Response to last night's shooting...

Cue the outrage. Cue the anger. Cue the sadness, despair, confusion, loss of words.

While I see most people on various social media outlets responding all sorts of ways, I find myself comparatively indifferent in my reaction to last night's tragic shooting in Scarborough. It's not because I'm callous, cold, or even cynical - I'm simply not that surprised that it happened. I think it’s terrible, I am sad that it happened, and my prayers go out to the victims, their families and their friends. And I’m not surprised.

What most people don't seem to understand is that we live in a world where what happened last night is actually not that uncommon. Shootings with this many victims at once, in one place at one time, yes, do not happen often in Toronto. We’re quite fortunate that for a city our size, we have a relatively low violent crime rate compared to most major cities in the world. Why I’m not surprised, however, has little to do with the geographical location or particular circumstances surrounding this incident; it has to do with where we’re at as a society, and more broadly as a race.

Let’s get a few things out of the way: this isn’t the police’s fault. This isn’t the government’s fault. It’s not white people’s fault, it’s not black people’s fault, it’s not Rob Ford’s fault. If people insist on putting blame on someone, put it on the person or people who pulled the triggers. They are responsible for their actions, regardless of whom or what drove them to the point of wanting to kill other people. That being said, I don’t think that assigning blame is going to get us anywhere.

We have this persistent delusion that if justice is served and we lock the shooters behind bars, everything will be OK again. The truth is that things are not going to be OK for the victims, their families, or their communities no matter what happens to the shooters. Dispensing justice will not prevent future acts of violence like this from occurring. The most constructive way to view last night’s shooting is that is was a symptom of much greater problems in our world, problems that we (for the most part) ignore in our daily lives and do little to nothing about in most of our lifetimes. The greatest of these problems that we need to confront is ourselves.

I believe that we are responsible for last night’s shooting – every single one of us. Not in the sense of being culpable for the crimes committed, but rather I am saying that we are responsible for the kind of world we live in. The kind of world I’m referring to is one in which it’s quite normal for people to die needlessly every day. It’s quite commonplace for atrocities to occur all around the globe and have nobody do anything about it. It’s become normal for people to have their egos so bruised or their feelings so hurt that they feel justified in picking up a gun blasting holes their fellow human beings. These things aren’t right, they aren’t good, and I don’t believe they should happen, but they do, and they happen because, on some level, we allow them to happen.

This idea of responsibility isn’t going to be easy for most people to get their heads around. It’s going to take a level of thinking that most people don’t think on in their daily lives and frankly most people don’t want to think on because it’s not easy. It’s not comfortable – it takes effort to step out of our isolated little shells of lives and circle of friends to think of who we are and what our lives are about on a societal level, and furthermore on a global scale. It’s necessary, however, to begin to think of ourselves as integral parts of this world in a very real sense if we want these kinds of horrible events to stop. We are literally connected to each other. The way we choose to be in the world has an impact on the way the world is. What we say and do, and what we don’t say and don’t do, all have causal consequences that reach far beyond anything we can measure. That kind of power, the power we have to influence each other’s lives and affect our world as a whole, is precisely the thing that we as individuals do not want to take responsibility for (I could write an entire book on the things about us that stop us from accepting our power and responsibility, but that is beyond the scope of this paper).

I believe that last night’s shooting, at its root causes, is about how we relate to ourselves as human beings and how we treat each other. It’s about what work (if any) we’ve done to take stock of the kind of people we are, what we’ve done to really gain true knowledge of ourselves. It’s about the people that we are committed to being in this life. It’s about how we raise our kids, how we educate our youth, and what we tolerate in ourselves and each other. It’s about more than seeing the problems around us, it’s about relating to ourselves as the people who are here to do something about them.

I didn’t pick up a gun last night and shoot anybody and (unless you are the shooter/shooters reading this) neither did you. If we want to know what we can do, if we really want to take responsibility for these acts of violence happening in our world, we need to ask ourselves how we’re living. We need to start asking ourselves the hardest of questions: What is my life about? Am I here just for myself or am I here to make a difference? What difference am I actually making? What kind of person am I being in the world? It’s a shift in consciousness that needs to occur, transformations that need to occur within ourselves, before we are going to see lasting, sustainable changes happening in our society and in our world as a whole.

There is no one right way to go about transforming ourselves and in turn transforming the world. I’ve used readings on various philosophical and spiritual traditions, creative self-expression thorugh hip hop music and culture, writing (poetry, prose, songs, essays, etc.), direct mentorship, volunteer work, and more traditional education systems as some of ways to gain knowledge of myself. I don’t care what methods people choose to use (as long as they don’t harm anybody) to see the truths about themselves, but we need to start somewhere. It starts with each one of us acknowledging who we truly are – the good, the bad, and the ugly. We can’t grow from where we’re not. From where we are, from a place of honesty and humility, we can begin to have access to our greatest power as human beings: the freedom to consciously choose.

