The first issue that made me pause and reflect, was that of women's rights. Why should my future be restricted to being a wife and mother? And why should I always be the second choice for leadership opportunities? Others might find their own moments when they dare to question the beliefs of their parents.
My mother, brought up in a conservative Christian home, was faced with several 'moments' which necessitated some rethinking of her childhood beliefs. It wasn't until BREXIT that she got involved in politics. Her life experience taught her that we should never move backwards, and gave the Liberals her vote.
A true democracy is much more difficult to achieve. That is why most nations began with a monarchy or dictatorship. It takes work and education to become a group of people who can govern themselves. We must not only respect the other members of the group, but teach our children to respect those who are different as well.
Some of these lessons come within life experiences: a realization that we are destroying the earth for our children; a loved one is denied medial attention due to lack of health insurance; a local paper starts to publish inflammatory and divisive literature; violence is preached from the pulpit; a neighbor or coworker uses the 'n' word; your child is pulled in for questioning by immigration control.
Three Takeaways:
- You are never too old, or too young, to have a change of heart.
- You are not any better than your neighbor, no matter what campaign sign he posts in his yard.
- Growing old gracefully means allowing for honest reflection and tolerance.
