When Freedom Has Us "Trapped!"

EDITOR'S NOTE/UPDATE 7/7/16: This piece was written before and for the July 4th celebration. In light of the recent incidents involving the police in Louisiana and in Minnesota, we are given reason to pause and state: being aware of who you are at all times in the eyes of the other, without buying into their stereotypes of you, may in time prove to be the best defense.
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Ironic, isn't it, that those of us living in the United States should be enjoying almost every liberty known to man currently walking this Earth, yet so many of us still are "trapped" and in bondage to so much.

We are trapped because we refuse to see outside the boxes into     which others have painted us...and we've accepted... about ourselves.

As an African-American woman, who chose to be both single and childless, who chooses friends of many ethnic races, religions, creeds, and lifestyles, I refuse to be trapped into any of the boxes life would place me.

I'm simply not checking into the boxes.

Of course, I check boxes when it's for business reasons. To me, it's just plain silly to try to make a political statement when others simply want to go about doing their business. Folks: it isn't that deep...just check the box!








And with this attitude, doing what's the easiest without making a big deal when it doesn't matter, I find myself free from the ropes that I see so many tying around themselves.

I see so many Afro-centric acquaintances of mine consciously making the statement all day long, especially on social media: "I was born black, I am black, and I will die black." 

My question and statement: So $@%*@$ what?!

So was I born black. It's not going to change anything by walking around with a sign on your back. 
Trust me: 
They SEE you!

Racism is here to stay.

You can choose to join the racists by playing their game, OR, you can simply go on with your life...proudly black...proudly white...proudly Asian...proudly mixed race. At the end of the day, it's your pride in knowing who you are...being who you are...and using all the skills and talents that came with you when you were created that will set you FREE.

Don't get trapped in the color of your skin. It's an excuse to sulk, and many use this as an excuse not to like others who are different from themselves. 

We don't change people's opinions one iota by fitting into the stereotypes they have created about us: with me, it would be an angry black woman...IF...I let them.

Let them wonder about you...
Let them wonder why you choose to be different...
Let them wonder about the source of your good.

Let them. 
Just keep on keeping on.
THIS is what FREEDOM truly looks like for those not encumbered by race: (She Hesitated to Sing the National Anthem...then DELIVERED!) 

Don't get me wrong, there are demonic forces that will try to raise all hell to get you to respond and react the way they expect you:

STAND YOUR GROUND!

I'm talking about standing your ground to be the beautiful expression of God that you were creating to be...and walking freely on this Earth...especially if you live in these United States.

STAND YOUR GROUND TO BE YOURSELF AND FREE.

See their racism and their antagonism as an opportunity for you to RISE above the B.S. and become whole.

If you feel "called to battle" for your people: then, go ahead.
But if you're sulking through life "just because..." then you're trapping yourself, and fitting very, very nicely, into the box of disempowerment into which they have placed you.

Beyond race, there are so many other boxes, we know we have forced ourselves into because at some point and time, "the others" decided that we should be "this or that."

I'm talking here about those who decided that every woman of a certain age should be married and bear kids...or else: she's lesbian, bisexual or something else.

To hell with that...to hell with ALL that...(I'm not the only one who's fed up too. See this piece on the Actress Jennifer Aniston speaking out: (Jennifer Aniston Finally Snaps...")

We all have a right to live and create our own rules about how we're going to navigate this world.

Questions:

• How many people have you seen rush into marriages... for the sake of appearances?
• How many of these people are now trapped in bad relationships...for the sake of appearances?
• Who in hell has to wake up to those people that so many trapped themselves into marrying...or partnering with...for the sake of appearances?

Going further down the road to how we lose our freedom to people, places and things: think about how every day we trap ourselves feeling "less than" through comparisons, envy, hate and unforgiveness!

Every day many of us wake up, picking up the burdens, and the neat packages we have placed in our lives, carrying them day in and day out, trapping us into a slavery of our own making.

So what, if he/she has a bigger house?
So what, if he/she has a bigger pay check?
So what, if  on the outside, he/she seems to have
a more fulfilling life?

I tell you, no one gets anywhere by these invidious comparisons, by carrying around a bundle of hate, or a bundle of envy, or a bundle of unforgiveness.  According to Thich Nhat Hanh, the popular Buddhist monk, in today's Gratefulness.org:

Freedom is not given to us by anyone; we have to cultivate it ourselves. It is a daily practice.
Thich Nhat Hanh

Let go of these wild animals in your life!
Tame these beasts and become the master of your own destiny.

Remember this: true freedom comes from the Spirit of the Lord...the Spirit of your Soul...being allowed to roam freely through your body...without any encumbrances.

God does not see us as a black or white or Asian or mixed race. God, our Soul, knows us by how much or how little we permit his Spirit to walk through our lives...in freedom.

The Spirit in us longs to be FREE.
Allow it! Get the wild animals that trap you...out of the way.

If you seek true freedom... 
If you seek wholeness... 
The wild animals of hate, envy, jealousy, comparison, competitiveness and unforgiveness are the ones you should  keep "boxed in."Channel your energy in the right way. 

        

    Set yourself FREE!

Namaste',
Che'

EDITOR'S NOTE: Many of the graphics used on this post came from social media. Where the source can be identified, those sources are noted. Apologies to those images not credited because of no identifying source.