With the innovative expansiveness of social media, it might be a bit “too easy” for many to “fall prey” to being ridiculed about anything and everything, these days. Bullying comes in many forms, often not seen as such under this latest phase or craze or “hipster verbiage” of the seemingly innocuous, “Be Kind” movement… which is itself a subversive effort to silence people and keep folks from truly connecting with one another on a deeper level. “BEing kind” is what folks did when they remained quiet about the many ways and types of abuses we endured and “closeted” for decades. “BEing kind” is what folks did when they walked away from those in power who were abusing said power or position. “BEing kind” is what kids have been told about not mentioning things like abuse; because, they’re only children and no one would believe them, over any adult. “BEing kind” landed us with generations of abused, abandoned, addicted, or dead people in the most massive numbers we’ve ever seen. “BEing kind,” clearly… did not work.
What if we stopped “abiding by” and regurgitating the fifteen minute soundbites or slogans of the day, month, or year?
What if we… stopped being concerned with how expansive our “friend” social media presences are; and, instead began to shrink them to include only folks with whom we’ve spent some quality time in conversations; or, those with whom we’ve connected through reading their posts, direct messages, emails; shared phone calls and/or live video chats, etc. in order to have gained insights to determine with whom our souls truly align. Aligned souls we can spend quality time and not feel a part of the unity between our heart, mind, soul, and body feels the need to retreat into some deep, dark abyss? Souls that encourage us to learn and grow from one another, mutually.
What if we… shrink or totally reshape the expansive tables into round tables and replace the table with dinner and/or discussions around a “campfire,” as tribal ancestors, long ago, would have done, in an effort to show no one was any less or more important in position; but, we honor everyone has the right to equal time holding “the talking stick,” when passed around?
What if we… viewed societal changes, fads, and slogans as “the follies they have been” to the interconnectedness of our own tribes? I find it uncanny… how we often used to hear about “the grass being greener on the other side of the fence.” Yet, it seems not many of us have been willing to take a deeper look at how that’s applied to the many things we’ve “fallen in line” into performing on “the stages of our thinking,” pursuing/chasing, and believing. We don’t even stop to breathe and recognize we are like dogs following the bouncing balls someone else has thrown in the total opposite direction of where we always knew we wanted to go. Some of us don’t even like playing with balls and would rather spend our recreational time another way; but, don’t want to “offend the masters” or risk having them “take the balls away” we don’t even like!
What if we… stopped chasing the balls we never appreciated… and “the masters” began trying to please us, for a change? What if “the masters” were forced to be the ones trying to figure out what WE truly appreciate and were the ones who had to do the “fetching…” to get US to engage with them, to receive OUR attention, OUR love… to reach and finally appreciate OUR longing for interconnectedness… without sacrificing all of whom we are?
What if we work to create that power shift? What if?