Can You Name ‘IT’
What is ‘IT’ that sits at the core of our being, that helps us forget who we are for a minute and act for the good of all?
How did one man manage to tap into ‘IT’?
Do you realize that we all have whatever ‘IT’ is?
In listening to the speeches that were part of the journey, I tried to find ‘IT’S’ essence.
God made us all equal, yet he stood apart. He found that which springs from the core of our being.
Can you name ‘IT’?
How did he mobilize a nation? How did he get people to act? What did he tap into?
Was ‘IT’:
• Confidence – the feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something?
• Audacity – the willingness to take bold action?
• Hope – a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen?
• Change – make or become different?
• Faith – complete trust or confidence in someone or something?
• Passion – strong and barely controllable emotion?
• Vision – the faculty or state of being able to see?
• Truth – the quality or state of being true?
If you take all these words, and bundle them up, what do you get? Is it ‘IT’?
Is ‘IT’ nameable? Does ‘IT’ need a name?
What would it take for us to follow his lead?
What would it take for us to live in that place where ‘IT’ abides?
We could search forever but never find, that which isn’t hidden.
‘IT’ is there for the taking.
‘IT’ always has been, and “IT” always will be, available to all.
Words and Thoughts by SLP.
Thank you for seeking to understand.
Do you know what "IT" is?
Is "IT" a 'calling'?
Is "IT" just charisma, a star quality, no different than what Denzel Washington or Michael Jordan or Miles Davis has?
Is "IT" the prophetic destiny of individuals such as Ghandi, Nelson Mandela or Winston Churchill, individuals meant to bring about a change at critical times in the course of human history?
Please share your thoughts on "IT" in the "comments" section below. What do you think? Also e-mail to others to see what they think.
lloyd
6 comments:
My initial thought is that "It" is hope but the more I think about what you have written I would have to say that it is a combination of many of things that you mentioned and cannot be narrowed down to one word. Thanks for making the brain work a little harder today.
Thanks for your input Stephanie. I think the beauty of "IT" is in part its chameleon like nature. The "IT" can mean so much to so many people and there-in lies its magic. "Hope" definitely appears to be a part of "IT". I would also add "charisma" to the mix: " a divinely conferred power or talent".
A thought.
In trying to answer my own question, I came to understand, that for me, “IT” is Truth. It is Truth masked as many other possibilities, because “Truth” although right in front of us, is very difficult to find. It takes a great person to search for truth and then audaciously move forward with confidence, faith, passion, vision and hope. All of which culminates in change.
Yes this man has charisma – WE need that. WE need a reason to want to hear what this man has to say, he needed to be compelling, in order for us to pay attention.
The question of whether “IT” was the prophetic destiny of individuals such as Gandhi, Nelson Mandela or Winston Churchill - individuals who brought about change at critical times in the course of human history factors in, but, they had to do some soul-searching in order to see that. They also found Truth – they faced some long held beliefs about themselves or the situations they faced, and they discovered that those long held beliefs were untrue.
Like them, this man saw beyond the limited beliefs of the majority and recognized just how untrue those beliefs were.
He, like many of the great men and women who came before him, held a vision of what could be and despite the naysayers, stayed focused on the outcome and turned vision into reality.
Did the masses believe the world was round? NO!
Did the masses believe that we would one day be able to fly? NO!
Did the masses believe that we would one day travel to the moon? NO!
But we did! Why, because someone had the audacity to say – That’s not true and YES WE CAN!
They were able to see through the disbelief and find truth.
There were many reasons why this wasn’t supposed to be possible.
1. He’s a Black Man
2. He’s relatively young – for the “job”
3. He doesn’t have the experience
4. The issues to be faced as President are daunting
5. Major change is not possible
6. The masses really don’t like change
Somehow this man managed to look within, quiet himself, face these reasons and many more, and systematically find the falseness of all of them. He found Truth.
He’s Black – So what! His parents gave him a very unique name because they felt that he should be judged by the content of his character, not his name – sound familiar? If you were paying attention, WE made an issue of his race, not him. He didn’t run as a Black Man, he ran as a man that felt he was very capable of managing the task at hand.
During one of the presidential debates, a Black man asked his how he felt about the fact that some African Americans thought that he wasn’t “Black enough”. His only response was a short little quip to the effect that when he’s trying to catch a cab in New York City, he gets all the validation he needs. That was it as there was no need to defend himself.
This same brother also asked Hilary Clinton how she felt about the fact that some didn’t think she was feminine enough. Those questions put to two Presidential candidates shows just how much emphasis we place on things that aren’t really relevant. They are just the labels we use to define others and ourselves.
This commentary is in no way meant to diminish the significance of the moment, because for all of us – this was probably the biggest validation for the whole. It showed truth – we can’t use race as an excuse anymore! That would make us small, and it would only mask the fact that we aren’t taking an honest look at who we are, and why the color of our skin should be anything other than the color of our skin – period.
As for his age, his experience, the issues to be faced and the change required – both in the country and we the people, well those were just our way of protecting ourselves in case he didn’t win. We had already come up with the excuses to justify a disappointing outcome. For some it was easier to use these reasons than to admit that this could not possibly happen because he’s a black man. For others, it was an excuse to discredit someone who came out of nowhere and began to have an impact from the moment he began.
I think that if all of us took some time to look within, we would find many self-imposed barriers - excuses that give us permission to settle for mediocrity. Reasons to dismiss our own greatness.
slp. I can't help but think that in our desire to empower ourselves and to explain the many challenges that hold us back, we can at times overuse colour and gender to justify our level of accomplishment.
Obama and his advisors certainly did an outstanding job in managing this potential pitfall.
IT is the leader
IT is the motivational speaker
IT is the worrier
it is your inspiration and your belief
Hi Delphy I agree with your sentiment.
I like that you see IT as speaking to Obama's Leadership','motivational speaker' and 'warrior' but also to us via "inspiration" and "belief".
Thank you for sharing.
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