Mission Statement: India

I leave for India in 2 weeks, 1 day, and eleven hours...ish. That is, of course, assuming Delhi doesnt get bombed by some rampant Al Quaeda terrorists, and the Indian Embassy (or my own common sense) doesnt allow me to enter the country. But, I'm hoping for the best. This will be my first visit to a so-called "third-world" country. I think (although I'm ignorantly assuming this out of sheer and blatant cynicism toward our current administration - and therefore America as a whole) that "third-world" is a term thought up by some occidental imperialist who believes that our fine YOUNG country is clearly far more civilized than, say, a country that has existed for thousands and thousands of years. *sigh* OK, perhaps in some ways...but certainly not in the contet of culture or spirituality. America, in the shadow of these "third-world" cultures is but an adolescent, struggling through the awkward turblance of cultural growth and identity. And our pathetic excuse for a leader is the perfect projection of an adolescent - wanting to do nothing but fight, impose his ignorant views onto other out of pride, and defend his views in such a way that 98% of what comes out of his mouth is complete and utter bullshit.

Who are we to step in and literally devastate a country with an unprecidented war, and the go so far as to try to completely change the government and values of a culture we dont even come close to understanding? Assholes. That's who. American assholes.

That said, perhaps some good has come out of these tragic, mind-numbingly maddening times. For me, the only two presidential elections I have been able to vote in have yeilded 5 years of an Administration that has almost completely drained the nation of America of its trust in the government. It has brought the first act of war on US soil since the bombings at Pearl Harbor (which, for people my age is primarily visualized as a heartwarming motion picture starring Ben Affleck & Josh Hartnett). It has instilled a sense of fear and vulnerability that has sparked a flame of fiery passion in so many young (and old) Americans that so unmistakably mirrors that of the late 1960's - early 1970's when people my age grew their hair long, stood in picket lines, wore flowers in their hair, took hallucinogenic drugs and wrote some of the best music in the history of man - all to try to find an outlet for the fear and anger that surrounded them, and to find a place of hope where peace existed amid chaos, and where the people of America were, indeed, free. Free from a war we don't believe in (Vietnam or Iraq), free from a government so corrupt that our leaders get away with such blatant lies and obvious crimes right in front of our face and nobody even bats an eye anymore. Free from a world that hates us so passionately that their compassion for Americans as brothers and sisters on this earth has crumbled into spite...all because of ONE person's pride and self-interest. Free from a government who turns its back on our rapidly decreasing environmental stability, and cares for nothing green other than money. It's maddening, heart-breaking, and absolutely 100% inexcusable.

BUT...as I said...I can find one small strand of hope amid this massive cloud of destruction, and that is that the cumulative events of the past 5 years have sparked an awakening flame within me to do something - ANYTHING - that will help start the long, slow process of reversing the damage that has been done - and more importantly, to prevent any more imminent damage from allowing this nation, this world, this planet to be destroyed in any sense of the word. I see that same fire in the faces of so many people around me, and I read about it in the stories of those who lived before me. I hear it in the words and voices of musicians, both old and new. It's promising because it shows that this need to protect ourselves and our earth is one innate facet of humanity, and in our world, that is a sign of truth. There is truth in this need for change, and that is what gives us hope that it is possible.

However, not everyone sees this truth. Many are too clouded by fear (fear of change, fear of the unknown) or greed or power or ignorance. Its an age-old problem, and I certainly don't claim to have THE solution. But, for me, one solution to these parasites of human nature seems so blindingly obvious: TRAVEL.

Travel the world, and do it in whatever way or by whatever means you wish - whether it's staying in 5 star hotels or backpacking through the wilderness, just TRAVEL! But make sure you take the time to really see the world. Breathe it in - all of it, the good the bad, the ugly and the breath-taking - but make sure you don't go back home until you really feel you are a part of it. Don't allow yourself to hide from the parts that scare you (i.e. the poverty, the illness, the death). That is jsut as real as the pristine mountains and tropical beaches, if not moreso, and one does not negate the other. Just because there is poverty and death does not mean there is not also beauty and wonder. And just because there is such incredible and immense beauty in this world, does not mean there is not also pain and suffering. They are not two separate worlds. They are one...and all things exist within it regardless of one another.

"Comparisons are odious."

And once, and only once you have seen these many seemingly contradicting, yet one in the same truths that exist in this world, will you suddenly feel and understand that you are a part of it...that while you may not be directly suffering, you are a part of all the suffering in the world (and therefore part of the solution if you choose to act); and while beauty may sometimes seem far and out of reach, you are a part of that too because it's all the same. We are all one. It's overwhelming and seems complex, I know. And while I am young and do not know many things, THIS I know to be true.

So, this long-winded, scattered, and most likely incomplete proclamation is my mission statement for my relatively short and insignificant trip to India. These are at least SOME of the thoughts that fluttered through my mind incongruently in the process leading up to (as well as after) my decision to make this trip. And while I have absolutely no idea what I'll find when I do make this trip, I can only hope that some of this - and I'm sure much, much more - will continue to be true and will guide me through this journey and those to come.