(For Mariah)
Declare!
Say it without shame or reservation. You are a citizen of a free world.
Declare. Claim your right to express yourself and your uniqueness and assert it confidently. No advancements, such as social progress or personal growth, have ever been achieved without a declaration of intention and purpose — the solemn right of each of us, as individuals and as a collective, to entertain our perspectives, free of negative repercussions.
Declare the innate promise of a free society. In every striving, there is the potential to make a difference, to reach out beyond the self, to know the meaning of self-determination.
Declare, because inherent in the declaration is the right to be, to establish norms that celebrate diversity and inclusion, to laud and put into practice the promise of a history which, though steeped in oppression, possesses the ultimate capacity to rise and be more than we are.
Declare, because you owe it to your children, friends, loved ones, and strangers who are friends you have yet to meet, to form a circle of unity and dispense with illusory, human-made labels and reach the core — the essence of who we are — integral parts of the universe, independent, yet exquisitely interdependent, for none of us can exist without each other.
Declare, and as we learn to listen to each other, we can coexist in harmony, without dissension, and see our differences as beautiful expressions of self, not with encumbrances or scorn.
And when you declare, look at me, as I look at you, with love, respect, and dignity, for all of us are microcosmic expressions of infinity — perfection that requires no race, gender, or cultural designation.
© Gabriella Gafni 2024