Choose who you are going to be in the world. Choose to build and create. Choose to make a difference with your life and impact the world for the better.

If Darkness Reigns

If the ceiling

should crack and crumble

and all below

is covered in dust and rocks,

while walls decay

and fall over

leaving all beneath them

dead and gone,

If the ground

should shake and drift

from solid foundations

to liquid earth,

while the golden pictures

come falling down

into pits of fire

and burn,

If the truths

that we all seek

should elude us and

hide in lies,

while the lights

that warm our souls

stop gleaming

and dwell in shadows

in the night,

If the happiness

is depleted

and all the joy

is dry and cold,

while the waters

of the rivers

that sustain our life

seem to stop to flow,

If we are still alive

through all these things,

then this is reason enough

to keep dreaming,

keep fighting,

and keep on living.

We Are Still Here

we might not look at you the same way we used to

we might squint our eyes a bit more in confusion,

furrow our brows

and ask more questions,

be unable to understand your answers

sometimes it might hurt you to know

that we don’t recognize you

or seem to have forgotten who you are

please don’t be too sad –

we have not forgotten

the same people who loved you your entire life

still love you –

we still care as much as we ever did,

even if we are unable to show it,

it still warms our hearts to see you,

to hear your voice,

even if our brains won’t let us acknowledge it

you might think that you’ve already lost us

but you haven’t.

we are still here.

we are still here,

behind the waves of confusion,

the disorientation,

the utter impossibility to make sense of it all,

we are here,

still beings inside these shells,

still feeling, still experiencing the world,

if only in different ways than we have before,

still seeking your love and companionship

despite everything that’s happening to us,

still listening for your words

even if we don’t seem to be able to comprehend them

and we know it’s hard for you to be with us like this,

we know it hurts for you to see your mothers, your fathers,

grandparents, husbands, wives, aunts and uncles,

to see your heroes deteriorate before your eyes;

we wish that it didn’t have to be this way,

but it is;

do not feel guilty for your pain,

do not be ashamed of us or of your sadness –

nobody expected things to turn out this way

but here we are –

you, us

still here

still living in the face of an insidious disease,

still living through it a day at a time

we are still here

waiting for you and the only thing that some of us can still understand at all:

love

we still understand your love

Inspirational Words: Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein, widely renowned as a genius physicist, famous for his General Theory of Relativity and father of what is now known as Quantum Physics, was also a man of deep philosophical thought. His words are wellsprings of wisdom based on his own soul searching and observations about himself, human beings, society, and the world as a whole. By all appearances, Einstein was a simple and humble man who had a tremendous impact on the human race.

Here are some of his words. Read. Think. Be inspired.

Hurt

tell me not to care me so much

Unseen

pain doesn’t really care what colour you are
whether or not you have a trust fund or
live on the street
pain doesn’t care how old you are
if you live a comfortable life
or haven’t slept in a week

fear doesn’t give a fuck if you’re a homosexual

if you’re straight as an arrow

or you live your life celibate

and fear doesn’t care if you’re an athlete or professional

if you live a rough life

or your whole world is delicate

this is life right now and there’s no prerequisite

no instruction manual, no list for double-checking it

we’re only here as long as we are – no half steppin it

this world brings us down only as long as we’re letting it

you see, sadness doesn’t just pick on the weak-hearted

and madness doesn’t just steal the minds of cowards

we wanna build our lives, but before we start it

we should take a few minutes to analyze our power

strength lies in more than our muscles and bones

strength is what it takes to build a family, a home

a community, a world worth living in

when a man does you wrong, it takes strength to be forgiving him

it takes courage to live this life

to be true to oneself in the face of the odds

to make sense of a world that can seem so odd

keeping faith is more than about believing in God

it’s about seeing greatness in the eyes of each other

responsibility for pointing out the lies in each other

no matter how uncomfortable, we must rely on each other

we can either grow together or die with each other

and might sound drastic, but life can be drastic

we all carry burdens around, we try to mask it

lie about the fact that sometimes we get our ass kicked

it’s like we’re tryna shine our light through layers of plastic

but we’re greater than we give ourselves credit for

you’re greater than your bank account balances and credit scores

this world made you forget who you are – what you let it for?

once upon a time, you had a dream – what did you forget it for?

