There is no Them. There are only facets of Us.

For the last two weeks I have been battling with a

very persistent cold of some sort.

On top of constantly blowing my nose, coughing

up my lungs, not sleeping and barely eating,

this particular variety of cold also includes

some sort of ''brain fog''.

For me this means that my thinking is all over

the place so if this blog seems a bit fuzzy at times,

you'll know why.

Looking for something interesting to watch last night

I landed on a show called Four Corners.

This particular episode of the show was about women

in Afghanistan and how their lives have changed since

the Taliban took over the government.

I am fortunate enough to never having experienced what

it is like to live in a country where your existence can

be extinguished, erased at any moment and for in

my view the most absurd of reasons.

In Afghanistan just being a woman is living with

the knowledge that any man at any time can rape you,

taser you, physically and or verbally torture you,

throw you in jail, without the

perpetrator ever being held accountable.

Sisters, daughters, mothers, friends go ''missing''

every day never to be found again.

And yet, some of them bravely manage to raise

their voices in protest whether it be online, in

print, on radio, or marching down the streets.

When interviewed, one woman said: ''I have

still a little hope, a little light, that things can change

and get better here, but if it doesn't, there will

be only darkness, and if there is only darkness I will

find myself a dark place and just dissipate.''

Heartbreaking words from a woman 

barely 20 years old.

Meanwhile, in another country far, far away,

another 20 year old woman (''Karen"), hurls

abuse at a male waiter for disrespecting her

''rights'' while streaming the altercation online

for her followers.

One thing we all have in common is that we are

human beings.

And as such we have common needs:

Physiological (food/clothing etc.)

Safety (a safe place to stay)

Love and Belonging (friends/lovers/family)

Esteem (positive regard)

Self-actualization (fulfillment)

After watching the doco from Afghanistan

I pondered if perhaps us humans are incapable of

overcoming the ''warring spirit'' that seem to

inhabit us.

I also pondered if no matter what term we use to define

 ourselves by,

we don't seem to be able escape this ''us and them''

problem that sets us up against each other

resulting in never ending conflicts and suffering.

Perhaps it comes down to this:

''Even if I cannot stop others from hurting others,

I can stop me from doing so.''

 (Citizen Z)

''There is no Them. There are only facets of Us.''

(John Green)

about the image: Three different paintings painted on canvas

with acrylics.