I am like a young Israelite
standing with my family and community
Waiting to cross the sea
As Pharaoh and his soldiers
Continue their fast approach
To steal our freedom
Or to take our lives
For what they would see as
A brazen escape from slavery.
And there are voices among us
Telling us to surrender
To bargain and barter
To go back to that place
Where generations had been worked so hard
That they could not even enjoy
Quiet moments with family at the end of the day.
Those voices believe
That our normal should be
The work
The oppression
The deference we had to show
The submission to a people
Who believed their objects of worship
Were more powerful than ours.
But we know that we can’t go back.
The voices among us
Disparaging our liberty
Declaring loyalty to past comfort
Cannot see that we might find security and safety
By creating a new context for our lives
By shifting our paradigm
From obeisance to a human authority
To trust in a higher authority
That inspires us to gain new wisdom and knowledge
And develop our own ingenuity
On how to live
On how to survive
On how to thrive.
And now, that higher authority
Calls on us to use our knowledge and skills
To lead us to a new place
Where a silent predator
Will not be able to touch us
But we must listen to the voices
That will take us forward
And not backward,
where we might still face
Threats to ourselves and our lives.
So may we step into the sea
So that the waters will part
When we are ready
When the wise among us know
That we will be able to stand safely
with one another
Unmasked, unfettered
And we will walk across the dry land
Together.
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