The last few weeks have felt so different to me. It is as though I am undergoing yet another awakening as I approach a celebration of my life this month. Perhaps the differences lie in my own choices and world view or just maybe the universe is speaking to me. All I know is that I am sensing a new challenge of gazing at life without wearing the kind of rose colored glasses that might otherwise influence the way I usually see things.
In a short span of time I have grieved over the loss of two incredible humans who spent their ninety plus years on this planet living well and honestly. I learned from them in both life and death. I have been delving into the definition of what is ethical in a philosophy class dedicated to studying the thoughts of great thinkers. I have viewed a masterful movie revealing the dark side of humanity in Killers of the Flower Moon and then I read the book of the same title. I have watched with horror the conflict in Israel and Gaza. I have held my breath for days while police searched for a madman who murdered and injured countless people in Maine. I have listened to the last recording of the Beatles. I have attended a baby shower for one of my former students, celebrating new life with so much joy.
Somehow I gaze on the world with fresh eyes, a new perspective. I see people as both beautiful and imperfect. In their beauty lies the kind of goodness and hope that heightens my optimism for the future. In their imperfection there is anger and a stubborn refusal to view each other as equal and wonderful. The base feelings that I see make me weep and wonder how we will ever learn how to live together without preconceived notions, jealousies, greed, and violence. Is there no way to rise above the basest features of human nature? Why can’t we talk about this without rancor?
I was teaching an Algebra class and a sweet young man shared a book that he was reading for his history class. He asked for my views on topics like enslavement of innocents, dropping bombs on civilian spaces. I generally avoid such topics with my students. I am there to teach them how to solve equations, not the problems of the world. Somehow this young man’s sincerity made me stop for and moment and allow him to express his beliefs. From this very young fellow I found great wisdom and soon another student chimed in with equal fervor. They were thinking and questioning and searching for answers much as Aristotle and Aquinas and all of the other geniuses of the past have done. They sincerely wanted to know why we glorify power, wealth, ownership over kindness, understanding and peace. It was important to them to voice their views and to politely differ from the worldviews that seem to be most popular. I let them speak without rebuttal. I complimented them on taking the time to ask questions and consider new ideas in a rational manner.
Perhaps we need more safe spaces where we allow each other to sincerely reveal their points of view without attempting to change their minds, to shut them down. Just listening rather than arguing can be enlightening. As Kant has told us there are indeed universal natural laws on which we all seem to agree and yet our problems with each other revolve around the things that may or may not actually define virtue or goodness. We walk around attempting to mold the world to our individual or group points of view rather than considering that we may not have all the answers and that in truth we are more alike than different. At the end of the day we all want freedom, safety, food, shelter and love. The sound and fury around us all too often threatens the very things that we most desire and our ability to see each other as equal.
Yes, there is evil in the world. There is sickness both of the body and the mind. There is crime and violence. We instinctively know these things are bad and wonder what we must do to eliminate or control them. How do we determine how to make the world safe? Do we take an eye for an eye or do we broker peace? These are the kind of questions my young students have. Perhaps finding the best answers begin in allowing them to think out loud and feel comfortable doing so. The same might be said for those who launch peaceful protests to suggest that there might be alternative points of view. Perhaps instead of shouting them down and shaming them we would be better served to learn what is fueling their anger. Would acts of violence be curbed if we could go back in time to sincerely listen to the perpetrators? Is severe punishment the only way of dealing with ideas with which we do not concur? What leads to the most egregious acts of human depravity? Who is weaker the peacemaker or the person with a gun?
I do not pretend to know the answers to my own questions or the students who confronted me with theirs. I only admit to believing that we set the stage for the evils of the world when we look the other way when people show us that they are suffering. We put blinders over our eyes and stuff our ears with cotton so that we can pretend that all is well. We view people in generalities all too often. We quibble over the insignificant, dividing ourselves in ways that should not be important. We forget that over two thousand years ago a baby was born who would change the world with a command to love that we still have difficulty doing with everyone we meet. We forget to judge not. We refuse to forgive. Then we wonder why our world is so chaotic.
Events have pushed me to meditate and challenge myself. I feel different and that difference is good. I am thinking. I am considering that I don’t know all the answers and none of us do. I am loving and forgiving more deeply than ever.
All It Takes Is A Little Love 