danniewriter

Gifts and sacrifices

Dear Rep. Foster,

You don’t know me from Adam’s housecat, however, this is America, so I am privileged to share my opinion with you and countless other millions who don’t give a crap what I think. Lucky you.

I am writing, of course, about the recent kerfuffle you started when you denied Larrison Campbell, and by extension, Mississippi Today, access to your campaign unless she brought along a male colleague. While I respect your commitment to live a life above reproach, I think you have misunderstood its implications and responsibilities. At least, I am giving you the doubt that your motivation is indeed a principle, however misunderstood, and not a political calculation. But that is another subject.

Believers make adjustments in their lives to accommodate an imperfect world. Our willingness to adjust is a sign of our faith. It is possible that the world might take notice, but essentially, those adjustments are for an audience of one: God. In short, they are a gift to Him.

Fasting is perhaps the best example. Wildly paraphrased, Scripture says believers are to be bright eyed and bushy tailed when fasting so those around them will not notice. Why? Because the fast is a gift for an audience of one. Others might notice and even remark on someone skipping lunch or foregoing dessert during Lent, but the act, the sacrifice, is not for them.

Your insistence that Campbell bring a chaperone to her own interview is placing the burden of your sacrifice onto someone else. Hint: that means it’s no longer your sacrifice; it’s hers.

You invoke the late Rev. Billy Graham as the standard bearer for your decision even while admitting publicly that your motivation is to deprive your opponents political ammunition against you. I have a feeling that Graham let go of what the world thought of him way back when he was still putting up his own crusade tents.

I know it is trendy to lob disdain on the media. As a former reporter, I do a fair share of screaming at screens and the radio these days. However, the principle behind the outrage generated by your actions is sound. Cherry picking which media gets access to you might get some supporters on your side, however, to become governor, you need to convert a lot of undecided voters. This move just makes you look uncooperative, and quite frankly, a little whiney.

Just sayin’.

Stand your high ground, by all means, but take the responsibility upon yourself, where it belongs. Hire your own chaperone. After all, it’s not much of a gift if there’s no sacrifice behind it.

A teachable moment

Actress/singer Erika Amato’s response to President Trump’s Independence Day gaffe is a big crowd pleaser. Read about Erika’s diverse career, reviews of her work and other highlights at www.erikaamato.com.

I would never wish a gaffe upon anyone as big as the mistake perpetrated by President Trump on Independence Day, but as someone who loves history, I found it just a tad gratifying. Sound strange? People often have that response when reading my posts, so please bear with me.

I imagined cellphones being pulled out across the nation as people asked themselves, “Exactly how many years off was he?” I pictured very small children asking why various beverages had just shot from their parents’ noses when the infamous remark was made.

The fact that people, especially young ones, are curious enough to ask questions about the past is a life preserver of optimism to which I cling mightily when I see “on the street” interviews where over 18ers opine that the presidential cabinet is a piece of furniture.

In recent years, the question of America’s history, especially in the South, has been a topic of heated debate as leaders, and entire communities, have opted to remove statues, plaques and names from public spaces and buildings. The country’s brutal past of slavery and racial discrimination is by no means a Southern phenomenon, but I think it’s fair to say that, in many corners of the region, there is a tendency to deliberately misunderstand the opposition of such symbols.

After all, in many areas of the South, it was commonplace to refer to the Civil War as “the recent unpleasantness,” into the 20th century.

We have an opportunity here, not to erase history by tearing down monuments and removing plaques, although in some cases I think that is entirely appropriate, and in just about all cases, I think a community is well within its right to make such a decision. Additionally, I am certainly not suggesting that we engage in group denial and giving into political correctness.

The opportunity is to get the story right … or at least as close to right as our faulty human nature will allow.

Ripping down statues is quick and easy. Putting history into context takes time and strength of will. And in some cases, it takes exploration. There are many important people who were so disenfranchised during their lifetimes, their stories are not yet fully known.

I ran across a profound piece of writing that illustrates beautifully the great need we have as a country for balance, context and “the whole story.” I hope you will take time to read Carly Berlin’s essay, Two Houses on the Eatonton-Milledgeville Road, recently posted on The Bitter Southerner.

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