Good grief. Who in the world wants to help another when our load is already bulging at the seams?
No. Most people are inconsiderate, selfish, and all about me, me, me, me, me. Until hard times come a knocking at our door.
Sure it is easy to feel that we are not good enough to receive help, or we think we have nothing that can help anyone else. Most times we have been a loner, or we are too ashamed of our past and want to keep that to ourselves. We would just rather stay in our lane and allow others to handle their own stuff. But what we fail to realize is we are all in this together. Can we not see that our experience can help someone else, regardless if we have been down a path that we are not proud of?
I remember well of being a naïve’ young girl. Our neighborhood was very diverse with Hispanics, Whites and Blacks. At the time I did not realize that we were neither rich nor poor. We were all family who reached out to help one another in need. That might have meant sharing some pie, or providing a hand to repair a broken automobile. Life seemed hopeful because we hinged on one another. What happened?
Somewhere along the way white flight, red-lining, and hurt from slavery became prevalent. Old friends became distant. Some people had doubt and others had reason, yet both were rampant. Sadness gloomed overhead. The ability to see clearer was magnified. Hearts throbbed at the learning of discrimination and racism. Still, we long for common ground, and as a result we can help one another.
We do not have to allow society to dictate the outcome. We are still people who can make change. I read a statement that said “Everything is the same, yet we can make it change.” Yes we can. We the people are the change that we want to see and it starts with us by helping others.
Keep it simple. Let us invite someone opposite of ourselves for coffee. Ask the question “What are you afraid of?” Listen with intent. Then reverse the roles. Admit to one thing that we know we are racist about. Share that with someone that we do not know. I know that can be frightening, but the fear will be cut in half just by sharing our thoughts.
We have to start somewhere. Take a chance and that person that we will help will be us. Overtime barriers will come down and we will feel good about us as a people.