“Better Angels”
Greetings and salutations from the sand, sun and surf of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and the cool, cloudy. gracefully illuminated island of Nantucket! Great to be with you on this Saturday morning on Cape, the 21st day of December, 2014–a quiet start to the day here on this little sand bar created 11,500 years ago by the Last Great Ice Age. Although with the forecast ‘in these here parts’ (and most of the country), travelers now educating themselves presently about the fact that weather is about to change–in a big way. Two major storm systems are going to impact holiday travel, one of the Pacific Northwest variety, six inches in Seattle for example (as we speak), while a deep upper level low (creating major weather events), will bring a white Christmas to the good folks in the Midwest, while the much of the eastern seaboard, especially the Cape & Islands, expecting torrential downpours and strong winds on Christmas Eve… So I hope Santa packed his Patagonia and Timberland boots, or is it L.L. Bean “mighty duck” foul weather footwear and a nice North Face parka?…
You be the judge!
Yesterday, late afternoon, in New York City (Brooklyn’s Bedford Stuyvesant District), a man armed with a gun walked up to a squad car and killed two of New York City’s finest–“assassinated”, shot in the head, executed (words Police Chief/NYPD), in cold blood–truly good men, good policemen just doing their job. A real tragedy that proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that again, ‘…two wrongs don’t make a right’.
The Mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio condemned the act of senseless violence (even when the police turned their collective backs on a man just trying to make his city whole again). So did the many black family members whose children were also victims of violence by the police no less. The very definition of empathy and forgiveness finally coming forward to quell the ongoing chasm between law enforcement and black community at large. The murder condemned by most of the African-American community across the Nation as well, not to mention so many great and prominent black leaders in America today, such as Reverend Al Sharpton here in New York and Reverend Barber (NAACP; North Carolina), calling the act “unspeakable” and “abhorrent”. Michael Brown and Eric Garner’s families echoing that sentiment. Lo, all who have a heart, an ounce on humanity and simple common decency doing the same, as we all know by now, I will state again, that two wrongs do not make a right. May Divine Grace be with those slain officer’s families–especially that 13 year old boy who lost his Dad–devastated by the fact his father will never again be coming home from his shift. Keeping us ever aware of the fact MOST officers sworn to “protect and serve” do just that, some in an extraordinary way, like the Seattle police officers Sea Cape Cod spoke of a few months back.
Just like Eric Garner’s wife will not be seeing her husband for Christmas, or little Tamir Rice’s mother, or that mother who spoke about that horrible hanging that took place recently in the heart of the country that got little to NO press; a modern day lynching that most of the press and police have ignored to this point; save the F.B.I.. May they find out the TRUTH from those responsible for yet another crime against humanity, a modern day lynching by what appears to a a very disturbed racist community. In this day and age of the video camera at everyone’s disposal, we are all movie stars, directors, producers, actors, techies, and vulnerable to that spotlight on OUR behavior towards our fellow man–who might just turn out to be not your ‘enemy’, rather your friend in the end.
The question all are asking this holiday season is simply, “…when does all of this madness stop?”. When does a big mouth ‘leader’ of the police union for the NYPD just shut his big yapper–his belligerent, ignorant and I am sure racist makeup and voice is “not helping” matters. In fact, they are inflaming them, making them much worse. As he said yesterday at a big press conference in New York, and I quote, “the death and blood of these two officers leads to the steps of City Hall and to the Mayor himself.” A real piece of work that Patrick Lynch.
It’s Christmas people!
However, that did not stop the continued protests against what has become an epidemic of anti-police bullying and harassment, violence and coverup against mostly poor minority communities. Shutting down that “Largest Mall in America” for all intents and purposes yesterday for example. People once again taking sides. Siding against “I can’t breathe” tee-shirts, opting instead for shirts, wristbands and the like all reading, “I can breathe” (tee-shirts worn by police?, to combat the vast majority opinion in the U.S.? Smart, very smart!), good for you! I just wish I could say the same for Eric Garner, Tamir Rice or Michael Brown.
