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The ability to distinguish friend from foe helped the earliest humans survive. Our minds work in such a way as to order things into meaningful categories as we are so bombarded with stimuli through our senses that without that fundamental quality, we would be unable to make quick judgements.
So...we are all inclined towards stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination. We simply cannot help it.
We learn as toddlers what things to avoid and what people are 'good' and 'bad' from the attitudes of the people around us. Thats a good thing. We are able to decide if someone is 'friend' or 'foe' from a young age.
Biases and prejudices are learned at such a young age, we retain them for all of our lives. Even when evidence fails to support these biases or points to the contrary, we resist making these changes in our attitudes and beliefs simply because it's something we have grown up with...
People accept anecdotes that support their own viewpoint and disregard those that are contradictory. So...
We need to educate people about individual differences, cultural differences and so on. It's the only way that the discriminated against will become accepted for all their differences. That will be a long and difficult task though...
Being pagan in a predominately Christian community is a difficult thing to admit. People in that community just don't understand that being pagan isn't about devil worship, the occult and other strange stereotypical ideas. I am used to that but to save myself from too many rumours and wild accusations, I only tell my friends.
Now...I could be brave and stand up and shout who I am, the thought has crossed my mind more than once, its the right thing to do. I am not ashamed of who I am, and really it would dispel a few myths and biases...However...
...people here would still be intolerant...
I could preach tolerance right back at them as it's one of the first things a Christian learns about Jesus - He accepts everyone.
Perhaps a few would understand and accept me, many more would not I suppose. Now, you can say these intolerant people have their biases so ingrained that nothing would make them change their mind and you'd be right.
I have to accept that some people will never change their attitudes. I can only hope that the ideal world materialises one day and we become much more civilised towards each other, no matter who or what we are.
Now...
I had intolerance preached at me not so long ago and I accepted that yes, I had been intolerant. That made me think...
I am thankful that I did get that lecture...After that, I even changed my attitude about something I had previously felt pretty strongly (negatively) about. I am grateful for that because I now see how wrong I was. Sometimes, the right words can make all the difference...
What really astonishes me is that when I thought about it, the person who had preached tolerance at me was actually not good at all at accepting the differences that make individuals who they are.
This person often condemns those who are different. I guess they have never been on the receiving end of intolerance, or maybe they don't see how prejudicial they are themselves? I couldn't even begin to guess on that...
...and thats the thing about tolerance. You can preach it 'til the cows come home but its quite another thing to actually practice it.
There are days when being invisible would be the best way to be. There are days when I could curl up in a corner and hide 'til everything is alright again.
But thats not me.
You can knock me down and all I will ever do is get back up on my feet. You will never wear me down, nor break me. I am made of stronger stuff than that.
Would you give up a lifetime opportunity if someone asked you to? How do you decide an answer to that if it was something you had dreamed about for so long and the person doing the asking is the most important person in the world to you?
...the thing is, whose priorities are more important?
Things change. Priorities shift and situations occur along the way. Thats healthy though.
The best friends are the ones who have never left your heart, even if they leave your life for a while. Even after years apart, you are instantly on the same page. These friends are keepers and you probably couldn't get rid of them even if you wanted to anyway.
The worst friends are those who stick around when you're good and leave when you're not good....trash.
The people you meet along the way are always possible keepers can you be sure you don't want to know them?
...trees whisper in the wind and the breeze ruffles through them, whistling at times and I hear nothing else. There is a stillness except for the sounds of night drawing in. Sometimes it feels like the whole world has retreated, but at these moments, the world is very much all around me.
...yet so little time to experience it all. That means that every second has to count.
There is nothing more beautiful than peace - that absence of external stimuli which allows for clarity and focus. Happiness comes from what we think, feel, and do, and not from the things that we can see or touch.
I appreciate the solitude, the time of reflection. I am never alone when there is space to think.
Sometimes, when doors close, we spend so long looking at the closed doors that we forget there is another one opening. I welcome that closing with the surety that another awaits.
True happiness is going forward, not looking behind at the things that are gone. I cannot wait for that next adventure to begin. I love surprises.
I was under your spell for so long, I had no idea I was blind. Its almost as if I had woken up and wiped the sleep from my eyes.
I no longer hang onto your every word, wait for you to speak to me, nor wish you would call. I feel free.
I am no longer bound to you in word, deed, nor action, I walk my own path.
I hold my head up and stand tall, proud of myself for all that I am. Perhaps I should even say thank you for forcing me to re-evaluate myself, even though that was never your intentions.
I wondered for a long time if I would ever meet your expectations, but now I know that you do not meet mine, nor ever could.
Don't flatter yourself, you were not the strong one, I was merely weak. I was unprepared for you, was mesmerised by your beauty: not your physical beauty, but the sheer brilliance of your charm.
Like ivy, you wound tightly round me, choking all that was left of my soul, and I do not blame you for that, I blame myself for not seeing that you had taken hold.
I could confront you and have you deny any wrong-doing, but I have no need to listen to carefully rehearshed speeches. I choose instead, to learn from this.
You forget I am older than time, but still very much a loved child of the Universe. You forget that I have weathered many storms before now, and will safely pass through many more before I am done.
I pity you. The life you lead must be fraught with concerns that one day someone will call you out for your deeds. Be grateful that will not be me.
Perhaps you will never read this, but just know that I have will enough to permeate your every thought if I choose to...If...
I am no longer under your spell. I have set myself free, when you would not. I am made so much stronger for learning this lesson. I am whole again, and you, are nothing.
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