get quiet. take some minutes from time and just listen

be patient with the process,

get in touch with your inner waves like audio that’s lossless

fuck a dollar sign – silence is priceless – costless

just listen…

because love doesn’t care what mistakes you’ve made

even if you spent half your life drinking your way to the grave

and love doesn’t resent you for being a human being

love lives in the unseen – there’s so much we’re not seeing

The Path

Lyrics for "The Path” feat. Mike Devine (produced by Junia T) - lead single on the poet EP:

VERSE 1:

I saw my life painted on a canvas

strayed from my path and then the picture vanished

did a bit of damage

tried to put it down, but life without raps – I can’t manage

now I’m feeling famished                                                                      

hungry for a bigger life, thirsty for a broader dream

now at least I sleep nights not toking like a fiend

and though I’m grateful for that, I can’t stop moving

when I’m making progress the only time I’m not losing                                              

six years since I stopped boozing – for what?

so I could relax and lay in the cut? nah – fuck that

can’t live my life without momentum like a drum track

keep my skills sharp like the tip of a thumbtack                                                              

I know that there’s battles ahead, I won’t run from

though I feel cut from my Roots – my life “Undun”

but from this place, spitting out distaste

refuse to live my life in the shadow of disgrace                                        

the race of a thousand souls, what is fifth place?

when only one or two can shine, what is it we chase?

life ain’t an iPhone, you can’t replace

years gone by or the time you waste                              

staring in the mirror, tryna analyze my face

the man that grew from a boy,

now it’s build or destroy

I guess it’s time to put away old toys

on this journey tryna find my voice                            

CHORUS:

seeing my dreams as I create that

ain’t no rehearsal and ain’t no take backs

blessed with a gift and I’ve got to show it

ain’t no glory on the path of a poet

I know that time don’t wait for no man

gotta stay focused on where I’m goin’

where this road leads is not for knowin’

try to keep faith and enjoy the moment

VERSE 2:

consumed by thoughts that aren’t theirs

pursuing wares that ain’t fit for the wear

walking through life sometimes I stop and stare

I’m looking for that soul but it just ain’t there

try to numb out but I really do care

what’s the point of keeping score when nothing is fair?

sometimes I wish that I wasn’t so aware

but I know what I know, I gotta spit it and the message is rare                           

we are much more than they ever said we were, unsure

of whether we can live out our dreams, cliché as it seems

I believe that we need to achieve

our utmost, to bear fruits on these branches of leaves                                    

(so) caught up in all that we receive

we refuse to pay attention to the things that the world really needs

we hiding in the night like thieves

looking for ways to get a buzz but we’re never relieved              

we can’t relax, losing real estate in our minds – Remax

try to do better but we tend to relapse

where are we goin? we gotta take a look where we at

we can’t grow from where we ain’t, we’re not sinners or saints

we’re in between like the colour between purple and green

it’s all blue, the distance between me and you

real recognize real, real recognize the fake too

but I don’t hate you…

CHORUS:

seeing my dreams as I create that

ain’t no rehearsal and ain’t no take backs

blessed with a gift and I’ve got to show it

ain’t no glory on the path of a poet

I know that time don’t wait for no man

gotta stay focused on where I’m goin’

where this road leads is not for knowin’

try to keep faith and enjoy the moment

VERSE 3:

moments yeah they pass by

sometimes miss ‘em like I got two glass eyes

everybody hustle hard, tryna live ‘em fast lives

half the time talking in tongues, speaking fast lies

overly familiar like past-lives                                                         

feeling like I been here before, is this a failed attempt

to live a glorious life, or am I just exempt

from the mediocrity of averages

that we all condone while ignoring the savageness                                           

honestly, I don’t how to handle this

sometimes lost in my ramblings, searching for advantages

tryna manage my own career without management

half my time spent tryna recoup my damages

so what’s the sense in it

when everything’s an expense and that I keep on investing in

self-interest vested in

laying out my soul over beats and manifesting it

struggling’s the method that my character is tested in                                      

not just another rap specimen

a poet that grew from walking the path of lesser men

from the fog I was in to way out of my element

I still resist this road to my detriment                            

I got a soul sickness – this art is my medicine

so I’ma play my part and shine light like Edison

but I’ve learned to keep my pace steady-and

anything less than my God given purpose I’m not settling

CHORUS:

seeing my dreams as I create that

ain’t no rehearsal and ain’t no take backs

blessed with a gift and I’ve got to show it

ain’t no glory on the path of a poet

I know that time don’t wait for no man

gotta stay focused on where I’m goin’

where this road leads is not for knowin’

try to keep faith and enjoy the moment