Back in April I made a life changing trip to church, no I didn't find Jeebus. I did, make a life long friend. Whatever happens over the next 30 or so years before the worms eat me, The person I met with, that sunny April Sunday, will forever hold a place dear to my heart. In a brief conversation I attempted to explain (with what little I knew then) how important it was to organize, to recognize our value, stand up and do the work to make 40 hours a week a little less intimidating and a lot more enjoyable, satisfying even. In what little time we had to discuss organizing I did my very best to stress to this person that it would not be easy but it would be worth it.
Every day these last few weeks I have had to remind myself of that. On a personal level I miss the beach, my friends, my Harley (Aka Merle, whom I have finally ridden, but not nearly enough!), running around with my army of nieces and nephews and all the things that make summers better than winters. On a professional level, I have a job, so that's cool.This week, for the first time in five years I went to work early. with a smile on. Because hope.
Hope in my personal life, that's been easy. I made changes, tried new things, figured out what worked and what didn't, cleaned out the negatives and practiced living the positives. In my professional life,it's a daily struggle. Then came hope, in the form of a union. It came crashing in like all the best adventures in life do. At the worst possible time. I made a decision to make myself available, to try and find answers to do whatever I could to help the people who have helped me survive my employment situation, my fear, my anxiety, my last hopeless place. I don't sleep as much as I should, For the last month I've had my face in my phone more than I ever wanted to texting, talking, emailing, like a jerk. A jerk on a mission though. My mission: Not lose my income. This eventually turned into: Not go down without a fight. That eventually turned into: Inspire others to not go down without a fight. The natural evolution of this, is clearly, save the world.
I don't want anyone to walk into the place they make their living and wonder if the rules changed overnight, or if today is the day they lose that living for essentially being human. I don't want to watch people be treated badly by anyone. I know that seems pretty simplistic, I know it's childlike even, but it's true. I don't want to stand by with a fire hose and all the water and just watch the world burn. That ain't me. I want to put the fire out. I want to see the world rebuild stronger, kinder, realer. I want to see the world we live in and the people in it, live better, treat each other better, be better. Yes, I do believe we can all be better from CEO's to landscapers, Politicians, Policeman, Teachers to Carpenters, Nurses, Housekeepers, we can all be, live, experience better, both at home and at work. All it takes is people, recognizing people, respecting each other, Listening to each other and looking out for each other on just the most basic of human levels.
Call it community. Call it tribal. Call it a guild, call it a union. Call it whatever the fuck you want but, "Never under estimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world, In truth it is the only thing that ever has!" ~ Margaret Mead said that shit long before I was even born. It's just as true, and real, and important today as the day she first thought to say it. Why aren't more of us living by this? Where are all the children inside us who wanted to change the world with whatever magical thought we believed would do just that.
To my professional family, my work family, my brothers and sisters in the struggle to simply be heard, Thank you for getting me through my work week these past few years, months, weeks, days, Are you ready to fight though? Really. Are you done feeling hopeless? Because I didn't walk up all those stairs not to go outside, and I certainly didn't risk goin up in flames that day I walked into church to come this far and give up now. I fear spending this whole summer walking up those stairs of hope only to be told I can't go outside, but I don't fear my employer because I know there is power in facts and numbers. Who benefits from a Union? Employees. Who doesn't? People who don't have one. Who benefits from fear? Employers. Bullies. Dictators and occasionally 6 year old children in lighthouses.
