Facebook Publication Date: 6/10/2021 17:06
So ok, a song came on my Spotify today.
Believe it or not, Robert Downey, Jr. made a record called “The Futurist” about 15 years ago. It was when he was still early on in his recovery journey, and the songs on the album reflect that. His voice is….um…*interesting*…but I care less about his voice than about his songs, most of which he either wrote or co-wrote. There is one song in particular (I will put it in the comments section) that I have listened to for years.
Rigid (and top down arrogant) Lace thought he got the words wrong, and I, atop my perch as a recovery counselor (heh) steeped in faith based life, ‘gave him grace’ for at least trying.
Here are the two lines I went for years thinking he got wrong: “Life is Testimony”, and “God Grant Me The Strength To Accept The Things I Can Change”.
It was only today that the truth of those words slapped me in the face as I was making the left turn onto 33rd Street. And then I really got the deep implications of what he was actually saying, not what I wish he said. (Quite similar, actually, to answering the query you wish you had been asked. Find the reference in the Guidelines.) And I was humbled and convicted; in his journey as a ‘baby in recovery’, he grasped something that eluded me for over a decade, and we can take deep lessons from it.
The first line, “Life is Testimony”, I had always changed in my mind and when I would sing along I would ‘correct’ it to ‘Life is A Testimony’.
Sounds similar, but no. I am not sure I would have finally made the connection were it not for a conversation I had recently with an acquaintance, a theologian, who engaged with me in conversation around friendships and relational ethics. He told me that he keeps his relationships ‘siloed’; which I found stunning, particularly coming from a theologian.
But not really, right? I mean we all do that; we compartmentalize, keeping certain aspects of self opaque to certain groups of people; sometimes so much so that there can sometimes be little or no overlap.
We do this in racial justice work as well.
Donning racial justice lenses, siloing doesn’t work. Not really. I mean, I see its allure. You can Do The Thing, sort of, and nobody needs to know, right? No one knows what you do or don’t do beyond words, and for some, even posturing. Down low praxis; is it praxis at all?
Robert Downey has it right. All of our lives, every aspect, are testimonies, even as we do our damndest to keep aspects of our lives cloaked. At the end of the day, all we have learned in this compartmentalization is how to be a double agent–but that begs the question of who it is we are ultimately working in service to?
I pondered this for quite a while today. This is why I do my best to have as much overlap and as much congruence as possible, in my personal and in my professional life. People may not know all the facets of me, but they shouldn’t be all that surprised.
What are the parts of your life you keep below ground? Is racial justice one of them? If it is, it drives how you move in your walk–or even if you walk at all.
Robert got this right too, when he sang, “God Grant Me The Strength To Accept The Things I Can Change”. Everyone knows the Serenity Prayer (http://bit.ly/SerenityPrayer1), even those not in recovery, and Robert plays off of that. I ‘corrected’ it in my head too, but now have come to realize the wisdom in the words exactly as he wrote them. It is indeed a departure from the Serenity Prayer. It’s next level.
Like so many things, the Serenity Prayer has all too often suffered from unfortunate mission drift. It’s why it’s necessary to read the full prayer, which I linked above, but even then, it has sometimes morphed into something of a pass. It’s amazing how many things we decide we ‘cannot’ change–here at LoR, we talk a lot about ‘can’t vs. won’t’ for this very reason.
We see this so much here in this space, and also in the whole arena of change work, for that matter. I have said this before, we here at LoR have bet the farm that people have the capacity, volition, and agency to do more and be more than they ever thought possible–and now we have Robert’s words to buttress.
It is not easy to ‘Accept The Things I Can Change’; embedded in this statement is a charge. Also: a responsibility. Accepting that you have more power than you think you do (or want to admit to) means taking up a mantle. Means owning your own power and influence, and also owning your ability, if you choose to do so, to Move The Stone. But the stone will not budge till you believe you have the mettle to move it.
So it is with this Early June Ask. As always, we do a lot with a little and will continue to do so. As always, we pledge to steward your financial engagement well and prudently. As always, we share with firstfruits. As always, every dollar is in service to our unshakable North Star.
And this brings us to the by-now familiar boilerplate, which I hope one day will be unnecessary, because the Ask itself will be unnecessary:
Very simply, I would like to continue to serve you with my utmost. I thank you in advance for allowing me to do so.
I also thank those of you who have financially engaged without the prompt of the ask, and for those of you who are aware of the shortfall that has been endured post Holly. If you would like to earmark engagement specifically to address that shortfall, you can designate and we will see it, and again, your thanks for your faith in me, in us, and your commitment to our Western Star, even in the midst of adversity.
To Sustainers, Sustainers in Training, those who have registered for the Lace on Race Cafe, and those who aspire to be part of Chef’s Table, thank you in advance for your fulfilling your monthly commitment. It is you all who allow us to serve and influence and mentor and teach and abide. Every month, especially in these recent challenging months, my heart swells because of your continued faithfulness.
For those of you who engage a la carte at the Takeout Window, I hope you have seen and appreciated the value in the fare we offer you and directly invite (and gently and lovingly challenge) you to partner with us.
If you would like to know more about becoming a Sustainer or a Sustainer in Training, or if you would like to be seated in the Bistro, links are below. I look forward to walking with and abiding with you in ever deeper ways.
What we do is different from what you will see anywhere else. What we offer to you is different; and what we ask for and from you is different. We are grateful for you. You will find our walking with you will never waver.
Sometimes it’s hard to say variations of the same thing at least twice a month: but the truth is here every day: what we do here is important and needed; your financial engagement is what allows it to happen, and this: we have only scratched the surface of what could be and what reach we could have.
Thank you to those who are now and or are considering walking with me in this way.
And a candid thank you, and an invitation, to those who are considering re-engagement who have not since February. I hope you have seen our faithfulness to you individually and to the community as a whole. Our faithfulness and resolve will continue; on that you can rest. I look forward to your renewed commitment with anticipation and with deep gratitude and appreciation.
With deep and unshakable Hesed,
Your Lace
PayPal: paypal.me/LaceonRace
Sustainer Form: https://bit.ly/SustainerForm
Sustainer in Training Form: http://bit.ly/SustainerInTrainingForm2021
Join in The Bistro discussion below.
https://laceonrace.com/groups/the-bistro/forum/discussion/early-june-ask-part-2/
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