SEEING THE LIGHT: KEEPING A PROMISE TO MYSELF

A series of essays.....

LIGHT SHOT THROUGH CUT GLASS CRYSTAL
~MORNING LIGHT SHINES THROUGH OUR
WATERFORD VASE IN THE FOYER~

.....as seen through my eyes!

By: Jacqueline E. Hughes

Just as light reflection shot through perfectly cut glass crystals bring out the best ‘sparkle’ and can be so luxuriously pleasing to the human eye, keeping promises made to yourself from the deepest depths of your being can make you shine like the brightest star in the heavens. 

I am shining on both the inside and outside these days because I have kept a promise to myself for over a year now and I will not waiver from it until the outcome I hope to see has been, undeniably, achieved.

Before I explain the promise I made to myself, please allow me to set the stage by taking a moment to run by only a few things that are happening in our world today:

The worst flu epidemic to happen in years.

The annihilation of the Republican Party by the most incompetent leader of the Free World.

Weather patterns above and beyond what has been considered ‘normal.’

The Women’s March growing by leaps and bounds after chalking-up its 2nd year!

Sadly, gun violence and mass shootings becoming the norm within our social make-up.

Many of us, for the second time, living through the threat and fear of a nuclear holocaust.

Puerto Rican school children cheering for ‘the light’ after four months of living in the darkness without power.

Acknowledging that equal rights for all has yet to be achieved. Will that day be in my lifetime?

The financial and social status of one percent of the population is actively attempting to obliterate the rest of our nation’s population including the elderly, the weak, the poor, as well as annihilate the structure of the middle class. Attempting to take away our Social Security Benefits, health insurance, our right to clean air and water, and ignoring scientific facts and findings regarding global warming.

The cruel and unnecessary plight of the Dreamers and DACA recipients. 

I could go on and on and on with this list. It drags me down to think that in 2018 our country is not progressing as it should, but instead we are retreating into the past; a past that this present administration considers to be Making America Great Again. With the power of a dictatorship such as the likes in Russia today, their dictator, Vladimir Putin, has been directing and controlling this current president like his own personal marionette in order to attempt to break apart what the United States has always stood for: Democracy! Freedom! Individual Rights! And, the right to speak openly and freely without fear or recrimination! All the while the words ringing in our ears straight from the poetic pen of Emma Lazarus: “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Do you recall ever having read a novel that described the perpetrator getting away with what might be considered ‘the perfect crime?’ As you read along with the storyline you begin to realize that many factors are involved in the apparent success of this intricate plot to rob, murder, or discriminate against another human being or institution. The talented author expertly weaves the various contributing factors into the plot denoting apparent perfection by pointing out fastidious planning, behind the scenes backing (including Big Money), perfect timing, and hitting the mark when people and situations appear to be at their most vulnerable.

Certainly, timing was everything for this foreign dictator as he plotted and planned out one of the greatest takeovers of Democracy today, concentrating heavily within the United States but encompassing Western Europe, as well. 

He needed the perfect pawn available and found him in Trump. With Trump’s propensity for greed, the manipulation of others, and desire to be looked upon as powerful and brilliant....the task of buttering him up was minimal. Trump was ripe for the taking. The vendetta he holds against the goodness and intelligence shown by Barack Obama is obscenely apparent throughout his ‘Birther Movement,’ as well as the simple fact that Barack’s strengths and popularity have galled Trump for years. Having the opportunity to retaliate against the 44th President was the cheese set out as bait in the Putin rat trap. 

Dividing the main principals of the people of any country through the means of fear and hatred weakens its chances of being strong from within; making it highly vulnerable to any outside influence. The last few years of extreme police brutality and massive gun violence with obvious disrespect for human life, has been breaking down the existence of law and order and weakening the fine line between good cop/bad cop, right and wrong, and enhancing a ‘gestapo-like’ influence of free-for-all Wild West brutality. This, unfortunately, is evidenced in the increasing power and brutality used by ICE (U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement) officers, Border Patrol police, and White Supremacist groups that believe in a political, economic, and cultural system in which whites overwhelmingly control power.... 

And why not? They’ve been given a free, anything goes, pass by their great leader, Trump, who has displayed his indiscriminate tendencies of racial profiling and hatred for many years. 

THESE STATS ARE DATED AS OF YESTERDAY,
JANUARY 24, 2018, AND INCLUDES DEATH, INJURIES,
AND NUMBER OF INCIDENTS REPORTED AND
VERIFIED  ~ THIS NUMBER CHANGES
DRASTICALLY EACH DAY AND
DOES NOT INCLUDE SUICIDES!

Looking at the chart above, you have to realize that we are only in the third week of this brand new year. 

Couple this attitude with the powerful backing of the NRA (National Rifle Association) and you have a steaming shit cocktail that’s guaranteed to disrupt and change all previous rules of law, order, and civility. By circulating its power throughout the various organizations who are paid to protect us, not brutalize us, and giving the 'green light' to the hate mongers, monsters are created and existing miscreants thrive. Special Counsel, Robert Mueller, understood early on that following the ‘money trail’ would shed the most light on understanding the motives behind the Trump administration and its connection to Russia, Big Money, and Power!

What on earth sparked this colossal revelation of mine today in the first place, with this day being just one more in the continuing clown show we call our government?! It feels bazaar sitting here gazing up at the vertiginous sky, mind wandering around in circles like a child lost in the middle of Time Square. Honestly, it was the simple act of remembering why I have not changed my Facebook profile picture in slightly over a year.... And, firmly vowing not to do so as long as we have these selfish, demoralizing people in the White House. When he and all of the similar ilk around him are formally expelled for many or all of the reasons I spoke about above...It will be a pleasure and a blessing to remove this badge of courage and exchange it for one filled with beauty and love (pictures with my grandchildren); vendetta having been recognized and, ultimately, rectified.

Already we see an upsurge in the number of women running for elected office from city mayors to Congresspersons, Senators, and Governors of the states they live in and will be proud to represent in Washington, D.C.  And, as long as that glass ceiling remains, virtually, intact, the sky is the limit for each and every one of them. 

My heart swells with the knowledge that many men regard female strength with such openness and anticipation, as if they have known for years that the simple act of injecting fresh, new ideas into the positions formerly held by (old/white) men would spark a major effort towards change, fill the cracks with a bit of softness, and allocate plenty of determination and new vibrations throughout the land. Bless all of you fine gentlemen! Gratefully, I know quite a few of you.

In my firm belief that Women Can Stop Trump, this symbol will remain right where it is as my profile picture, proudly displaying my innermost feelings while representing my steadfast belief in the power of women all over the world! The day it is removed and changed will be a day of celebration acknowledging the calculated progress into the future of our Democracy!

Author’s Note: It is better to enjoy life than to let it eat you up. So, I will celebrate life by believing that the truth will overcome. In honor of life (and speaking the truth), we are off to see and listen to Vice President Joe Biden next Monday, January 29, at the Dr. Phillips Center For The Performing Arts in downtown Orlando! Embrace the moment! 

Copyright © 2018 by Jacqueline E. Hughes

All rights reserved