Wednesday, March 11, 2009

"Our similarities bring us to a common ground; our differences allows us to be fascinated by each other." -Tom Robbins

We all view the world through our own windows. Our age, background, culture, experiences, race, sex, religion, etc. make us all unique from each other. We are naturally drawn to those who share similar interests, affiliations, and experiences; while, unfortunately, naturally repelled by those who disagree. We are all bias and often fall captive to judging and stereotyping. Much of the time, we lose sight of what we're actually fighting for. Controversy is no longer over what is right or wrong; it is over who wins and who loses. We all, at one point, have had that, "I'm right, whether I'm right or wrong" or the "I'm right because I say so" mentality. We're stubborn, and sometimes we won't "pull back the curtains on our own windows" to better view the world.

Someone is always going to disagree, but at the same time there is no one that disagrees with everyone. Finding smaller commonalities may ease more popular differences.
If nothing else, we must agree that:
  • We're not always right.
  • There may not be one "right" solution to every problem.
  • In general, we think/act the way we do because we hope it will help someone (whether it be selfish or not).
C.P. Ellis and Ann Artwater proved the strength of even the slightest of unities. Even one of the greatest and most controversial differences between the two could not break the hidden bond they shared as parents. It took their children being persecuted on the same basis, for Ellis and Artwater to finally look past their backgrounds and work together. Unbelievably, the high ranked KKK member, Ellis, learned to work harmoniously with the black woman activist, Artwater. Their friendship and Ellis's later work with poor whites and blacks displayed an encouraging example to all of society. We all share some common ground; if we can find it, we can grow on it, and the possibilities for positive change are endless.

-Morgan

1 comment:

Tzim said...

I strongly agree with where you are coming from. It's nice to see someone just say it without all the sugar coating.