Coffee With A View: The Real Heroes

By Carol Harper
(Not AI-generated)

Whew, what a weekend! I've had quite a rollercoaster ride on just one brief post on my Facebook page:

I don't see why everyone seems to be so surprised that we are at war.

If you voted for leaders that feed on conflict and greed instead of focused on pathways towards genuine peace, really...what did you expect?

When the blind lead the blind...(Matt. 15:14)

Seems we never learn our history lessons.

What I didn't expect was for this to explode into a post with 130 comments and 54 reactions, or that so-called "friends" would unfriend me because of it.

In my journey of Light, Life, Love, and Truth, it was put upon my heart to explore the latter: The Truth. Peeling back the layers to get to it is a daunting task. By man-made, systematic design, it's tumultuous and confusing. It can be exciting, but also dangerous. And it can also be a very lonely place to be.

But I also have to give myself some credit for attempting to peel back the layers and try see the elephants in the room from all sides (I just don't know why I seem to end up getting the musical chair in front of the ass. LOL)

I don't need people to interpret scripture or Jesus' words for me. I don't need people to be condescending and ridiculing me for believing words in what they think is a "fictional book". I don't need to accept being torn down for someone to lift themselves up. I don't need to be yelled at or gaslighted.

As someone who was literally blind for almost an entire year, it has taken some time for me to learn how to see again (and walk). I had learned how to see in the dark; learned how to feel around for things, like light switches, the water faucets, the remote controls, the toilet paper (ok, that's a little TMI, LOL). As I walk around my house and the station, I still fall into old habits and touch walls and corners. But I remember how God led me through everything to teach me to walk a life of Faith.

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Hebrews 11:1 (bold and underline added)

Make no mistake, the true heroes across the world are the People. Their resilience, their courage, their bravery, their compassion, and yes, their sorrows. The hero is YOU, as you struggle with the battles you face in your own life. I've been sober for over three years now, and went through the accident, my hip/knee injuries, and blindness just one week after I decided to quit drinking. I struggled with thoughts of suicide. There is purpose in everything, and often you cannot see the bumpy roads ahead. But God sees them (Ecclesiastes 3), and you can take either comfort or fear in knowing that God is always in control.

I don't see you as a Republican or Democrat, right or left, or anything in between. I don't see you as Jewish, Muslim, Christian, agnostic or atheist. I don't see you as LGBTQ+. I see us all as human beings living in a broken world with broken and failing systems. I am learning to listen better, understand better, be teachable instead of prideful or come off as a know-it-all, because I sincerely don't! I'm simply feeling around, touching the walls and corners...sharing what I've learned, but not tolerating the darkness and standing up with my own voice.

Below (after this writing) is one of the replies I made to a Facebook friend, who didn't understand what I was about and stood for. He couldn't "see" me, because everything he sees about my life on Facebook is about my love for cooking, my grand-puppies, gardening, and the movies or shows I watch. My social media life. He didn't know my political or religious views, and I'm sad that these days, that's all people seem to be interested in or what matters. We like to put people in their little labeled boxes and judge those boxes from afar. I'm glad my post was able to open a few boxes.

Lastly...my experience in Washington D.C. was amazing. As I 'lobbied' for saving ambulance services, I wasn't there to "make them see", but hoped they could obtain some understanding of the issues plaguing our 911 services. That our first responders need to be invested in. That our law enforcement agencies need to be helped, not heckled and villainized. How ill-prepared we are for mass casualty/mass mortality events on both American and tribal soil. How we need to bridge the gaps between counties and tribes, and build foundations of transparency and trust where they have now been torn apart and all but nearly destroyed. How what is decided at the top all trickles down to the very bottom in our communities...the jobless, the homeless, the destitute, the sick, the broken. The only way we can be great again is for heroes like you and me to admit our failings, find it in our hearts to forgive (never forget), and move forward with solutions that will build and not destroy, to bring together and not divide.

Has nothing to do with money or potential assets in other countries. Has nothing to do with deploying ICE to play games of whack-a-mole. Has nothing to do with maiming economies in order for the rich to get richer and the poor poorer. Has nothing to do with hiding facts and evidence and massive amounts of turd-polishing.

Has everything to do with how we act and are driven by Love and Truth...and how we deal with the darkness and evils of this world. (Ephesians 6:10-20)

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So, for example (if you are interested). I am pro-life, pro-adoption. I am pro-first responders, including law enforcement, and cannot stand it when people villainize the police. I don't think one should be here illegally, but if they are, I think that there needs to be some way they can be fast-tracked instead of deported, so that they can continue to work for the businesses and companies (minus drugs and trafficking, of course!) and support their local economies, or go to school. Punish and deport the criminals; don't do a broad sweep and mass deportation and separating children and families without doing due diligence. I am accepting of people of all races, colors, religions, genders, ethnic backgrounds, etc. But I do not accept people who have committed crimes and then pull the race card, and I don't agree with people mutilating their bodies to become the opposite sex or an animal. But I will love them just the same, and they will still be my friend, no matter what. I am not accepting of religions and cults that program and indoctrinate, and then shun and turn their backs on people who leave. I believe that one's spirituality is a journey, and is between them and their Creator. I am a patriot in that "taxation without representation" has been twisted and distorted, and there needs to be another massive tea party as soon as possible, or we're no better than the tyrannic rule that spurred the American Revolution. As a mom of two US Marines, I support our military, but also know the utter bullshit and crimes that go on in that department as well, and are just swept under the rug. I believe in honesty and integrity. I'm about the truth and not the polished narratives that leaders expect us to swallow. As a former reporter, I believe in a free press, but a balanced press is extremely hard to find because they need advertising dollars to keep afloat, so they often sell out. I believe that music, art, cuisines, traditions, and culture are powerful ways to express the human spirit, mind and condition, and should be enjoyed and preserved, and never be banned or confiscated. I despise the actions of colonization of Native Americans, I often refer to events in history that have actually happened and are documented, so the truth can't be distorted and twisted. And I think we need to build a wall around Wyoming. LOL