“We are tied in a single
garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality” (Dr Martin
Luther King Jr)
It is not a bad thing to have
an emotional response to others when you see the things that they are going through.
Sometimes you might feel a sense of urgency to pray for others because of what
the media shows. That’s the right thing to do because we are all one body of
people on this one earth. Right?
Not everyone’s life feels like
a sweet joyride. Some people are unable to commit themselves to a grind and
straggle behind because they are physically incapable of it. Some people live crying
in agony on a daily basis because there is no hope to build on or to be
maintained and instead, they sit and suffer every day. Some people die for a
meal a day while others have the opportunity to eat six small meals a day. Some
people sleep in a warm bed every night while others sleep in cardboard boxes.
Some people have the ability to walk to wherever they want to go while others cannot
because they are in wheel chairs. Some people cannot dedicate themselves to
reading because they were not taught to read nor did they have educational
opportunities available to them.
Some folks carry on traditions
that are different than the ones we live. Some go to church every day. Others
may go only on Christmas and Easter or not at all. Some folks celebrate their
birthdays with laudatory festivals. Others fast to celebrate their new year.
We all are the same because we
all are different. We all have baggage, songs and dances. We all lived romances
and have taken chances from the moment we started on our life journeys.
We all make memories that resonate
through the years. We all feel things in our hearts in different ways. We all
have a diversity of ideas and are packed with emotions and we all perspire beads
of sweat making an effort to be the best version of ourselves.
Even though we are different,
we can still praise each other’s effort. Some make an effort to feed their five
kids. Some make an effort to survive the mean streets that they live on. Some
make an effort to simply have a voice in society. Some make an effort to overcome
the ravages of cancer. But we all as a people make efforts to fight the battles
of life and to overcome our own obstacles, regardless of what they are.
It is important to consider
others and to not generalize or make assumptions. Don’t topple someone else’s
confidence just because they live in a different bed of roses than you. Don’t
make judgments because someone’s educational background was different than
yours. And don’t tumble in the waves of measuring someone else’s work, monetary
or life situation on yours. Sometimes it is good to strike up the conversation with hopes of building a new perspective,
so we can root out bigotry, confront discrimination, fight for inclusivity, and
stop the unsavory stereotypes of people who are different from us. Please check
out my original song and video entitled, “People United.” Lyrics by me, Stephanie
Jeannot. Music by Paul Garrod. Video edited and produced by Stephanie Jeannot. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKL0kS92s10&t=59s
At the end of the day, we
should hold high esteem for each other because we are all people alike. Let us
no longer look at people based on their age, class, color, gender, sexual
orientation but as human beings as we challenge old ideologies and instead make
provocative moves towards accepting responsibility for the progress of humanity.
In my opinion it seems more pleasing to the ear to hear stories of shared
humanity than struggling and fighting each other over the same nonsense because
at the end of the day, we are all equal. We are the change that is needed in
this world and we have the power to be in a position of influence to get everyone
to see the world from a broader perspective.
After all, Ujima is all about building
and maintaining the world together and to make our Brother's and sister's
problems, our problems and to solve them together. Happy Kwanzaa!
From Umoja to Imani, may all
the blessings of Kwanzaa be yours.