Cake of Ice

 I have a niece who lives in Michigan with her family.  Theresa is, as most nieces and nephews are, younger than I am.  However, she has pretty much raised her family and, even though she might disagree, is rapidly becoming middle age.  I'm not sure what that says about my age, but we'll not broach that subject in this post.

Up until a few years ago, Theresa and nephew hubby Kerry were the typical middle-class family unit raising kids, attending school functions, buying groceries, and living the great American dream.  Yes, there were ups and downs in their lives just like there are in all of ours, but generally, things were going well for them as they made their way through life and living.

They still are living the great American dream, and even more so now that their kids have flown the nest.  But something has changed in these past few years that has created an ocean-change in how they think and what they do.  They have become aware that not everyone lives the great American dream.  They have become aware of societal issues like injustice, racism, poverty, and the silencing of opposing viewpoints.

And not only have they become aware, they have acted on that awareness and have...and continue to bring about great change in their community, their school system, and in the lives of others.  They and others in the community, through their activism, have brought about a turnover in the makeup of the city council, the school board, and the local police department.  They managed to have a discriminatory local city ordinance declared to be unconstitutional and of no effect  by a court of law.  They have “marshaled the troops,” so to speak, and have provided educational opportunities as well as opportunities for service and support to many in the community and beyond.  And they have begun to work on issues on a state and federal level as well as locally.  It has been an amazing thing for me to watch all of this take place in their lives.

Here's what Theresa said just a few days ago about herself on a social media post:  I've told ya'll about how I have realized my white privilege and ignorance over these years.  I didn't pay one bit of attention to politics and fell prey to the media.  I learned shortly there after that I contributed to the destruction of what we have fought to become.  I have great remorse. It haunts me to this day. Literally haunts me.

I don't necessarily agree with Theresa politically, and the social issues in my personal stable may be some different from theirs.  But this isn't a political post on my part.  This Thursday Thought is meant to awaken you to the truth that none of us lives in a bubble.  None of us has absolute protection from those societal issues that continue to nag at us for help.  None of us is an island...all to ourselves.  Each one of us is affected in some way by those issues.  Each one of us is touched in some way by racism, homelessness, greed, ideological blindness to truth, and other ills.  And each one of us has a responsibility to act...somehow...in some way...to bring about change.

It is incredibly difficult at best to make any kind of inroad into the labyrinthine snarl that is national politics.  Yes, we need to be aware of what's going on there, and do our best to work for change, even on that level.  But our best bet is working where Theresa and her family have been concentrating their efforts...at the local level.  City council people, school board people, mayors and others CAN much of the time be approached, and will in most cases at least listen to a local citizen expressing an opinion.  Citizens can rally, protest, march, attend meetings, speak during the public comment time, and yes, even go to court if necessary.  Theresa and her crew have done all of that and more.

You may not be in a position to organize a protest or march.  Maybe all you can do is write a letter or send an email.  If you are a person of faith, prayer is, or should be first on your list of things to do.  Christians are called to be difference-makers...to be a “peculiar people,” as the Apostle Paul puts it...to “Do justice, love kindness (read that “love mercy”), and walk humbly before the Lord,” as the Old Testament prophet Micah wrote.  We are called to love God and love our neighbor.  And, we are called to do unto others as we would have them do unto us.  But to choose to be ignorant of what is going on around you, or to choose to ignore the truth when it hits you in the face is not an option.

I will close with an excerpt from a play written over 60 years ago by Helen Kromer and Fredrick Silver, called “For Heaven's Sake.”  It's a satirical musical that pokes fun at those who choose ignorance and it urges us all to be serious about our choices in life.  This excerpt is called “Girl In Ice,” and is a spoken part rather than a musical part.

It describes someone who has chosen to live “above” the riff-raff of society...who has chosen ignorance and apathy over “doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly.”

Hear no evil...see no evil...speak no evil...NO!  I abhor it and ignore it...all that sin below.  All those creatured, ugly featured faces filled with sin might beguile me, and defile the temple here within!

I'm above it.  How I love it...where the air is pure.  For evil is as evil does.  And doing nothing's sure to keep my skirts so unbesmirched that anyone will fine...I'm lily-white and clothed in light, and deaf, and dumb, and blind!

I am not contaminated, for I've simply abdicated.  And I'm staying nice...by freezing up and squeezing up into a cake of ice.

May none of us ever become those…cakes of ice.

Blessings,