When God Closes A Door...

I know it's cliche but when God closes a door, he does open a window. The problem is that many times we stand around starring at that door, searching for the nonexistent key, or crying about our unfortunate situation when the way out is only a few paces away.

Life has a way of never being perfect and always remaining unpredictable. We do not always get what we want. We may have to say good-bye to the people we love most. A shadow may, more often than not, be cast over our "happily ever after."

We tend to weep when our door closes. We say, "Why me? Why did this have to happen?" We're persistent; we feel as if we need to go through that particular door. We beg for the job which was obviously not meant to be. We fight for the man whom is regrettably unavailable. We wallow in the loss of a friend, a valuable possession, a vacation opportunity, a promotion, an athletic competition. What we should be doing is saying "hello" to someone new, finding a more perfect career, celebrating our victories, and realizing our alternative possibilities. It's OK to be sad or frightened when your in a dark room and you may feel like your all alone. The problem develops when we spend too much time idling in the darkness rather than turning on the light; trying repetitively to knock down the door rather than discovering the wide-open window just across the room. Trust me, you'll wake up with a lot less bruises if you take the time to walk a few extra steps.

Don't miss your way out because your too focused in one direction. The door is closed for a reason. Sometime it may open again, but not now, not today. Everything will work out how it was meant to be and right now it is your job to find that window...Smile, because you deserve to.

We Have Everything To Gain

During my last semester of college I took a political sociology class. Among other things we learned the history and evolution of civil movements in our nation. One of the theories was based around the following premise:

"Those who have more to lose fight harder than those who have more to gain."

At first, I thought this was untrue. It seems that if an individual has something to gain, they would do all they could to attain it. they would fight just as hard for that privilege or right as someone who was on the verge of loosing it. But then I recognized the unfortunate truth.

There are two children shopping in a grocery store with their mothers. Susie is allowed to have candy on occasion while Anna is not allowed to have sweets. Both spot a tub of taffy and ask their mothers if they may have a piece. Both mothers say no. Susie having had the joy of tasting the mouth watering substance previously pleads with her mother in hopes of trying it again. Anna, never having the privilege of tasting the sweet chewy candy, figures that she has survived this long without and will be fine not having it now.

The same theory is emphasized in relationships. You will fight a lot harder to heal a relationship that you have had for a year than you will fight for an individual whom you've had one phone conversation with. You will spend more time fighting to keep what you have rather than struggling to achieve something more.

I began to wonder if this is the reason why large advancements in our society take so long to take place. The Civil Rights Movements did not make any headway until the 1960's. I don't believe their success was stunted because they were not fighting hard enough. I think it is very possible that the opposition was just fighting harder. White men felt threatened. they did not want to lose their influence in business and politics. they did not want to face competition to their elite status. The opposition had nothing to gain from subduing the voice of civil rights, but felt as if they had everything to lose.

i feel the same thing is occurring right now in the movement for the expansion of gay rights. Do heterosexual couples feel as if allowing gay marriage will somehow make their own unions less special? (If they do, I personally think these couples need to reevaluate their own relationships.) Why does the gain of the excluded make others feel as if they have lost something?

Immigrants are currently faced with harsher penalties and greater restrictions to the privileges that they once retained with ease. It is harder to attain green cards, work visas, temporary student exchanges, or even simple access into America at all. Are these liberties being threatened so this particular group must fight to retain what they already have instead of fighting for anything more?

This system is teaching the public to be happy with the status-quo. The American dream is built on the progression from the bottom to the top. How do we expect to make progress if we are continually struggling to keep what we have rather than fighting for what we want? We are stifling the very premise that this nation was built on: the prospect of advancement. It is time for people to recognize that we are all playing for the same team; the progress of one is the progress of America... They have everything to gain and we have nothing to lose.