- July 11, 2020-
The "self" reflection
-the uncomfortable conversations-
E pluribus Unum - Out of many, One
A simple phrase, a simple motto for the start of a nation. Its beauty is in its complexity and individual meaning. A motto that holds many truths. Much like the very country that it represents.
I look at our motto and reflect on our current life and what has lead us to today. Today, a moment in time where many believe that our very nation is at the precipice of collapse. Chaos, anger, frustration runs rampant in all corners of the nation. Uprising from many factions demanding justice, sanctions, more funding, less funding, everyone pointing their fingers at everyone else. A fault that no one wants to claim, but rather push it off onto anyone else. We see this throughout every level of government. We see the lack of leadership. And yet, we all pass the blame as well, passing responsibility onto those in power.
It is easy to do. It is easy to push off the responsibility onto someone else. Then we don't have to look in the mirror. This is what has built up this house of cards that now teeters on the brink. We stand holding our breath waiting for that final breeze, wondering what will set off the powder keg. We must now remember our motto, out of many, one. One, three simple letters that can have dramatically different meanings. We look at the ONE as to mean one nation, but let us not forget that ONE also means each and everyone of us individually.
The second ONE is that which I believe most of us forget. We each have a responsibility for ourselves. How we decide to live. How we as individuals conduct ourselves. How we alone are responsible for ourselves. The choices and decisions that we make are our own responsibilities that we can no longer push onto someone else. Many of us are at a point that we despise those in power, they have lost our trust, not just our elected officials, but our media, those that have been elevated to celebrity status in sports and movies as well. We see the actions of others and break down our own. We have released the accountability of those that we elevate. We have released the accountability on ourselves. This has lead to the creation of mob accountability. We have seen this happen time and time again, where we hold all like minded accountable for the actions of a few.
It is time for change.
The change that we seek doesn't start at the top, it starts with the ONE. It starts with each of us individually. We have all heard the phrase, "be the change you wish to see in the world", I even used it in my announcement video. It is true. We must be the change. It is time for each of us to take responsibility for our own actions first and foremost. Until we take responsibility for our own life, we cannot start to fix what else is broken. That is what this nation is about, the responsibility of oneself, not for the transgressions of others.
I have said in my past blogs that we are imperfect people in an imperfect nation, but the beauty of this nation is that it allows each of us to be the captains of our own ships. We get to decide how we proceed forward through the storm. We get the opportunity to change our own course and sail to calmer waters. We must remember where we came from, and learn from our mistakes as well as learn from the mistakes of others, but also remember to not carry the past as anchors, drawing us down instead of allowing us to forge on to a better future. Until we take the hard step of our own accountability and responsibility we cannot demand it from anyone else.
This is a simple difficult action. Its simplicity, much like our motto, is easy to see and understand. But also like our motto, difficult to put into action.
I challenge you as I challenge myself to take responsibility for your own life, your own actions. Be the change you wish to see and allow your own actions to elevate those around you.
- We must elect those that are willing to hold themselves accountable for their actions and refuse to skirt the responsibility of the office that they hold. Every newly elected and reelected official knows and campaigns to be in their respective position, no longer can they blame the past. Every new session demands the accountability of the present.-
-Alex-