordingly.  For instance;

If your body needs to cool down, you may start sweating.  If you need to heat up, you may start to shiver.

Self-regulation is all around us.  It can be found in the tiniest of organisms to the entire atmosphere.

In the Gaia theory, COVID-19 would be a self-regulatory act of the Earth.  It would be one way that the Earth combats overpopulation and the detrimental impact of human greed on Earth.  8 out of 10 people that die from COVID-19 are over the age of 65.  This means that out of the 773,000 deaths brought upon by this disease, 618,000 were elderly.  If you believe in the Gaia Theory, this statistic is shocking evidence that as the Earth’s population grows, the Earth teaches us that the cycle can’t be broken.  No matter the advances in modern medicine, Gaia will make a way for the young to enter the cycle and the old to exit.

Comment below with your thoughts.

Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, and the Pandemic

Posted on by serenitisparkles

The entire world has been shut down in order to defeat COVID-19 from spreading and killing millions of people.  Governments have closed their borders and ordered people to shelter in place.  The US did too, until it was summertime.

Summertime in the US means beaches, pools, parties, vacations, and fun.  Even with COVID lurking at our doorsteps, killing our loved ones, we can’t help ourselves.   While many countries in the world are still stuck inside, state by state, the US began to open it’s doors.  Some states, like FL and Georgia, jumped into summertime too soon.  Georgia and Florida are among the states that are seeing their highest daily numbers to date.   Yet, still, no shelter in place order.

I reside in Georgia and I can tell you exactly why we are climbing in COVID cases rapidly.  It’s quite simple.

I will break it down by using two of the countries biggest corporations.  Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts.

While out driving to different locations to do estimates, I went in to Starbucks to order my coffee and began by heading to bathroom to wash my hands.  I was reprimanded by someone in the back yelling, “BATHROOMS ARE CLOSED”.

There was literally no one in the building but me, my boyfriend and the employees, but I understood their position and left.  Not because the bathroom was closed, but because of the way the employee yelled at me, assuming I should know the rules of COVID restrictions today.

I headed around the corner to Dunkin Donuts where I proceed to do the same.  As my boyfriend ordered our coffees, I go to the bathroom.  Again, it was only us and the employees.  I used the bathroom, came out, grabbed my coffee and went about my day.  NO REPRIMAND or assumption of what I should know.

So let’s analyze this story and we will see why we can’t seem to contain this pandemic.  Two businesses, located within half a mile of each other, same product, two different rules regarding the pandemic.

How are we, the American people supposed to get a handle of how to stay safe during this pandemic, if our governors and business leaders can’t agree on what to do?

Until we have a universal order, enforced by all states in a uniformed way, COVID will run ramped among us.

Teach them…

Posted on by serenitisparkles

2020 has brought clarity to everything around us.  It has exposed our greatest fears and highlighted our greatest love.  It has brought us to our knees with humility.  Through the Pandemic, the Economic Downfall, and Civil unrest, we have been given our most important opportunity.

It is our time to teach the future generations the most vital lessons of today.  We can wait no longer to be conscious of what humanity has the power to do, both for good and evil.  If we do not teach them what these lessons are, there may not be a bright future.

So let’s begin,

Covid-19 came in like a tornado and has wiped over 100,000 Americans from the face of the earth.  It has caused many to lose the people they cherish most in an instant.  The ripple effect of all of those deaths has caused us to understand that everyone’s life can inadvertently cause someone’s death.  We are humbled.  Take care of you, take care of your neighbor, life depends on it.

 

The Economic downfall has caused people to lose their homes, their savings, and their stability.  Like an earthquake, it all started to crack.  The floor beneath us started to fall out.  Work hard and save because you don’t know if tomorrow will be a day the floor is no longer there.

 

And finally,  the Civil unrest.  This is what happens to a nation of people who have been silenced for too long.  Complacency can be the enemy if you allow it to live within you.  Accepting the mistreatment of others can also kill.  Without saying a word, you can take part in allowing a system to harm the people it represents.  More than ever, in 2020, we understand that we have to speak up, our lives depend on it.

