True Hope, Noble Service

Hi All,

For this BLOG, I have decided to post an edited version of an email that I sent to my dear friend and mentor, Angela Bass.

I hope you are well. I am CERTAIN that you are energized by the outcome of our presidential election! I know my friend Jenn Hoffman is. In fact, she was disgusted with me because she was more excited than I was. She was expecting an Oprah moment from me and at the time I couldn’t give it to her. I’m sorry Jenn.

In the days since the Barack’s victory, I have been thinking over my own reactions. Like most things, my reaction was rooted in my childhood. As I look back on my childhood, perhaps the single most powerful—and empowering thing my parents did was instill in me a sense of worthiness, privilege and wholeness. When Jesse Jackson was shown crying (perhaps because it wasn't him that was elected...ok that's nasty, I take it back) I thought back to when my parents and a core group of their friends hosted a fund raiser in East County for his presidential campaign. When John Lewis spoke about the civil rights era on Oprah, I thought back to when Ralph Abernathy and Ben Hooks came to our house for an NAACP event. Ralph Abernathy held my 8 year old face in his hands and told me I was special and beautiful. What a blessing!...literally! I remember answering the phone when James Baldwin called. I remember my mother's absolute elation at hosting, Kwame Nkrumah, Esther Rolle, Angela Davis and several others at San Diego State. We all, o.k. my mother and I, acted silly when Edwin Hawkins and William Marshall came on separate Sunday afternoon occasions. Most recently, I can recall when I introduced myself to Asa Hilliard and told him that my mother spoke often and fondly of him. When I told him who she was, he hugged me tightly and warmly. His passing actually had a profound impact on the ripples in the pond that circle around in my head as I continue the next phase of my life...my legacy was once said-- in one of the many conversations where my mentor Angela Bass took me to task..urging me to do more.

A similar unction came during Obama’s acceptance speech. Do you know which part of his speech resonated with me the most? His call to service and personal sacrifice. Yeup. My prayer partners know that I have been wrestling with “my calling” and yearn to know where I am called to serve. (Either I am growing up or I am having a mid life crisis!!!) Daily, Ricardo and I brainstorm connections that might lead us to working for Obama. We often joke about there being more like 2 degrees of separation between Black folk instead of the proverbial 6! We KNOW that someone we know can “hook us up”. I actually went on line to the DC public schools website and they actually have literacy professional developers posted! I tell you the current vibe just makes me want to DO MORE!

But you know what? If we never meet him, we are committed to carrying out our common ideals. As Nellie put it, in this election, profound, worthy ideals won out for our good. (paraphrase) So, as I reflect upon Barack’s victory and my own life’s road, I am inspired to do more! How about you? Each of us possesses the gifts to be an inspiration and a help to someone. After all, we can be every bit as inspiring and committed as he is especially if we do, in fact, commit to personal sacrifice and service! As Gandhi would say," You must BE the change you wish to see in the world".

Finally, I know that not all of you reading this BLOG voted for Barack. I pray for the mending of your spirits. To that end I am including here a modern rendition of Psalms 114 and 115 that I recently shared with a long time friend. It captures the essence of his platform and our individual obligations.

And remember if you meet the Obama’s –especially Michelle—before I do PLEASE remember to drop my name. Resume and references furnished in a heart beat!


Peace and Blessings,

Shawn

Psalms 114 and 115 as transliterated by Leslie Brandt

We fear, O God, for our country and the tragic indifference that is demonstrated in respect to You and Your purposes.
We have built great shrines and memorials in Your honor.
We have established innumerable religions that presume to glorify and serve You.
We have respectfully imprinted Your name upon our coins and properly credited You in our founding principles.
Our leaders generally call on You to guide them in the most critical decisions they must make.
A remnant of our populace gathers occasionally to sing Your praises and profess its faith.
There are even special days when we count our blessings and conduct services of thanksgiving.

But the shrines we build to you do not always glorify You.
They often become soundproof fortresses that blot out the sounds of suffering which echo throughout the world about them.
Our numerous religions turn into vain attempts to box You into man-made ideas and concepts of divinity.
The coins which bear Your name are dedicated to the pursuit of our selfish ambitions and the acquisition of material wealth.
Our founding principles are interpreted in ways that benefit the powerful and oppress the weak.
Our laws sometimes contradict and oppose Your law in respect to the consciences and convictions of Your children.
Our leaders call upon You to bless their intentions rather than to reveal to Your plans in the government of men.
And those who do gather to sing Your praises are seldom committed to anyone or anything unless it is comfortable and convenient for their purposes.

And yet, O Lord, we pray that You will not give us up.
We have selfishly clutched at Your great blessings and abused the wealth You have put into our hands.
We have gathered for ourselves while countless millions of this world's creatures have have died with their needs unfulfilled.
We have foolishly ignored You to worship the things that have come from Your hands.
We confess our rebelliousness and selfishness, O Lord, and pray that You will spare us.
Spare us, in order that you might renew us and save us and use us to channel Your blessings to Your children in every land.
You dealt mercifully with Your ungrateful children throughout history.
We pray that You will deal patiently and lovingly with us, that You will transform our words into actions and our shallow platitudes into genuine praises that will glorify and serve You in all the world.