Am I the only person who worries about the world that we are raising our children in today?
I don't think I am.
We worry for different reasons.
Some think the world has become too violent, too polluted, too poor, too greedy, too hungry, too polarized, too self-centered.
I am worried.
I am not worried so much about the world has become, but about what it is lacking.
Empathy.
I am worried because when I look at the world today I see a lack of empathy.
I see people who look at someone else's bad situation and decide they brought it on themselves.
And sometimes they have.
But nobody's perfect.
We all have flaws. It's just that some people's are on the outside so they're easier to see.
So we judge them.
I see people who have lost the benefit-of-the-doubt.
I watch Dr. Phil sometimes, and he states ALL OF THE TIME how the world has changed so that we no longer can safely give people the benefit-of-the-doubt.
Isn't that sad.
The homeless man on the corner asking for change is no longer a tear jerker.
He's a swindler who actually has a beautiful house on a lake, but dresses up homeless to get extra change. 20/20 investigated "those people" and they make more money than "us".
Or something like that.
We no longer celebrate each other's victories.
We envy the victories of others.
We no longer carry one another through hard times.
We scoff at people who are struggling.
We are secretly happy for their struggle because it makes "us" look better.
Our lives look more successful compared to theirs.
We grade ourselves on the curve.
We don't look at people who do bad things as humans.
They are monsters.
Sometimes they really are monsters.
But we don't take the time to ask WHY they are monsters.
And if someone dares to ask why they are monsters...then that person is, by association, a monster as well.
I don't talk about religion on this blog.
Purposely.
It's not my place...even though it's my blog.
Besides, I can't share my religious thoughts on this blog...as they are ever-changing & evolving (as I believe, they should).
I will say this...
There are certain religious & spiritual readings that stick with me.
That pop into my brain in certain situations.
Yesterday, I was having one of those days.
One of those days when this topic kept coming into my head.
When I felt like hope was lost.
Hope in humanity (okay, that sounds dramatic).
I looked around myself, around the world, and saw people acting the opposite of what I think to be "humane".
And then, the reading came into my head.
And I remembered one of the first things I had read that made me feel this way.
That made me feel there was more that could be done, should be done.
A way we ALL should be behaving, that we aren't.
It set my standard.
I never hit my standard. But it's always good to have one.
So here it is:
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure of
heart, for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are
persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven."
Gospel of St. Matthew 5:3-10
I remember this particular reading, the way I remember most things, through music.
There was a song we used to sing at my elementary school (Catholic) where the lyrics were entirely made up of these words. The Beatitudes. So I have always remembered. And it is my standard.
Thinking about these words didn't help.
It made things worse.
Because as I read them...I realized that how WE are today, is the exact opposite a lot of the time.
So there is no hope.
The standard needs to be lowered.
Or extinguished.
And then, I saw this:
As a mother
As a woman
As a human
I now have...
Hope
Espoir
Esperanza
ελπίδα
أمل
Happy Friday
XOXO
Laurel