Humankind. Be both, see both…
“Families Belong Together March” protest in Burlington, summer 2018
As I start my 10th year at the Academy, a decade at this institution, I am more aware of how often my eyes have been opened to things about myself, my community, and the world that I live in - things that I previously couldn’t see. It has been through my friendships, family and experiences that I have been given the gift of seeing things around me that I would have missed. This summer was really no different than past summers. I read, I relaxed, I fished; I wrote and found time to experience the world that we all call home. Some experiences were new and uncomfortable, some were familiar and reassuring, but all moved me a little bit closer to the person I believe is me.
First, this sign. I saw it at the end of the ‘Families Belong Together March’ in Burlington in June, a protest at the height of the battle over detaining and separating immigrant children from their parents. The feelings of outrage and helplessness led me, my wife, and many others to march; I would like to think that being part of that march, one of hundreds of marches across the country, made some difference in moving the conversation forward, but it’s hard to know. Something that stayed with me from this experience, though, was the message on this sign. Be Both. Be human, and be kind.
A couple weeks later, I attended a party, celebrating my nephew Robert’s 21st birthday and graduation from high school. He is not able bodied and learns and communicates without speaking. None of this stops him. At his party we were all too happy to join him and his family to celebrate his accomplishments. In all the time that I have spent with my sister and her children I have never had the pleasure of being able to participate with Robert in his life, with his friends. The gift of this day was watching the broad spectrum of people in his life share in this moment and his excitement. There was dancing and music and lots of laughter, and as I watched the parents, friends, and support staff congratulate him, I witnessed this simple interaction between him and his best friend Greg.
The pure joy in a simple touch of a hand, nothing remarkable but at the same time simply incredible. I did not see limits of a wheel chair or a feeding tube, I saw a rich life full of joy. HumanKind, Be both, see both.
I got to return to New York City again this summer and spent a day with my oldest son, Jeb. He had started a project of publishing two pictures each day in a dip-tic format. I was fascinated by this work and envious of the discipline of committing to this goal. I know that whether one is an artist or writer or musician, aspiring or accomplished, seemingly simple discipline like this is essential and often times tremendously difficult. We spent the better part of a perfect summer day out and about walking and talking and seeing the people of New York. I was fascinated by the process of capturing these images, called street photography. I watched him and his eyes, trying to see what he was seeing and following him with my camera. I never saw what he saw; in truth, I rarely saw him take the picture. The camera seemed an extension of his arm. He knew the distance to his subject and felt the speed of the approaching image, and in the click of a shutter, he was on to another snapshot of the city summer scene. And what I love so much about these pictures is that they catch people in moments of humanity, being human. They reflect a kindness in the interaction, a seriousness of purpose that reminds me that while we are all so very different, we are also humankind. That we ought to be both, we need to see both.
Photos courtesy of Jeb Burroughs. Jebburroughs.com
If we as a community as a collection of individuals are truly to take the challenge seriously that was put before us this year that what starts here changes the world, then I believe we need to be both human and kind. To bring forth our best qualities we need to be open to seeing things that we might not typically notice and embrace the humanity that binds us together. For I know that if we are paying attention with our eyes wide open we may very well catch something beautiful that can help us start to change our world.
Photo courtesy of Jeb Burroughs. Jebburroughs.com