You have no idea of how profound your words are after tonight. I spent the
evening with Jack recording and the kids wanted to hang out in the studio
while we were working and so many things came up in conversation between
takes. My kids are gonna be all right and I don't have the time to explain
why now, but what you said confirmed what I feel in my heart right now:
Never lie to them and always follow the heart to the next
day/issue/dream/...
Thanks
Paz
on 7/19/01 11:32 AM, Mark or Travis at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> No matter what, I think they
>> will learn that we have always welcomed all kinds of people into our
> home
>> and never made a big deal about what colour they were or sexual
> preferences
>> etc. They have also seen many a sick child coming from Honduras to a
> US
>> hospital that have overnighted with us and have learned that loving
> and
>> caring for all mankind is the true path to follow.
>>
>> Thanks for the post
>>
>> Michael
>
> What lucky kids you have, Michael. If my upbringing had been more
> like that, I would not have to work so hard to clear out some of the
> stupid shit that still clutters up the dark corners of my brain. Not
> that my parents were raving bigots but they weren't exactly without
> their prejudices & misconceptions. I grew up in a town in Iowa of
> about 16,000 people. I went to school with black kids from the time I
> was in kindergarten. For a long time, they were the only 'others' I
> knew about. I remember when the high school staged a production of
> 'South Pacific' I didn't understand what the 'race' issue was all
> about. Those Polynesians weren't black people! What was the problem?
> To me, growing up in a very limited world, every one who wasn't
> African American was white. So to me, Michael, you would have been
> another white kid.
>
> I remember seeing 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' when I was a young
> teen. It's a corny & dated movie with some very silly things in it,
> but it did start me to thinking. Later on, I can still remember the
> night that my mother & I watched the very first episode of 'All in the
> Family'. We nearly wet ourselves laughing and eventually I came to
> understand that Archie Bunker was funny because of the utter ignorance
> & stupidity of his thinking. I also began to see some of the jokes
> and racial slurs I had snickered at and some times uttered myself as a
> child as being in the same vein of stupid & ignorant thinking. Passed
> on to my parents from their parents (some of whom *were* truly bigoted
> people) and hence to me.
>
> So I cannot honestly say that I have completely eradicated some of the
> idiotic things I grew up hearing about from people who were supposed
> to be wiser than me. I can only say that I do my best to try & see
> people for what they are underneath the 'joke' that God has played on
> us by making us all appear to be different. And yes, I acknowledge
> that each of is different - unique and special in our own way - and I
> think cultures and backgrounds are important and worth remembering and
> preserving. But in the end, I want to be color-blind. But I have to
> honestly admit that I'm just not there yet.
>
> Mark in Seattle
