As of February 2018, the Berlin Wall has been down for as long as it stood dividing East Germans from West, 28 years. The guarded concrete wall which divided the city of Berlin only served to remind both sides of their war ravaged past. Loved ones were torn apart as the Russians moved in and took control of the East thereby preventing freedom of movement of its citizens.
The wall was a not just a concreate barrier, but a symbol of two narratives. From the East it was to protect the people from the evils of fascism which would undermine the will of the people. On the left side of the wall, the people simply called it “The Wall of Shame.”
While Washington is haggling over the definition of the word “wall” and playing political games with our citizens being used as pawns, the truth is, a wall is being erected every day. While it may not be made of concrete or keep anyone from crossing our borders, it is growing taller and stronger in its ferocity every day.
The wall is the continental divide between ideals. While the differences may not be as stark and violent as it was between the North and the South during the civil war, it is certainly as palpable and recognizable in our daily discourse and social interactions.
The people on the left and right daily denigrate each other for their opposite political views, their love or hate of Trump or for simply not seeing things the same way. Both believing the other side is completely blinded by their entrenched ideology, very few are willing to leave the warmth of their tribal bonfire and wander outside of the group, sit in the great outdoors, look up at the same stars and embrace the beauty of what binds us all together – sweet liberty and the freedom to express it.
While both sides will tell you they see through their wall and the people on the other side are full of hate – they have mistaken a mirror for a window.
So whether Mr. Trump gets his much hyped wall or multi-faceted solutions are agreed upon to insure our nation’s security – whatever the outcome of our southern border, it won’t do anything to address the bigger more powerful wall which is dividing us from within.
For those of us who value independent thinking and strive to find objectivity, reasonability, balance and civility – we will be here daily with our mental ice picks trying to chip away at the wall of ignorance, hatred and deception which threatens to unravel our fragile democracy.
We must tear down that wall. Every day, we must not let the hate voices prevail and tempt us to retreat into the shelter of the group at the far left or the far right.
I hope we all wake up, open our eyes and defy the wall that blinds us.
The Zen Den
Hello and welcome to The Zen Den. My name is Alison and while I am passionate about many things, my most inspiring driving force is human connection. Blogger, content writer, orthopedic exercise specialist, motivational speaker, international yoga pro, published songwriter, avid poker player, mom and wife are just a few of my titles. But when I do my job at NASA, I am known simply as “The Fairy Zenmother” a role I deeply love because people invite me into their space to help them find their center, relax and stretch their muscles and destress their mind. Here in the blogosphere version of The Zen Den, I invite you into my world where I will explore ideas for creating a better tomorrow and a kinder today. And hopefully, with insight, authenticity and humor; my words, observations and experiences will help you feel calm, centered, intellectually challenged and spiritually enlightened. Alternatively, if you have something you would like to see covered in The Zen Den, just let me know. Your feedback is welcome and valuable to the success of this blog. Finally, my heart is filled with gratitude to have this opportunity to share with all of you.
