A Safe Place to Land- Sara Bareilles
When holding your breath is safer than breathing
When letting go is braver than keeping
When innocent words turn to lies
And you can’t hide by closing your eyes
When the pain is all that they offer
Like the kiss from the lips of a monster
You know the famine so well, but never met the feast
When home is the belly of a beast
The ocean is wild and over your head
And the boat beneath you is sinking
Don’t need room for your bags, hope is all that you have
So say the Lord’s Prayer twice, hold your babies tight
Surely someone will reach out a hand
And show you a safe place to land
Oh, imagine yourself in a building
Up in flames, being told to stand still
The window’s wide open, this is leap is on faith
You don’t know who will catch you, but maybe somebody will
The ocean is wild and over your head
And the boat beneath you is sinking
Don’t need room for your bags, hope is all that you have
So say the Lord’s Prayer twice, hold your babies tight
Surely someone will reach out a hand
And show you a safe place to land
Be the hand of a hopeful stranger
Little scared, but you’re strong enough
Be the light in the dark of this danger
‘Til the sun comes up
I heard this song while driving today and I found myself choked up. My state of overwhelm was entirely due to the state of the country and I’m about to talk about it, so if you want to tap out, now would be the time.
This is not a political post. I am not afraid of getting political, at all, but that’s not what I want to focus on. In fact, that is part of the problem. We’ve taken basic humanity and a sense of decency and made it a political issue. And not in a ‘we want leaders who espouse the values we have’ kind of way. In a ‘we can only care about each other if we align politically’ kind of way. It is tragic and heartbreaking and I’m truly hoping we can turn this ship around before it’s too late.
I am not going to say I digress because I was not just off topic. But I do want to get a bit more granular. I want to explain where in the vast landscape of this issue I want to land. I want to tie those thoughts to the song I shared earlier.
In 1963, President John F. Kennedy in a speech to the Anti-Defamation league said: “It is a proud privilege to be a citizen of the great Republic, to realize we are the descendants of 40 million people who left other countries, other familiar scenes, to come here to the United States to build a new life, to make a new opportunity for themselves and their children. I think it is not a burden but a privilege to have the chance to share that great concept among all of our people, to make this really as it was for them a new world – a new world for us and indeed for all those who look to us….that is what this country has stood for for 200 years, and that’s what this country will continue to stand for.”
I have always loved that sentiment. It feels hopeful. It tells a story. It tells my family’s story. It tells the story of so many families. It tells the story of our country; the beautiful country that I love so much.
Although the process of immigrating to this country is not the same for all and has changed quite a bit over time, there is some sameness that always threads through the fabric that is the want of a new life. Maybe that feels distant and foreign to you so you cannot relate. Not for me. My desire for a do-over has bubbled up from time to time. The circumstances were different but the underlying feelings were the same. Hopelessness. Fear. Frustration. Impatience. Don’t misunderstand me please as I am not pretending to know what it’s like to come to this country seeking asylum or just a fresh start. I am only expressing my familiarity with the burning desire to wipe the slate clean, to escape what was for what could be, to be forgotten or to forget. Those feelings I know well.
They are so challenging. So very, very hard. Mostly because the craving for new doesn’t make it so. Not even close. In the most benign example I am setting in front of you, which is the regular ol’ desire to start anew, there are major obstacles that may present. When we start talking about the much grander scale of coming to this country from elsewhere and attempting to forge a life, we get into a whole different category of insanity. Language barriers, legal hurdles, financial struggles, and emotional hang-ups just being the very tip of the iceberg.
You know what’s nuts? Some of you might be shaking your head and saying ‘good, that’s how it should be if you want to come HERE.’ I hear you but I also think you are judgmental and short-sighted and [brace yourself] privileged. I know, I know. Cringe. Rage. Lash out. Or don’t. Just hear me out. Listen. Breathe.
I’ve read more bullshit explanations and defenses as to why folks aren’t privileged in the last few weeks to last an entire lifetime. I’ve also read manifests, waxing poetically about the identification of the kind of privilege that is relatable. Both ends of the spectrum. All somewhat missing the mark, in my humble opinion (some more than others).
I’ve read so much on this topic in the last several months. I am not an expert but still, I’m going to boil all of it down to one singular phrase that encapsulates what privilege means to ME: I have enough or my circumstances are such that I can make the choice to not understand those who do not have or live under a differing set of circumstances.
That’s it my friends. That’s what it means to me. It’s not more complicated.
Privilege is stating that the immigrants of today are different from your ancestors. Why? Because they are more black and brown? Because they arrived during a more socially acceptable time? Because you are at an age where you can hold fast to your exclusive ideology? Because you are in a position to assert that fact and you have the support of others around you who feel the same?
The immigrants of today are different, but also, they are the same. They are facing hardship, discrimination, and a long road to journey down that is fraught with complications.
Cool. Did you see this first day of a new discussion as a diatribe? A rant? It’s not. It’s an introduction. We are just getting our feet wet. You should know by now that I always come back to where we ought to be. We will get there. Just have a little faith.
I want to leave you with this thought: Why are you or why are people around you so resistant to a label of privilege? What about it do you find so offensive? Why does it trigger rage and defensiveness?
Think on that. Talk tomorrow.
L.
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