Stream of Consciousness: Be the Change

Every day, I wake up. I have my morning coffee, I check my E-mail/Social media; I engage with my son {when he's not off on his own adventures with Daddy or Grandma and Papa }. ~ I live my life... or do I? I thought so. But, today... With the
luxury { and anyone who full-time parents a 2 year old can totally relate to this } of an ability to sleep in that extra hour, to
peruse through local, national and international news stories without the usual childish { not in a bad way } cacophony all
around me, ~ I started to realize something... I am NOT living. I am merely existing in this world, much like practically everyone else. ~ So... with a deep breath, I followed my gut instincts. I shut off the computer... I put my cellphone away...
" SILENCE ISN'T EMPTY. IT'S FULL OF ANSWERS."


All this silence has me screaming... "STOP!"
"Stop! Just Stop! Get out of your routine, break your habits, escape your comfort zone. Do something different.
Change something, Anything. I don't care if it's big or small, just Change It."
We are NOT creatures of habit; We have simply BECOME creatures of habit. And we have been hiding behind
"IT'S JUST EASIER THIS WAY" for far too long. Easier? Really? ~ Well, after much careful observation, and a
multitude of daily factual evidence to the contrary, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree, my friends.

Now, I know what you're all thinking. Trust me, I'd be thinking it, too, if not for this extremely incredible stream of consciousness flowing through me. { Great! Now you're REALLY thinking it! } But... hear me out for a second. I think I might be on the verge of a breakthrough! ( Small or large, no matter ~ ya gotta start somewhere! ) At the very least, I'm onto something here... I think... And it could, potentially, be a key to solving/saving a lot of the civil and domestic unrest this entire world is in. And I don't know about you but, Me? I would want to know if there was something, Anything I could do to possibly change or, at the very least, minimize the impact of today's world... On me, on my family... and on my whole world family, as well. ... But... that's Me.

" BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD."

Mahatma Gandhi spoke those words... Pure, unadulterated WISDOM, right? Well... let's admit it... We have failed, miserably, in our quests, both personally and globally, to manage that simple task. Take a look, folks. What have we done with our "Change"? ~ Let's really take a long hard look at that, shall we?

Well... Our "Change" has allowed us to live in a world where Gun Violence, Murder, Sexual Assault, False Imprisonment, Racism, Sexism, Mass Shootings, Kidnappings, Genocide, a Plethora of Stereotypes, Misinformation, Homelessness, Fat-Shaming (and judgement based on appearance), Transgender Bias, and Sexual Orientation Inequalities, are a media headline, on the daily. We have changed NOTHING! Sure, we may have checked a few different boxes on the ballot slip, but what Change have we really initiated? None! We vote for change, but we fail to recognize our PART in it! So now I'm asking you... Each and every damned one of you... to BE THE CHANGE.

" IT STARTS AT HOME. "

Probably because "HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS." ~ It truly does. Hey, don't get all offended by what I'm telling you. Hell, until I sat down this morning, to engage myself in the same old routines I've been relying on for what seems like forever, I thought the same way you do... but wait... I promise, it's worth it. And it's simple, really.
Wait for it...

Get "UN"Comfortable... Now, I'm not saying to get to a point of "DIS"Comfort, but "UN"Comfortable,~ which, basically, means that you remove your Self from the personal comfort zones you've chained yourselves to. That means, - If you always get up and make your morning coffee, ~ Go for a walk (or drive, if you must) to your favourite coffee shop. Interact with someone ~ Anyone. { Your SIRI doesn't count! } Say "Hello," exchange pleasantries with a stranger... Better yet, buy them a coffee... Have a conversation. Focus more on the content, and Remember that the better part of ANY conversation is wholly dependent on your ability to Shut Up and Listen. ... As I said, it starts small... And... "It starts at home."

Once you start the "Change" ball rolling, there's absolutely no limit as to how far the positive change can truly go. It's almost like the "trickle-down effect"... And I think, if my calculations are correct, { what, with the Six Degrees of Separation, taken into account } one should start to see Change, even to the smallest of degrees, almost instantaneously. Because, you see, the Change begins at Home... "HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS"... in our Selves. By stepping out of our comfort zones, by checking in with our personal consciousness { instead of the societal "norm" we inhabit a.k.a Routine }, we alter our perspective ~ From one of CHAOS and UNREST, to one of INNER PEACE and POSITIVE CHANGE.

And how, exactly, does change catapult itself to the global arena? Ah-Ha! Now THAT, my friends, is the beauty of it all! It's so simple that even the smallest of children, the frailest of the elderly, the lamest of dim-witted fools, can do their part! ... Because every act of change within emits change, outward.
So... the coffee scenario I mentioned earlier... Let's say I was to go on my morning jaunt to my favourite coffee shop. Now, on my way, I encounter someone who looks like _____________ (fill in the blank). Routine, Habit, and Comfort Zones would have me do one of the following: (1) Ignore it, with the silent thought of "Not My Problem", or (2) Judge it, with the smirk of repugnance on my face. But... This is where Change needs to make her grand entrance.

THIS is where we press PLAY, and watch the rules of "THE GAME OF LIFE" become just a little more even-handed.
THIS is where we cast off our "STUCK-IN-A-RUT" cloaks and show the world what we look like under our stained, raggedy old T-Shirts.
THIS is where we STOP LOOKING DOWN and where we offer a hand UP... because, ya know? Sometimes, we all need a little help!
THIS is where it needs to start... and it DEFINITELY needs to start...

Because YOU...
ME...
WE...
US...
We are condemning ourselves to a world of "Columbines", "Orlandos", "Syrian Civil Unrest", "Nice attacks", "ISIS", "Black Lives Matter"... NO! CHANGE THAT!!! -- Because YOU...
ME...
WE...
US...
WE ALL MATTER!!!

Take some time to Listen to the Silence. Let Silence fill you; Let it resonate within you until the melody it plays sways
you back to the Beginning... And Change... Be Open to Change. Embrace it. Nurture it... Because if YOU...
ME...
WE...
US...
If we don't Change,
Nothing matters...
Does it?