framing

“Today I decided to become an activist, tomorrow I’ll begin to make the changes.”

Seems so witty. Truth: today I discovered I am an activist and that has made all the difference. The difference of course being an understanding of the actions I’ve made my entire life and of the feelings and thoughts flooding my being. Tomorrow will be filled with the same decisions I made yesterday and today, however tomorrow’s decisions hold in their sights an understanding or rather a title: activist. I love being from our culture (which is really more commerce than culture) because we value titles. Dammit, I guess that means I do too… so give me an A-C-T-I-V-I-S-T and I’ll put it on. It comforts me to have a title, lets build a box.

I like the word activist, it brings to mind people who look at the world around them and disagree with how certain things are being done and offer an alternative. Reminds me of the naviim of Adonai who saw their world and offered commentary and alternatives.

“To be a prophet, [writes Abraham J. Heschel], is to be in fellowship with the feelings of God, to experience communion with the divine consciousness. The prophet is a person, not a microphone. He is endowed with a mission, with power of a word not his own that accounts for his greatness-but also with temperament, concern, character, and individuality.”

Activism: the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change

Sounds sweet.

Sounds smooth.

Sounds liberating.

Sounds honest.

I'm building myself a grand box.

So me, twenty-three years old finally holding in my head and heart an understanding that I am “gifted” at being creative. I see consumerism harms humanity and the environment, the west has raped democratic trees of their fruit, and know first hand people starve for no reason.

It is time for me to learn how to slip moods, nuances, values and perspectives right into your brain without you ever knowing it…

But what I’ll be slipping in is honest.

There I go breaking out of the box I just created.

I framed my self around the following words: activist, prophet, graphic designer; and then gave myself the freedom to step out of the box ha