Sandals, Sneakers and Stilettos: Find Your Shoe Box (163)

This is a very tumultuous time. We are flooded with news of protesting and civil unrest. Active change happening around us. We are reminded daily that Covid-19 is very much alive, and in many places, it is spiking. We are spinning, trying to take it all in. To find our place in the midst of cultural and societal transition. Anxiety, anger, depression, and stress is a wave, capsizing outlooks.

We want to shout, join, march. We want to abstain, rebel, make a difference. Yet, underlying it all is a sense of fear- of saying the wrong thing, of not saying enough, of not being supportive enough, of being ridiculed for having our own frame of mind. It is exhausting. But we must continue to move forward and find our path, to add to the positive adjustments that are unfolding.

There are shelves of shoe boxes, lining the walls. Within each an opportunity, an opinion, an emotion. They are being pulled down, opened and strewn and all of these feelings are unraveling and amplifying. They are the necessary fuel for the movement. But it is alright, if every size does not match, if every design, every brand, every utility, is not a perfect fit. Just find your box.

Try on ideas like shoes. But do not settle out of pressure from the salesman. Sandals, sneakers, and stilettos all have a purpose. Cleats have sharp edges for digging into the grass. Some of us are wearing athletic shoes. While some of us, are wearing combat boots. Choose a shoe that will allow you to traverse the vast landscape, that is opening up before us.

Durable footwear will keep your feet dry, so you can focus on your surroundings. When our foundation is shaken, the rubble holds important clues. We have to sort through the piles, so we can identify the cause of the collapse. We must remain vigilant for the next quake; while at the same time, we continue uniting for the cause.

The conversations are unfolding. The intentional listening is underway. The interactions and discussions based on uncomfortable realism is shocking. It is resonating across the country. When people take the time to guide, rather than criticize, those who are trying to understand- leaps forward occur. When minds are opened with reason, they tend to stay ajar and accessible.

The world will never be the same. 2020 is a year not only ruptured by a pandemic, but also a host of a societal uproar, propelling us into a wave of collapse. Collapse of our complacency of expectation: that our shelves will be full, our classrooms will be buzzing with laughter and learning, that our streets will be safe for everyone.

It is a year that is a turning-point, a breaking point, a point of no return. Minds can not go back into a self-fulfilled loop. We have to remain united in the transformation of everything.

We have to above all else- have meaningful conversations about change- not a finger-pointing, shredding others, campaign of hate. The only way true growth is going to prevail, is if we intentionally listen, stay open-minded and mindful and find our shoe box- our voice, our action, our thread into the new.