Tag Archives: call to action

Normalized Desensitization

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Squinting through sensationalistic headlines that land on lazy, apathetic eyes. Digging out from beneath a mountain of misinformation to find just enough oxygen to breathe a molecule of truth. Untying knots of strategic manipulation to stretch a straight line from catalyst to result. Differentiating sarcasm from sincerity to avoid misconstrued intention. Offering the benefit of the doubt before blatant dismissal. Reaching out with an open hand instead of a closed fist.

These would all seem like logical, sensible modes of operation in our modern society.

But when was the last time you witnessed any of this regularly practiced?

In our knee-jerk, zero-tolerance culture, fingers are rarely pulled from triggers before shots are fired. We have normalized fury, ignorance, outrage, laziness, and intolerance.

News that would have felt impossibly fictitious only a decade ago now holds the intellectual weight of a weather report. Disposable, dismissible sound bites float almost silently in one ear and then quickly exit the other. We half-focus on everything before instantly abandoning even the notion of comprehension, let alone action.

The big bad news is that none of this behavior is abating. With each passing year, the seeds of our future discontent are being sown with the rapidity of a hyperactive nut-gathering squirrel.

So, do we bend under the weight of stacked distractions, or do we force our heads out of the sand and stand accountable? Passivity and avoidance aren’t what medals are made of…but courage and clarity are the ingredients of greatness.

Adolescence Interrupted 

There Will Always Be Monsters under the Bed

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They will continue to wait, whether we remember to check or forget to inspect. On bended knees, our eyes remain peeled for a glimpse of anything unusual sitting on the planks. But it’s pointless to pretend the floor is clear. They were hiding there last night and last year. They’ll be back again tomorrow…and forever.

The nagging knocking behind the eyes that keeps us awake. The sense that we are barreling toward the inevitable edge. The lists of boxes that remain unchecked. The threat of impending doom. The planet on the verge of collapse. The infighting. The declining educational system. The poor. The sick. The sad. The struggling. The confused. The hurting. The hurt. The loop stuck on a loop. The dubious distrust. The fear. The uncontrollable variables. The time. The schedule. The appointments. The wasted opportunities. The cost. The consequence. The imbalance. The chasm. The loss. The hammer. The nails. The virus. The variants. The worry. The wonder. The sense that any plan must be penned by our own hands. The inattention to intention. The lack of air. The lack of breath. The search for courage. The responsibilities. The falling hourglass sands. The questioning. The projecting. The diet. The disease. The swing. The strike. The call to action. The answer. The bruises. The blood. The tightrope walk. The guns. The drugs. The laws. The disconnections. The deleted lines. The money wearing masks. The trust split into pieces. The rankings. The rancor. The voices. The voiceless. The hardened. The heartless. The abusers. The abused. The race toward a constantly drifting finish line. The ridicule. The neglect. The bottom line. The ringing. The spinning. The tension. The waves. The shortened fuse. The easy ignition. The order. The angles. The criticism. The denigration. The obsessions. The compulsions. The rigid routines. The punishing patterns. The reaching. The rejection. The shooting star wishes for a second chance at another lap.

There will always be monsters under the bed.

Be a scarier monster.

Adolescence Interrupted