“When it’s not your fault, it’s not yours to fix. And there lies the issue.” ~ Eddie Pinero
I heard this on a podcast the other day, and it instantly resonated with me.
In fact, the minute I heard it, I realized that it’s a very good explanation for the massive discourse and division that has permeated our society.
Put another way, we’re having trouble working together, because we blame each other for the problem.
And until we can all “own it” together, we’re not going to get anywhere worth getting.
Now in fairness, I think the podcast was more about internal struggles and overcoming personal challenges, so I may be running in a direction that wasn’t initially intended. But then, isn’t that how inspiration works?
We can all talk about what’s wrong with the world in general terms — too much of this, not enough of that — and we can certainly point to underlying causes and contributing factors.
And don’t get me wrong, there’s A LOT to be concerned with. And many of those points are perfectly valid and true.
But if there’s one thing that I’ve learned, it’s that we are very complicated creatures. The world is rarely quite so black and white, and finding a solution that actually works will not likely come from one side strong-arming the other.
Yet, that continues to be our go-to move. And even more curious, our leaders seem to be the loudest in propagating that belief.
Personally, I don’t want a world that’s just one way. I don’t want a world where new ideas are squashed just because they came from the wrong side of the fence. I mean, it might sound great in theory, getting your way all the time. But what happens when “your way” no longer fits the mold?
What happens when you suddenly find yourself on the other side of the fence?
I don’t have a quick fix to this particular problem, but I do think we can start to change this narrative by simply owning the world we’ve created. Do you vote? Do you listen? Do you know how to be wrong?
Can you apologize? Can you stand up and speak out? Can you do that for others that can’t do it for themselves?
Can you extend an olive branch when it matter most?
I know that can be overwhelming at times, so don’t feel like you can’t “sit it out” now and then to catch your breath and collect your thoughts. We all need those breaks if we’re going to make the difference we want to make, so take a knee when you need to, and then get back out there.
In fact, no worries… I got you.
We’re in this together.