What if...

Changing Places

“…the sinner and the saint are just the masks you put on’, Merlin replied. ‘The saint in this life may be the sinner in another life, and the sinner today may be learning to become a saint tomorrow. All these roles are illusions in God's eyes. I am not saying you must force this perspective on yourself. You asked me for guidance, however, and I must show you what lies ahead on the path.”
Deepak Chopra (The Way of the Wizard)

My son, Ian, is taking a class in graduate school on sensitivity to cultural differences. He is learning what it is like to be from a minority culture in America. Even when we don’t mean to be insensitive, as members of the privileged majority, we say and do things that are simply tactless for no other reason than ignorance and habit. I would say that we in the South are especially guilty, except for the fact that I have lived in California and New York City, and as a Southerner, experienced blatant discrimination in both those places. I think it is sufficient to say that majority populations everywhere have a lot to learn about racism and prejudice.

I like to think that there is an outside possibility that we get to go around more than once on this earth plane. In my next lifetime, I may be a black woman in sub-Saharan Africa, or an Icelandic fisherman. Suppose all our souls get a turn at being in the minority. If we knew this to be true, would we act differently? If I, as a white, middle-class American, expected to spend a lifetime as a black person, or a Hispanic person in my culture, might I be less likely to be callous toward them now? Might I try a little harder to be conscious of my present insensitivity and not simply take for granted that the way I see life is the ‘right’ way?

There are important lessons to be learned about ourselves in any incarnation. To learn those lessons, we must first be self-aware; conscious of our thoughts and words. Whether we are, at any given moment, saint or sinner, majority or minority, black or white or tan, we can learn those lessons and carry our expanded consciousness forward. We will bequeath that expansion to the next generation, whether that is our children or us in new skins.

In the spirit,
Jane