Getting Deeper to the Truth

MATTHEW REYNOLDS

Just the other day, I was thinking about what people really mean when they say they want to get “back to normal?” Back to the way things used to be? Do they know themselves what they are asking or is it just something we say?

This idea of going back to normal, is very much off from what we are really here for. Going “back to normal” is not how the world, or us as humans, are made up. There are seasonal and terrestrial changes that take place over time. We grow based on our experiences and the changes we make due to what has shifted in life for us.

Through my own experiences and my work, both in education and in helping people craft their equity lens, I have come to a place of deeply understanding this and what has brought us to where we are today.

The things that define our understanding of success and power (white supremacy/insecurity culture, hierarchy, patriarchy, capitalism, dominant culture focus, and status quo) has shaped where we think we are supposed to be in life and how we see humanity. This way of thinking does not put humanity first, it is putting identifiers first and making money first.

We have to understand that our lot in life is not based on any of the things that previously shaped our thinking. Our current experience will reflect our current thinking. Yet, if we get to the point of knowing that we have the power to shift a belief and thus shift how we are and how we see humanity, we will understand that there is no “back to normal,” there is learning and forward growth. 

The tragedies and the complete shift that we have seen in our world in the last couple of years, have offered up many new experiences and new ways of thinking. It has shown us how precious life is and how people can come together and just celebrate humanity. It has shown us how quickly nature will take over when humans get out of its way. People have come to realize that money and power is not a necessity. People can move and create a life without the six-seven-figure salary focus that we are always reaching for. We have come to appreciate the quality time we have with our special loved ones and focus on the ultimate impact we are here to make.

But, this historical time has also shed light on how wrong it is to live in a world that does not put humanity first. This is not the “normal” we should go back to. 

I have paid attention to my why and where I spend my energy, effort, and time. I see how my life was spent living just to survive by making money to handle my basic needs - food, water, shelter. This is not the reason why I am here. I am here to do more than survive. I am here to live fully and thrive. All basic human needs should be available to us without having to feel that we are without or unworthy. 

It is important for us to reconnect to what is true...our deeper truth for being here. We must understand that connection to the planet and living accordingly is essential for our survival. This is present in indigenous cultures. The fact is - I am a part of the planet and not above it. The planet is not this hierarchical thing that is here to extract or engineer, or this thing that supposedly makes my life easier. What do we lose when we think that everything is here to make our lives easier or have things that harm the very nature of our existence?

These thoughts bring me back to the notion of wanting things to be “back to normal” and “how it used to be” - things that have shifted to the top that are so easy to see.

Let’s take the lessons from this time and learn and grow from it moving forward. Let’s not go back to normal. We need a new normal. We need to get back to living, loving, and growing from our deeper truths and let the reality of the life we are here to lead open us back to focusing on life, humanity, and caring for each other and the planet we are living on.