series: color vs. contrast
1/6
Silence. Somber silence. Uncomfortable silence. Forced silence. Ignorance-Is-Bliss silence. Conformed silence. United silence. Safe silence.
Some feel shut up by their own kind and others feel shut up by the other, but the tragedy lies in the silence that's existed for so long-and still does-in places everywhere.
When you look at her, all you see is black.
When she looks at you, all she sees is white.
When you look at him, all you see is white.
When he looks at you, all he sees is black.
The contrast is the problem. We are a blend of all the colors that create us.
So many look at their skin and it's a certain color, yet all they can see is the contrast of the other. They're so used to being seperated by the hue of their body that they see color as a factor in grouping and element in defining a person. We are acting and seeing and thinking shallowly, with no depth. If we look deeper in, we would assess a person by their soul and heart instead of only looking on the surface. Skin tone is irrelevant.
The problem lies not in seeing color, but the contrast.
Black lives matter. How is this not obvious? All lives matter. How is this not obvious? LIVES MATTER. It is a LIFE. Have we forgotten the weight of that word?
Love colors, not contrast.
2/6
Rip it off. Break the silence. Speak up. Act. Move. Do something. If you aren't doing anything, you are also a part of the problem.
We must begin to carry along with courage to be who we're called to be. We must not allow fear to bind us from doing what is right. It is not enough to sit back and watch and wait. It won't look the same for everyone but ignorance and denial is infectious and plaguing. We all need to find our own way to push forward and love what's within without regard to the color of someone's pigmentation. Logically, it is not sound to connect worth to race.
The problem lies not in seeing color, but the contrast.
3/6
Tear it apart. Destroy the hate. Break down the walls. Expose the holes. Show the broken.
We must learn to wear eachother's wounds to begin to understand. We must be vulnerable enough to display our fringe and open up enough to try on theirs. We must expose our empty places and sorry faces and realize the urgent need to fill these spaces. From the dust we are made and one shade of dirt is not superior to another. How is this not obvious? The beauty lies in the blending and intermingling and collaborating of colors- not division.
The problem lies not in seeing color, but the contrast.
4/6
Undress the pain. Let them try it on. Renew your perspective. Put yourself in the other shoes. Shed the norm. Exchange places.
Perhaps we need to find a way to wear their perspective to truly start to see. Perhaps we're tainted by our own point of view that we forget to think about the other. We are so biased because we only see from one set of eyes, think from one mindset, dream from one stream of visions, and feel from one heart that weighs heavy from what it's experienced. I wonder what we could gain and how we could grow if we learned to step into many others' with the intent to learn and space to change. Maybe we should stop defending our views so hard for the appetite of our ego and lifeline of our pride and spend enough time in the steps of another whose view looks much different than our own. Perhaps both wisdom and love reside in that place.
The problem lies not in seeing color, but the contrast.
5/6
Dwell in the other's hard places. Try it on. Allow it to soak in. Switch places. Let it change you.
When we sit in our own skin and look out at contrasting colors, I think we see it so differently. In some ways, so wrongly... simply because we can't identify. We often don't even try. Maybe it would be useful to at least gain the other half of the perspective. If we could find a way to slip into the wounded perception from the others, we might feel how wrong that is compared to our perception of the stigma of our own race. Let someone else define "black" and "white" and try it on. Fortunately, it is not as black and white as that. We are not as black and white as that.
The color of their skin, style of their clothes, gender choice in love, place in a political party, weight and height, aspects of their culture, societal associations with their race, reputation of their family members or friends or in regard to mistakes they've made or decisions they've suffered from ALL have nothing to do with whether their life MATTERS. I mean- wow. Isn't that obvious? How can it not be? Something of value and knowledge and opinion can be said about each of those things but none are applicable to worthiness. A life is a life and its loss should always bring sorrow, weight, reflection, purpose, reminiscence, and a lesson. I hope we start to see all of the beautiful colors that are weaved to create our very beings and stop seeing things so black and white.
Life matters... so be the best you can, make tomorrow better than today, love others with all that you are, don't fight hate with hate, chase the light and let it bring you home.
WORTH is not related to a skin color. The problem lies not in seeing color, but in the contrast.
6/6
Don't let the darkness force your eyes down. Look up. Show your colors. Shine on. Keep moving forward.
We are made up of more than just the color on the outside. We're a blend of colors that paint who we are. Let's not be shallow-- look deeper.
Jasmine is neon for the music festivals to discover bands and that let her spirit run free. Jasmine is forest green for the blissful beauty of nature that soothes and captivates her driving down long roads. Jasmine is midnight blue for her curiosity of people at 3AM vs. 3PM and what she can learn from late nights.
Drew is shades of blue for his love of the oceans and the occasional teardrops that fall solely from music. Drew is red for the passion he emits himself and the passion he finds beautiful and inspiring in those who he meets. Drew is white for laughter and playfulness that fuels his soul.
We are not just black or white... We are walking color palettes disguised by one shade of skin color that has somehow become a factor in how we view the hearts of others. This is dangerous and unfounded. It isn't rooted in something fruitful. We need to look for the colors that create those around us and work to expose the colors that make us whole.
We are more than a black and white matter. The problem lies not in seeing color, but in the contrast.