PART THREE Big things have small beginnings. I didnt actually see the film, but I remember the commercials on TV for Prometheus and this quote from the terrific actor Michael Fassbender -- who happens to portray the cruel slave master Edwin Epps in 12 Years A Slave. Big things. Small beginnings. During my Monday movie marathon, I also happened to see a really good film called Captain Phillips. Tom Hanks portrayed the captain of a freighter that was hijacked off the coast of Somalia by Somali pirates. He was forcibly removed from his ship by the band of pirates, who escaped with him in a smaller craft. In addition to being kidnapped, Captain Phillips was beaten, battered, and bloodied over the course of several days. The irony of seeing a white American being captured by black Africans, who subsequently attempted to take him back to Africa with them, wasnt lost on me. The piracy of the present and the slavery of our past share one common component. Each was driven by ECONOMICS of brutality. Perhaps since the beginning of time, economics has been the factor in humanitys seemingly limitless capacity to be . . . BLIND to . . . humanity. The pirates in the film were blind to the fact that they were terrorizing other human beings, threatening the lives of other human beings, and shooting bullets in the direction of other human beings. They were blind to the fact that in assaulting Captain Phillips, they were splitting his skin, bruising his bones, and shattering his spirit. What made them blind to the damage that they were inflicting? Once Captain Phillips was rescued by Navy SEALS, he was taken aboard a Navy ship to receive medical attention. Though his physical ordeal was over, his mind had tremendous difficulty resetting itself to its default position: normal. Despite her constant reassurances, the captain couldnt stop shaking. He couldnt stop crying. He couldnt extricate his mind from the valley of the shadow of death. He was in shock. He had been severely traumatized. And he was responding absolutely appropriately to the experience of brutality. Its easy, as a viewer in a movie theatre, to see the damage caused by human brutality. Its easy to see the terror in the captains eye, and the wounds and scars on the slaves back. Its easy to see where brutality leads, and how the story ends. The thing that is far more difficult to see is the beginning. Big things. Small beginnings. Slavery and piracy are big things. Brutality is a really big thing. Each is a complex system born of complex issues. But they were indeed . . . BORN. And everything born starts off small. Where can we find their roots -- roots that grow underground, out of sight, looking for a tiny pocket in which to emerge? What causes one human being to see the economic advantage of enslaving another? What causes a human being aboard one ship to see the economic advantage of hijacking and ransacking other ships? What causes a human being to strike another human being with the tip of a whip, with the force of a fist, or the butt of a rifle? I think that all of these big things are rooted in one very small thing. That thing is EVIL. You might debate that evil is no small thing. And theres a level upon which youd be right about that. But evil, which M. Scott Peck once referred to as the ultimate human disease, begins on an invisible level. The disease becomes manifest in one person, and can its effects can spread very quickly to other people. The hatred in one mans heart can consume the hearts of hundreds. The fear in one mans mind can affect millions. Thats why every human being has to take inventory of his head, and her heart. Thats why all thoughts, words, and deeds need to be examined. Thats why I dont want to spank my little boy anymore. Thats why the n-word has got to go. Big things. Small beginnings. Somewhere along the way, it seems as if weve lost the ability to walk a mile in another persons shoes. It seems as if weve lost the ability to really care about one another. Did we ever really have these abilities? Did we ever really learn to cultivate them? Did we ever really accept that each of us is an individual cell in one human body? I dont just see our lack of compassion for humanity on the silver screen, you know. I see it everywhere. And I dont just see it in others. I see it in myself. Theres anger that lives in my mind. Theres fear that lives in my heart. Anger and fear sow the seeds of brutality. But theres great compassion in my soul. Im trying to take up residence there. In my soul. Im working on ways that I can harness the energy of my soul, so I can distribute it in the world. I believe, with all my soul, that I can use my life to contribute to all of life. That starts with the choice to arrest my own anger, and to challenge my own fears. That starts with the choice to be consummately aware of all that I think, all that I say, all that I do, AND ALL THAT I WRITE. My words are my gifts. We all have gifts to share. Each human lifetime offers an opportunity to change . . . EVERYTHING. Small beginnings. Big things. Together. NOT THE END THE BEGINNING
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 21:09:32 +0000
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