What about Privilege?

Carts ready for rent at a local market in Arusha, Tanzania - November 2019

I write from a place of privilege. Because I have security and freedom, because I’m not seeking food or shelter on an hourly or daily basis and because my loved ones are safe, I can afford to have a larger thinking time horizon.

I’m able to muse about the inequity in society, the big picture of our planet and species and the universe itself. Complete privilege.

When faced with hunger, starvation, homelessness, extreme poverty or a dangerous environment, one doesn’t consider global consciousness. You’re in survival mode, concerned only with the safety of your tribe and when and where the next meal will come.

Too much of the planet faces these conditions today. In order for everyone to buy into the one world paradigm, basic needs must be met worldwide. We can’t raise global consciousness, unite humanity, or inspire change while 8% of the human population lives below the international poverty line.

Or can we? Another way to look at it: raising global consciousness in the vast majority of people will motivate us to eliminate poverty. When we see ourselves as one species living on one wondrous planet, we’ll be incentivized to truly unite humanity. The people of privilege will need to act in order to inspire change.

Yes, there are hundreds of millions of people, if not more, who are perhaps currently incapable of focusing on such lofty ambitions. Understandably—they need to focus on surviving. But it’s also our responsibility to help them, and for those who do have a longer thinking time horizon, we can bring about a more prosperous future together.

The Pages Turn Faster

And it’s June. My aunt said something to me that my dad has repeatedly told me: “as you get older, time goes by faster and faster.” Already halfway through 2024, I feel confident that the same things matter, despite the speed of time passing. Love, health, and time itself. We all crave these three things, and are miserable when any one of them slips too far into disarray. Can we recognize that, halfway through 2024?

Toy Story’s Story

I watched Toy Story this evening for the first time in probably two decades. Its magic still blossoms from the screen. The animation, the soundtrack, the screenplay and humor, the voice acting, they all jump off the screen to this day, almost 30 years later.

The first fully computer animated feature length film, Toy Story was successful, and still iconic today, because of its messaging. The real world can be scary. But we get through it together with friends.

It belongs on any “must watch” list for any alien visiting our planet. It represents, I believe, what can be the best of us—through its creativity and technical execution, and through its proclamation of the “human” spirit. It just happens through toys.

Health Forgetfulness

Health is the easiest universal desire to forget.

Time and love are immediately noticeable in absence. When out of time, we wish for but just a few more moments. When alone, the ache for connection is all-consuming.

But we naturally and continuously adapt to the status quo. With health we become accustomed and indifferent; when it worsens we learn to accept and adapt to our new physical reality.

To be grateful for our current health is a strong daily practice—when it’s gone we want nothing else.

I’m asking for more

I’m asking for more.

We all want the same things: to spend lots of quality time with loved ones, to put food on the table for our family, to raise children, to find fulfilling work, to own a home, to have fun. Freedom, equity, and togetherness.

I believe everyone has a right to pursue these basic human desires.

But I also believe we should all do more, beyond those common goals. We can all elevate global consciousness, a true recognition of humanism beyond our smaller national, regional, communal, or familial tribes.

We can all regularly engage in civic participation, not just voting in every election but advocating for what we believe and truly self-governing.

And we can all give—to those outside our normalized group, to others without thought of reward. We can all volunteer our time or money and provide community service to make our world stronger.

This can all be achieved in mere minutes a week. Am I too demanding to ask for more?

Guardians and Beauty

I think about how important it is for children to have positive adult influences (besides their parents) in life. There’s a reason we call them guardians.

I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have fantastic grandparents, aunts and uncles, great coaches and teachers…all whom have contributed to my psychology today.

I relished the opportunity to do that with my niece today, who is shaping into a kind, compassionate young woman.

We’re only as beautiful as we want to be, together.

Contemplating Consciousness

I can’t overstate the importance of my tribe. They are the dearest elements of my experience.

I imagine most of the other eight billion people on this planet feel the same.

And that’s the point. We all care for our loved ones. We’re all here together. Can we elevate our circle of care to the entirety of our species? Can we raise our consciousness to be global?

Remembering Down South

I was recounting my time in Texas last week and was speaking about the people. Southern Hospitality is a real thing.

But I also recall how similar our viewpoints were. Indeed many folks are more politically conservative down there, but not necessarily more conservative. In fact the friendliness represented a type of openness to experience, so to say.

And we agreed on more than the narrative would have you believe. Texans I talked with disliked the same things about the Bay Area that I dislike. They complained about the same local issues I found displeasing.

Most of us aren’t up North or down South, but somewhere in the middle. The loud minority gets all the media attention, but they’re not the bulk of the reasonable, considerate people in this country. We’re all American after all.

Uniting through Deepest Desire

We all want the same things.

I’ve lived in 3 countries, all with vastly different cultures and histories. I was young and dumb in South Africa and learned everyone wants prosperity. I grew up in China and learned everyone wants good for their tribe. And as I’ve grown older in the U.S., I’ve learned everyone wants to be healthy. Everyone wants the same thing.

Uniting humanity is simple—we just need to acknowledge we all want the same things. These universal desires are also our deepest desires. They aren’t superficial differences, like skin color or language or environment. We all share our humanity.

So our mission is simple (but not easy): focus on our deepest desires, and recognize that we all share them. We are One.

Reese’s Gone

I thought, “what if Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups went out of production, and there would only be a finite amount left?”

It made me unreasonably uneasy. I would buy and hoard them, ration them for as long as I could.

But nothing lasts forever, not even us, our consciousness, our lives, our species.. where do we go from here?

I offer this: we live, as wildly and freely as possible. Together, in this big beautiful amazing world.