Jan 23rd, 2021: "If Only We're Brave Enought To Be It

 The Cathartic Joy of Bernie Sanders Memes - Alma


Many of us have known about the well-known picture of Senator Bernie Sanders at the inauguration this week. I even got one with him sitting in front of my house. I thought it was funny at first. However, it was not funny as I thought more about it. I struggle with the humor. He was obviously cold and uncomfortable by the weather. He just wanted to keep warm. Sitting alone due to social distancing didn't help either. He looked a bit pouty as well. Here is my question: "Would we treat Senator Sanders with the same sense of humor if he is young, non-white, and not male? Many seniors died in 2020 due to Covit-19, and many of them were living under atrocious conditions even before the pandemic. The real systemic discrimination is our society's treatment of seniors. Senator Sanders is not known for his flashiness of fashion either. I thought it was quite admirable that he wore a pair of homemade mitts to that occasion. I don't share the same political convictions with him, but I appreciate him for just being who he is.


During the same event, we witnessed the incredible contribution of Amanda Gorman, a young soulful and graceful poet and a graduate of Harvard. Her poem is about the troubling past of America. Its deception in thinking that America is exceptional, its act of healing should be part of its identity and more. I encourage you to take the time to read her poem. It is a poem that is full of truth, courage, understanding, and conviction. She ended the poem with these words:


"When day comes we step out of the shade,

aflame and unafraid

The new dawn blooms as we free it

For there is always light,

if only we're brave enough to see it

If only we're brave enough to be it"


So let us have the courage and the conviction to face the fact we are not living on that day yet. We are still not free to step out of the shade of our own small-mindedness and pettiness. It is good that we cheer her on. It is a lot harder to "to be the light". Maybe we should reconsider the humor around Senator Sander's picture. We might have done some injustice toward what Amanda was trying to convey on that day.


2 Timothy 1:7 

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline."

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