 

As we smile around the world through our selfies and group photos, we are missing our sparkle.  We are losing our light as hopelessness grows within all of us.  Teach them that strength and respect for one another can save us.  Teach them to walk back into the light we once knew.  Teach them so that the smiles of the future will never be so grim.  Teach them…

Rayshard Brooks told us in one interview how we can start to change the system

Posted on by serenitisparkles

A man’s life was taken by the police this month in Atlanta.  We watched again as the video played out his death.  We witnessed the inhumane treatment of this human life.  Everyone around the world is asking, what can we do?  What if we knew first hand how a victim of police killing felt?  What if we heard it in their own words?

Watch as Rayshard Brooks tells the nation how we can start to change a broken system.  Watch as he defines what rehabilitation looks like.  I, personally, am so grateful we have such words for this very moment in our nation’s history.

 

 

The C word VS the N word and why they are not the same.

Posted on by serenitisparkles

“Cracker” is what I would be referred to at times and it never bothered me.  Not because it wasn’t derogatory, but because it literally held no actual weight on society as I knew it.  “Crackers” weren’t systematically oppressed.  “Crackers” weren’t being targeted by the police.  Being a “Cracker” didn’t affect your place in society.  “Cracker” was just a word.

Many people ask well “if the N word is so bad to say, then why isn’t the C word as bad” One is a word and the other torments you.  One word is used as a clap back and the other is used to cut you.  One is the word of the moment, the other is a word derived from the cruelest moments in our nation’s history.

Other people ask the question, “Why can’t I say the N word if Black people say it to each other?’  

It is because THAT is their word.  The N word has been used as a racial slur and a representation of the oppression for centuries.  Since the blood was first placed on the white hand by the slavery they instilled in this nation.  That blood, stains.  Every time a white person says the N word, it cuts like a knife in an open wound.  The N word represents all that is wrong with White vs. Black in this country.   Our Black American citizens decided that rather than let this word be used against them, they keep it.   That by being so restrained in its use, it gives white Americans (specifically) a taste of what it is like to not be entitled to “do anything they please, anywhere.”

So no, the C word will never be equal to the N word because Black Americans have never been offered that same opportunity.  They have been kneeled on by the power of government and law in a country that’s primary principle is that All Men Were Created Equal and All Men Deserve Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

So “Crackers”, if you find this word offensive, think of what a lifetime of being exploited feels like.

What Can White People Do?

Posted on by serenitisparkles

What Can White People Do?

I keep hearing the same question as if it seems so difficult to come to the answer.  What Can White People Do?  What can WE do?  What Can I do?

We’ve known the answer all of our lives.  We have lived the answer with every breath we take.

Did you grow up in a world with the comfort of stable food and shelter?  Were you able to walk in any door and know you would be treated with dignity and respect?  When stopped by the police, did they just take your ID and send you on your way?  Did you see many cop cars patrolling your neighborhood?  Did the police seem like they were always there to care for you and protect you?

If your life was like this, then I am speaking to you.  Your great-grandfathers sins do not rest on you, they live in you.  You get to live in a world that is fair and equal.  You get to feel as if the law is on your side.  But your brothers and sisters of color, they, do not.  They suffer from unlawful arrests and sentencing, harassment, and brutality all at the hands of power.

It is not that ALL police are bad and ALL lives don’t matter.  It is that there are lives of our fellow citizens that have been roughed up and taken by a system that is built to sustain it’s power.  White Power.

If you are like me, you don’t believe in White Power or what it represents.  But unfortunately for you, you are the beneficiary of such power.  And it is because of that that you were handed a responsibility.  A responsibility greater than any you have ever had and will ever have.  Use your voices, your money, your hands, your words and speak to that power.  Make sure they listen.  Call your representatives, gather in peaceful protests.  Be the change you want to see in the world.

This is dedicated to all my Black brothers and sisters.  The ones who treated me like family.  The ones who are still by my side to this day.  This is our fight.