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WHO AM I?

by Richard Flyer

December 1982

WHO AM l?

Bound to the group, clan or tribe to which I belong.

Should I like you, for you are different from me.

I am loyal to, and will fight for a set of ideas, living in my country, surrounded by an imaginary geography.

You don't come from my group, you must be less than a person, so that I can kill you in war.

People say Human Beings have always fought among themselves, "that's human nature" they say, sitting there in a lethargic state as the world becomes complex at such a great rate.

Will we even annihilate our own "side" with the latest nuclear weaponry, if we can annihilate the other, as many leaders tell us, for peace?

We are all of the same species, separated by misdirected loyalty.

If I say that I am a citizen of Earth and a brother to all her varied peoples and life forms, and have a loyalty to her, many would probably laugh and call me a naive dreamer.

Tell me, does the old way work anymore?

Could it be that the predjudice and contempt we have towards anything different comes from ignorance and a lack of or desire for understanding?

I am an American, you are a Russian, "Oh, I thought Russians were God hating atheists, I was taught that in school."

This fear of things different is not an international problem but a human one.

It continues.....

I am from the USA, you are from Mexico

I am from California, you are from Maine

I am from San Diego, you are from San Francisco

I am from Logan Heights, you are La Jolla

I am a student, you are a construction worker

I am a man, you are a woman

I am white, you are black

I am jewish, you are catholic

I am "middle class", you are "lower class"

I am a jogger, you can't stand exercise

I smoke cigarettes, you hate them I use Aim for cavities, what do you use, huh?

On and on, reduced to the absurd, until energy and matter become the same anyway.

I am a slug, you are a mushroom, we live in a forest.

You are different from me.

We each have our own universe of things important to us, however, I need you for food, and

you need me to move your spores.

We are so different, and yet the same, both part of a larger system, the forest.

It is a wonderful paradox, autonomy and dependence, the necessary unity with all the participants free from impunity.

There is so much diversity in the forest, yet all the creatures are bound to each other directly or indirectly in this fabric.

WHO AM l?

I am American; Chinese, Russian, all people

I am black, brown, white, yellow, all colors

I am Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, one Faith in Truth

We each have our own universe of things important to us, and yet, I need you, and

you need me, we strive for similiar goals.

We are brothers and sisters of Earth.

We are all different and yet the same, all part of a larger system, a small planet called Earth, the mother who gives us life.

It is a wonderful paradox, autonomy and dependence the necessary unity, with all the participants free from impunity.

There is so much diversity in our world.

Can we learn from nature and build a world that fosters diversity, and yet still unites all people?

Yes, someday you may feel this common human sense of purpose, this relevance to our world and the universe of things.

WHO AM l?

I AM YOU.

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