I have been watching the influx of children and mothers with children at the border. I have listened to both sides of the arguments. I see people fleeing rather than invading. I shudder to think of a situation that would make me entrust my child to a stranger and send them on a dangerous journey because it was a better chance of survival than staying at home. It is the sort of thing that sent the Irish here from the potato famine, Soviets fleeing gulags, the list goes on. Each generation has gone through the same opposition. “No Irish Need Apply” or “Whites Only”. Then "they" becomes "us". This is an old story and each time they bring things to the table that we don't even know we need. Right now, we have more oldsters than workers in the prime of life thanks to the Baby Boom. It is causing issues with Social Security and the tax base. Can you think of a better solution? New workers to even out the bump. They are the solution, not a problem.
They bring the hunger to work hard and do well. After a generation or so, we tend to become soft. We forget to appreciate what we have. We quit voting, watch the TV and stagnation sets in. People worry about what they can get more than what they can give. Frankly, we need the good example. Democracy is not a spectator sport if you want to keep it.
Now we are being given an opportunity to transcend this. Some Buddhists have said that people we hate/fear/are annoyed by are our teachers. We should thank them as we overcome our lesser self to deal with them. We can do better this cycle. As this is a mostly Judo-Christian country, with other religions who also teach similar things, we are not without guidance. I know most of us have heard these things before. It is time to fish or cut bait now on whether we LIVE them. This is the hard part of being a good person. We are required to stretch our souls, let go of fear, and trust that God as we see him/her/it will provide. My memory isn't letter perfect, but here is the gist.
In as much as you do for the least of my brothers. That you do unto me
Let the Little Children Come Unto me.
If you have two coats and see a man who has none, give him one.
Can we be as good as the good Samaritan and care for the stranger? (Only if we can let go of many obsessive fears and hatreds for some. Can we LOOK and see tired, hungry, fearful children and mothers?) Peace and security are temporary situations. Someday that might be us.
Do unto others we would have them do unto us.
Love your Neighbor as thyself. (Yes they are our neighbors, all people are. Imagine trying to argue that one in front of the pearly gates. You will one day. Do you really think the big guy will buy the arguments that "but Obama this or that", "unconstitutional this or that", or the beaut I heard people chanting on the news “Not Our Children”? I don't think so. “I am not my brother's keeper” didn't fly either. Who was the one wading in feeding the multitudes, healing, teaching and helping?
“Harden Not Your Hearts”, “Feed my sheep” Those are pretty clear marching orders.
We are specifically told to “Judge Not.” In practice, we do nothing but. Is someone poor, homeless, hungry, fearful, unemployed, black, gay, foreign, disabled etc...? We judge them. We fear them because they are different. We often hate them for it.
I am tempted to be ashamed of us. I will not. I have hope. We can do better than this. We can all do something, however small. Speaking up is just as important as being boots on the ground. Kindness is best taught by example.
As long as we keep one candle lit, the world won't fall to darkness. What is your candle?
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