A Tale of Two Cities... Some Mo

The theme for the last week in Atlanta was "Becoming the Beloved Community" and that community was built... not perfectly (by ANY means), not without some whining, and some anger, and a goodly amount of frustration. It also included some remarkable people (like C.T.) and Dr. J. Alfred Smith and Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb and so many more (which I could keep listing but I'd fall asleep and never get this post made). However, I really must mention the teacher of the mornings, Princeton professor, Dr. Peter Paris, a soft spoken, but highly authoritative, intelligent, compassionate, aware, centered and deeply loving person. I was truly startled to be in his presence.

In addition there were, of course, friends old and new; people who put their lives on the line every day. It had been a long time since I had been around people who make the choice to go to Federal Prison for their beliefs and people who sacrifice their personal time for work to help folks in Central and South America, or people - like Hector - who have to live each day with a residue of pain that is the legacy of hours, days, weeks and months of torture in U.S. supported interogation rooms twenty years ago.

All of them, folks whose feet I do not even deserve the priviledge to kiss... But they are my friends, they are interested in my point of view, we share a commmon call, a common task, a common hope, and a common dream.

So now I'm back on the supposedly liberal, open, aware and compassionate West Coast, in Petaluma... again, where everyone knows so much (regardless of whether they have actually pursued any kind of actual investigation or education on a matter), where everyone thinks they are mo' smart, mo' superior, mo' priviledged (well... yeah you right about one of 'em at least)than everyone else.

Gandhi made the point that you must BE the peace you want to see in the world... and after the year that I have had I really do want that to be the central point of my life. After the last week, I am convinced that it MUST be... but when people who are my friends (at least in theory) make derisive and dismissive comments about things they haven't even bothered to make the effort to pay attention to... well I really want to BE that peace... I swear to God I want to be that PEACE.... even here in Northern California. I really do wish to be "The Beloved Commmunity" in which people, even when they don't understand each other, are caring and thoughtful and open and awake... but I'm just not feelin' it very much right now... Damnit!

If I can't feel more peaceful with those I choose to have around me, then what hope is there for the world?