this is what was written in crayon on our brand new fence that we had to erect to keep our crazy dog from running the neighborhood (someone called the cops ya know). SO, we put up the fence and it gets vandalized? asshole hippies? yeah, let me call my friend jon....he's got the pot. i kinda want to laugh about it, but then i think.....a kid probably did it and they probably heard that from a parent. it really makes me feel kind of sick. it also makes me want to throw a HUGE block party. feed everyone, shut the street down, rent a bit jumpy thing and force everyone to like us! i think it also makes me feel sad for my kids. then when i think of that i want to find the little twerp who wrote on my fence and yell really mean things. i just want to ask them....how big is your world? do you ever get out of your box? look around you. does everyone look just like you? act like you? wake up. the world is HUGE. you know nothing about me. you've looked at me and decided who you think i am.
so this incident led me to think about people throughout history who have suffered bigger injustices than this small event. how years and years of being treated like a lesser being because of race, gender, religion or class could force a people down. how my hope is that this can change. can it? are we destined to repeat the past? a couple of years ago when we were studying history (we start from the ancients and proceed from there to american history), my son avery (then 9) asked, "when are the protestants and catholics going to STOP FIGHTING?". hmmm...well, let me get back to you on that one. in going through history again with my kids i've realized how much fighting there was/is! one battle after another. one people trying to free themselves from another. one county trying to gain another. it truly never ends. and i don't think it ever will end. as much as i want peace, i really don't think it's possible. the only thing i can do is to try REALLY HARD to live in peace with my neighbor. it is NOT an easy task. i know it's the right thing to do, but i really don't want to do it. i want everyone i know and love to live on my cul-de-sac. i don't want to have to get along with people who i really share nothing in common. (except for dee...my 70 year old friend across the street...she ROCKS!) i want it to be easy. life is never easy. there will always be the underdog. the person underfoot. i just don't want it to be me....
8 comments:
Wow. That is just so ridiculous! I can imagine how you must want to laugh and punch something at the same time.
Your fighting question reminds me of when I was reading Story of the World (probably Vol 1) to the kids and Laurel kept running off every time I'd read it. She said, "All this is about is war and war." She'd only listen when I got to parts about babies being born or people getting married. ;-)
Oh.
My.
Gosh.
I am so sorry. I know those feelings because we, of course, are the ones with the pot. You said it exactly right - on one hand I want to kill them and on the other hand, I want to know why they don't like me and to MAKE them like me!!
I think that there are two families in your neighborhood who don't like you, maybe just one, but I think two. They probably talk about it and fuel it and fuel it. But there must be teenage kids or older kids who would do the 1)dog poop on your porch
2)asshole hippies on your fence.
On the other hand, I do love the idea of a block party, not necessarily to make them like you, but just to have a block party. You may make some other friends and it may help your kids to not think of everyone on the street as the 'idiot who hates us'.
Just a thought.
Frankly, I'll take being an a-hole hippie any day over the cookie-cutter alternative. Make some t-shirts with iron-on transfer paper with "A.H." emblazoned on them.
They obviously have never taken the time to get to know your family. Jerks!
OKAY...so I just have to ask. Is your Aiden the same one that Rich Mullins sang about in "Let Mercy Lead"?
Thanks for visiting my new digs. I'd come to your block party, and I'd love to wear an A. H. t-shirt!
Oh, my--have I ever been in that place before!! Wanting to yell, wanting to be liked, wanting to laugh it off, wanting to fight it off. Ugh.
To answer your question on my blog--we left Common Ground about 5 years ago. Our house church was dissolving (people moving, getting married, going back to school--no hard feelings or anything) and we found out about Englewood Christian Church, which was basically in our neighborhood...and long story short, we've been here since shortly before Miriam's birth. :)
Oh, so many angry things rage within me. I would have gone door to door until I found the culprit and I made EVERYONE in my neighborhood feel uncomfortable. Preferably with big hairy armpits and a large amount of patchouli. Smoking pot. With Birkenstocks.
Narrow minded effers!
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