Inspiring Us to Make a Change

I grew up thinking the President of the United States was to be revered, idolized, honored and respected. My household was like one from a prior generation where if the president spoke we were compelled to stop and watch much like school children in a classroom. I believed in freedom and saw my very own father as the American Dream. Then something happened. I watched, as a young girl, Bill Clinton lie and cheat and was forgiven because we were enjoying economic prosperity. I saw as a young woman, the country enter into a war that I never really understood and maybe still don't, despite my best efforts to educate myself. I watched as prospective presidential nominees allowed American family values to go down the drain by disgracing their families through their adulturous ways. I watched the economy begin to crumble and was told by those that cater to the richest of the rich that there was no problem, the market would bounce back and those with money would keep their money. I wondered, what about those without? Somewhere between impeachements and wars, energy wars and gas prices, things had unraveled. I no longer sat down to watch respectfully as George W. Bush came on the tv. Instead, I'd roll my eyes and walk away. Until now. We now have a new role model. A good person to take us into the white house and bring America back to what it can be. I hardly wish to push or endorce Barack Obama, just let you know that he has renewed my hope. When I see him light up the television screen, he is revered, honored and respected. Even if he doesn't win, I admire him and am inspired by his ability to have given those feelings back to all of us.

DNC

Today I went to the DNC to see Nancy Pelosi in the Unconventional Women program as well as a roundtable discussion of philanthropy. Between seeing incredible speakers, feeling inspired to make a difference and "find my courage and lead," I got overwhelmed by the magnitude of what is going on. Somewhere between Nancy Pelosi and my yelling and screaming for MSNBC broadcasters I never watch and standing in line for Rage Against the Machine tickets and watching people get arrested, I lost my stamina. I was still pumped to be there, honored to feel like a part of history, but I was also tired. The effect of the convention on me was profound and I can't yet explain how truly deeply it affected me. I do know that despite my grouchiness at the end of the day, I learned a great deal, went through a swell of emotions and experienced new things. Now even if it's overwhelming isn't that what it's about? Learning, sharing and experiencing? Politics, I've been told is not for the faint of heart, so how do we make our hearts stronger? 

A Hodge Podge of Information

I don't work, not really anyway and therefore I obviously have a lot of time to think. Sometimes I think I have too much time to think because my thoughts wander in circles with few new things to inspire creativity.

That being said, here are some things I've been thinking about lately: (in no particular order)

I was at my boyfriends house, no doubt watching something ridiculous on Spike TV. You know, that channel for men that they watch with no regard to the women in the room. Well, anyway, a commercial came on for Girls Gone Wild. You know the one I mean, the video where girls that have lost most of their decision making abilities are exploited for selfish men around the world. Yeah, that one, I knew you knew what it was. Well, anyway, my boyfriend and his friend began talking non-chalantly about the guy who makes those glorious videos and about how he was in jail, tax evasion and taking advantage of underage girls. As I listened to this with blurred breasts in my peripheral vision, I couldn't help but get angry. I thought about all the work I had done at school, to help women who had been hurt, attacked, or anyway disenfranchised. I thought about my family and my co-workers in women's organizations and thought how would they feel if they or someone they knew had been taken advantage of at their weakest moment. I am hardly a prude or someone that believes nudity is a bad thing. If you are an artist or a bad ass performer, by all means wear your sexy clothes, express your art form. If you are a woman going out, of course embrace your body and sexuality. The difference is, if you decide to do something, good for you, you have the ability to maintain the class and dignity (or lack thereof) in your decision making and I applaud you for that. If you've lost the ability to know if your saying yes or no and someone coaxes you, I weep the loss you will feel later on. I hope and pray that that is not how you hope to seek the attention of the world and I hope that the bastards that take advantage, that make videos, solicit drunk girls, and make no point to respect the opposite sex fall from good graces.

In that same vein, again at my boyfriends house, I was listening to whatever music was playing and I heard the lyric "If it wasn't for date rape, I'd never get laid." Wow, in my life, in my world, and in my experience, I don't see how anyone could say that, or even hear that and possibly even think that that could somehow be construed as okay. Point blankly let me say, NOT OKAY. It seems to me that people are numb to what they hear, they hear too much and it passes by them without ever raising a red flag. Doesn't even seem to raise a pink flag. Makes you wish the world was just a little bit better of a place.

In other news, I saw my childhood best friend yesterday. What a refreshing sight. If you know me or even someone with my type of personality, you know I worry a lot. I worry about not having a job, about doing right by my family and my boyfriend and my friends. I worry about doing right by me when one of the above does something I don't like. I worry about losing my identity in my relationship. I worry about gaining weight and losing too much. I worry about my health and well being. I worry about where I'll live. I worry I worry I worry. My friend, she worries too, but not like me. She laughs, she jokes and she sees the brighter side. Much like I do at times but she seemed to step in at a particularly big worry time. As I approach theone year annversary of the nothing I've been doing, she brought a freshness into my life that I hadn't had since we went to different middle schools. She brought me inspiration and man did I laugh. I realized I need to stop waiting around while everyone else does their living and calls me when they are done. I am going to live. What used to be waiting for my friends, my family, my bf, my job, and my life to get started, is now going to be doing. Doing what? Maybe opening a Pinkberry, maybe having fun, maybe running around like I don't have a care in the world. Whatever it might be, oh boy will I laugh while doing it.

So things are going pretty well, the sun is out today so I'll for sure be playing outside, in a land far far away from the drugs and drinks that lead to the commercials that lead to the songs that lead me to worry about my sisters of choice.

Love and Peace,
Samira

Us vs. Them or Maybe Us vs. Ourselves

The other day I was urging someone I love very much to vote. At least to register and consider voting. "It's important," I told him, "It will effect our lives, it will effect my family's lives." And, literally I believe it will. As a first generation United States citizen, daughter of Iranian immigrants, I see the outcome of this election as life or death. In trying to convey to him the importance of what I felt and meant, he told me this, "If a government is messed up than they deserve what they get." This response was alarming to me. A government is corrupt, a government instigates other countries, fuels their fire with their rhetoric, but is that any reason to kill the people? Policy, politics, and power lead people to forget the value of human lives. Further into my conversation I was told that any vote that he would have made would be solely in self interest. Fair enough, we all must look out for our own well-being before worrying about that of others. We cannot shine for others if our own lives remain dull. Bearing that in mind, we must ask ourselves, what will make a better world for us, for our children. Each one of us with a little more money in our pockets and a war torn world? Or maybe, with a change of attitude, we can learn to respect other people for their differences. With a little patience, we can see rhetoric for what it really is. We can see the fear that one day all power will be lost driving people to extremes and maybe then we will share the wealth. It is fear that drives corruption, but we have to step down from our soap box as well and realize that while we think we know ourselves, we really know very little and while we think we stand on the side of good, we stand on the side of good for us. The United States is one of the most generous countries in the world. Generosity is only worthwhile if it grows hope and prosperity for all, for humankind, for all of us. Not just the people on "our" side. If this person, who I love very much were here right now, I would tell him, this is not our world, not yours and mine. We will leave here someday, and we must leave a legacy. In serving only ourselves the legacy we leave will do nothing for our world. The world breathes life into us, what are we going to give back to it? If that doesn't mean anything, I'll ask him in simpler terms, something closer to his heart. How good do you really think the economy will be in a time of war?

Marianne Williamson is quoted by some of the most respected people in the world saying, "As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same." Let's go then and create a brighter world.