There's a fellow Soldier in my class that has repeatedly caught my attention, and I genuinely can't put my finger on why. Sure, I caught him peeking at me, but, frankly, we're in Infantry Land, that's not even interesting at this point. He's not unattractive, though he's not someone that peaked my interest based upon looks, and he's rather quiet, without being awkward about it.
I had noticed him before class started yesterday, our first day, and today it was only magnified. Somebody was talking about something rather ridiculous, I can't remember what, and suddenly he piped up, from across the room, out of nowhere with a response- something to do with money- and I busted out laughing. I told him he caught that idea a little too quickly, and that I was now officially worried about him. His response was 'Oh, don't worry about it, it's just because I'm a Jew!' This, as you can imagine, only incurred more laughs, but it's had me thinking, even more than before, that this man- I can't, with any sense of accuracy, even begin to guess his age, which bugs me- is someone I need to talk to. I can't put my finger on why, and, honestly, I know just enough about Judaism to not have any even semi-legit questions I can ask him, yet not enough to really mention something worth discussing. So, I open the loverly Ocean program, and tap tap tap away, until I stumble across something I might be able to ask him about, and all this is on the assumption that he's a practicing Jew, and not someone who was simply born to a Jewish mother, if even that much.
I try to combine the thought of all this with some of the recent conversations I've had with folks that, once again, tell me that this Baha'i thing was less circumstance than, for lack of better word, fate.
Jerry has told me many times that he's known since our first conversation that I was already a Baha'i, it was just a matter of time for it to become official. Conversations with Richard, Steve G, and others, to include my recent cross-posting blessing, seem to convey more of the same; this is who I've always been. For all the pain, frustration, fear and total confusion I've endured in this lifetime, I can't, for one second, believe it was for nothing. I believe my mission is to open up a few more gates during the time of Entry By Troops- a term I only recently came to understand. I understood my mission before I understood the terminology most of the friends use. Strange feeling. This faith has always been who I was. I never agreed with half of what I did, but I believe I had to experience these things to be able to understand the same people I introduce to this life. When I try to think of being this open with faith and race without the experiences I've had... Well, it feels a lot like those people who knock on your door and tell you, a complete stranger, well, "YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG!"
I'm not down with that.
I can't tell people I don't relate to where they're screwing up. Hell, I can't tell people I DO relate to that. I've had the blessing of many opportunities, though, to talk to people who knew me (and plenty who didn't) about my faith, and about race, and about plenty of other things that people really, really, REALLY don't like talking to strangers about. How many people do you know that could sit in a nail salon getting a pedicure and wind up having a full-blown discussion with two other people, both of different races, about race? How many people do you know willing to ask someone even if they believe in God these days? PEOPLE ARE SCARED! The thing is, we've been soooo focused on what makes us different for sooooo long that we've forgotten the underlying message in that Golden Rule we like to tout off about: The reason we should be treating everyone like we want to be treated is because THEY ARE ALL JUST LIKE US! Why is that such a hard concept to grasp?! Did people get so scared to look at why we do things, or why we're supposed to do things, that they just started taking orders and not questioning it all?
What would happen if the Golden Rule (Treat others as you want to be treated) became law? You remember your early days of school, when it was no big surprise when the adult on hand asked you about your offense 'Now, is that what you'd want him to do to you?' What if adults started routinely asking each other that? What if you saw someone walk over/around someone who'd dropped a stack of papers and you asked them 'Would you like someone to help you in that situation, or would you rather they ignore your need for help and kept moving?' What if this became a NORMAL, EVERYDAY THING?
I'm in a fortunate position as a Soldier. I'm in the senior most jr enlisted rank- I'm above the privates, and below the sergeants. I'm at that point in my career where they expect me to question things, and make corrections where I know how. So here's my goal for tomorrow, and my challenge to anyone reading this: Today, or tomorrow, depending on when you read this, I suppose, call ONE PERSON out on the Golden Rule. Just one. You pick who, and where. That's not hard, is it?
One rule really can change the world, you know.
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