Where are We? Who are we Becoming? And What Are We Doing About It?
This blog is coming at you from a place of humility, humanness, and hopefully compassion.
Over the course of two years due to this global health crisis you have felt a pull. A strong wayward pull of what is right and what is wrong. I speak to you no matter what side of the line you stand on… Your feelings are actually the same no matter what side of an argument you land on.
Over the course of this two-year gong show, we have had a whole array of information get delivered to us in real-time (or in some cases even quicker than real-time!). This means that information is being released before we understand it, in turn making it impossible to make an informed decision because as we process information more information is being released!
Whola confusing and endless!
As this happens we lose faith in what we are being told. On BOTH ends of the spectrum, there is some kind of information leading you to some kind of an opinion.
It is important to know that someone on the other end of the spectrum believes their side just as strongly and just as justly as you do.
This is important… you BOTH think you are completely in the right and have all kinds of research to prove each side. There is research to prove literally any point. For example, there is research saying seat belts cause more harm in some circumstances than good… it can be true that seat belts save lives and cause harm at the same time. Research is funny like that.
With these points in mind here is what I propose: STOP.
Right and wrong doesn’t really matter if two people think they are without a doubt right. You are beating your head against a wall, making people (and yourself) angry, and you are helping to terrify people. Terrified people do very unhelpful things… Like protest at hospitals… It’s not an excuse.. But I’m just saying.
You might be angry at me right now, that is okay. Your blood might be pumping because this girl is telling me I am a part of the problem (remember guys I’m talking to you no matter where you fall on the spectrum of our current social climate)… Stay with me folks… Just a little longer.
The real need is not who is right in all of this noise. The real “need” is simple: UNITY.
People are speaking so loud because they are angry. I’m angry too! But there is something else under that anger…
something no one really talks about and it is tearing us apart.
Fear.
Politicians are capitalizing on it (oh hey there election time), the news perpetuates it, the meme you share on Facebook, all the algorithms designed to keep you hooked on social media. People are blaming each other, blaming strangers.
People are terrified. Terrified of losing freedom. Terrified of death. Terrified of our healthcare system collapsing. Terrified of health care workers being redeployed leaving gaps in basic care. Being terrified of making the right choice. Terrified of not having a choice. Just TERRIFIED
These fears are ALL real.
We are in a pivotal time. We are in a terrifying time. In tough times we need leadership. And it is HARD to be a GOOD leader.
Ask yourself, what do you look for in leadership?
Someone that is pointing at someone else to blame?
Someone that is ignoring you and trying to speak over your concerns?
Someone that is shaming you?
Someone that is pursuing a different agenda than what they are saying out loud?
Someone that is as out of control as you feel?
Regardless of what side you are on in any argument, the above are not qualities of strong leadership…. Then why are we being led this way?
There is a different way.
Instead, let’s come together. I hear you. I see you. I feel your fear.
Will this approach change where we are at? Probably not, but the approach we are trying now isn’t changing things either, so why not give something different a shot (this does not give permission to breach laws, be violent or take some kind of drastic/dramatic measure… if you are thinking this you are missing a key point, and yes I felt compelled to add this in here).
Why not come together and see what happens. Acknowledge your fear instead of being ruled by anger.
In our history there have been moments where we (humans) have all stopped and were all together.
The world ceased fire in 1914 at Christmas during WWI.
My mom tells me about the day a King died (Martin Luther King Jr.) when she was just a little girl
I remember sitting in my grade 6 class and being together in silence for 9/11
I remember the Canadian Men’s hockey team winning gold in the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver
I remember the Toronto Raptors winning the series in game 6 in 2019 (Series? You know what Basketball players win at the end of their season)
We come together even if we don’t understand what we are coming together for sometimes (see my failed basketball reference)
These are only a few examples from my own life.
We come together in moments of sorrow and in moments of greatness. It has been a long journey of sorrow.
There is power in being an individual with individual thoughts and feelings, but don’t let that disconnect you from humanity, from connection to others.
There is great power in being together too.
Our leadership got tired of saying this… So they stopped… because they got tired and angry too (they are just humans). As a result, we lost faith in them.
But we can still come together even if you are tired. I’m tired too, but I believe in us. We can connect and stand together.
Even if you are angry.
You can hold space, you can hold compassion knowing that division is only giving a few people more power (and that power is not to you or to me regardless of what side of an argument you land on).
If you don’t see strong leadership around you, be the leader. Know what you look for and value in leadership: Inclusivity, compassion, stability, empathy, gratitude, communication, accountability, etc., and if you don’t see it around you… Be it.
You do not need a title to be a leader. You just need to practice what you want leadership to be.
Don’t get caught up in the noise and the anger. See it for what it is. Fear.
And… then Lead.
