I carry stones. They are crystalized beliefs buried deep inside me. The rocks weigh me down and keep my vibration low. They represent limiting beliefs and judgmental thoughts about myself and others. I make missteps daily as I react to the world from the wounded place harboring these stones.
As we grow up, we receive so many messages about the world. Images flash across our eyes and meanings are interpreted by our brains and our bodies.
Due to repetitive messaging and interpretations of our environment, humans experience visceral reactions to people, words and situations. Imagine that each aspect of your programming is a stone you carry inside your body. Can you pick up the stone inside you called ‘Judgment’ and look at it? Can you accept that judgment exists within you? As you rotate the rock and look at all sides of it, you can appreciate its origin and better understand this aspect of yourself.
Let’s consider an issue that is heavy on the hearts and minds of our world right now, and has been an issue for far too long. Let’s consider racism. Oft-cited research says that by 3 months of age, babies are more comfortable with adults who have skin tones similar to that of their parents. Another statistic states that by age 4, kids can already have internalized racial bias. This data, and so much more, lays the groundwork for me to ask myself questions to uncover my own biases.
How did my family members, peers, teachers and neighbors talk about people who look different than me, specifically, black indigenous people of color? How did I experience people of color through the media? What interpretations have I made about cultures that are different from mine? The conclusions I came to when I was younger may be buried deep within me. Beliefs, even when deeply buried, affect my actions and how I treat others. These conclusions are the rocks inside me that keep me complacent and complicit.
“Anyone with privilege will make oppressive mistakes throughout their lives — white people, straight people, able-bodied people, and so on —and becoming anti-racist is an ongoing journey,” says Candice Nicole Hargons, Ph.D., the founding director of the Center for Healing Racial Trauma at the University of Kentucky. I agree with Dr. Hargons that this challenge is a journey.
I grew up in small towns in Minnesota and North Dakota and had little exposure to people who look, and live, differently than me. I have opinions and biases deeply buried in my psyche that I’m still uncovering. I have much to learn about how to actively make a difference in regards to racial equality in our country.
I am picking up the rocks I carry inside myself. I am willing to open myself up, to examine the judgments. Through this process, I can begin to see more clearly how I contribute to the problem of inequality in our country.
The great poet Rumi wrote, “the wound is where the light enters you.” We must crack ourselves open and peer inside to see what no longer serves us. We must let in the light to experience growth and unpack the heaviness that holds us back.
I am interested to know if you are exploring your judgments and biases. How are you making a difference to bring equality forward? I am here to learn how I can be better. Please help me. I’d love to hear your thoughts and reflections.
Please let me know if I can be of service to your evolution. If you would like to be held energetically as you move through your life, connect with me, I am here. To schedule, click HERE.
Holding You in Love & Light,
Andrea Luzon
I would love to connect with you through Instagram @andreadrealuzon