The police union in New York on the side of indifference to what is really going on in our American society in this late year of 2014, claiming they ‘couldn’t get all their shopping done’, and ‘it disrupted the annual lighting of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree…”: really? Is that all you have to say in what will turn out to be the beginning of a giant spotlight put on policing in this 21st Century split (haves and have nots) America?
Stay tuned, moreover, informed/educated by credible non-biased sources (such as the programming Sea Cape Cod suggested in previous ‘blogs’), and for God’s sakes, not FOX “News”. Making up one’s own mind about this growing problem of a “US v. them” mentality is disturbing to say the least. However, in reality, the real reality, we are ALL NOW connected in the world of social media and truly one collective soul experiencing this life subjectively. We should be LIVING every moment of this blessed season of LOVE, LIGHT and DIVINITY in our hearts, minds and souls. Forgiving the past and embracing the future. One that can be attained in this country if there is a shift in conscienceness from hate to LOVE, one we could SEA in our lifetimes if you all pull together as a team, a team of loving human beings not hell bent on killing one another. The choice, FREE WILL, is up to you.
It is up to us, individually, to hate, or to love. No one else can make that decision for you. Hate hurts not only it’s victims, but hurts it’s perpetrator much more in the ‘end’. Not one person on this planet has lost any of those traits, those God given eternal blessings from above and forever. Tragically, most of that is hidden and stored away for a variety of reasons only you can truly know. Thus, we should all act accordingly–offering KINDNESS to strangers…remembering words stated by the man whose birthday we are celebrating in a few hours, ‘When someone asks for your coat, offer him your tunic as well…”.
The gift of giving LOVE to those in need, such as the simple act of giving a blanket, a sandwich or some crumpled up dollar bills you may have in you pocket to a homeless person is a good start (not being so high and mighty as to say to those you don’t give anything to (and have NOTHING but despair and desolation in their ‘lives’), “get a job!” or my favorite, “they will only spend it on booze or drugs”, perhaps the only Christmas relief they may get in a life that may not last for much longer, many homeless freezing to death or dying of malnutrion or a myriad of diseases that are wrought upon them because they live on the street and lack health care or love of any kind, only cold sarcasm and snark from men in 1000 dollar suits! Good luck in the after life with that one Mr. Goldman Sachs!
You never know just how far that act of random KINDNESS will take you, but more to the point–THEM. That ‘them’ that could be YOU someday, remembering that it truly is, at least for this cowboy, “…but for the Grace of God go I”. Grace and whatever you perceive ‘God’ to be; a POWER much greater than “me” or you MItt!
Arrogance is ugly; Humility is beautiful, desired by both receiver and recipient equally…
There is no, “at the end of the day”, ‘an us and them’, no sir! Only one human race, one Collective Conscience, and contrary to popular belief, it’s not money that makes the world go round, rather LOVE.
LOVE, after all, was BORN on Christmas Day!
Our thoughts and prayers go out to those slain officers families as well as the families suffering through these painful holidays without their loved ones’ who were also gunned down brutally. May the spirit of forgiveness and mercy follow you and yours the rest of your days, bringing your peace and perhaps JOY someday. It is what your fallen family members would have wanted for you and any other victim out there in this rather insane world we are all living in now. Catching glimpses though, from ‘time’ to ‘time’, of heroism, charity, mercy, kindness and above all LOVE.
Have a wonderful Sunday and “May the Force Be with You” all. A Force (LOVE) that our friend Jesus–whom this whole season of Christmas is based upon, stated over 2000 years ago will, if you allow it, transform your hate back into that natural state aforementioned. And if you give that LOVE away, it only multiplies exponentially across the unseen universe we all really live in. Take care and be well my friends, be WELL!
PRESERVE THE WILDERNESS! Peace~M
