Sunday, February 17, 2008

"freedom can come only from contemplating death, not from pretending it doesn't exist...
freedom comes not from holding your life more precious or sacred than others'. not from consuming more than your share.
freedom is not knowing something when you don't know it.
freedom means i may not be identified with any one group, but i can visit and find myself in every group. freedom does not mean i don't have values or beliefs. but it does mean i am not hardened around them. i do not use them as weapons.
freedom cannot be bought or arranged or made with bombs or guards. it is deeper. it is a process. it is the acute awareness that we are all utterly interdependent. that economic injustice and inequity creates an environment of global despair and rage that, until balanced, will inevitably lead to hatred and violence.
freedom is not only being able to tolerate mystery, complexity, ambiguity, but hungering for them and only trusting a situation when they are present.
not owned, not occupied, not bought.
finding the place in me that connects with every person i meet rather than being different, better, or on top.
believing there is a power determining everything at the same moment that i know there is absolutely no one in charge...
freedom is about becoming vulnerable to one another, rather than becoming secure, in control and alone."


by: eve ensler (pictured below)
from her book: "insecure at last: losing it in our security obsessed world"

1 comment:

Kavita said...

I feel & understand this today.
After nearly 50 yrs. Observing, thinking, choosing, changing. Pausing & wondering at crossroads.
These words are gentle & strong.
Thankyou, Jessa!
Kavita