Freedom

We are at war.

And this just happens to be the greatest war in the history of time. A war that began before time was. The very first people to roam Mother Earth fought it, and the very first man to die, died because of it.

For thousands of years, man, woman and child have fought. They have bled and died for the idea they fought for. This idea is the very essence of who and what we are.

We bleed for it and we live for it.

Men risk their lives, the lives of those they love and all that they hold dear to them for this idea. This thing that we find hard to explain. We try over and over and over to define it, but we never quite reach it. We speak of it in hushed tones and in blood curdling war cries.

We are involved in The War. And with tears in my eyes I must say this: we are losing.

We sit day after day. We stare at fleeting images. We laugh at and mock the most sacred of things. We do whatever feels right at the moment, not thinking and not caring what the results will be in the morning.

We throw it away because we think it will clear up our mistakes. We drown our pain in a bottle or in a pill. We let our brains be filled with mush; squishing out anything else that could be of value. We do whatever we want and we get angry when anyone tells us we’re wrong.

We are unhappy with ourselves. But we refuse to admit it.

We let our Rights be taken from us and then squabble about our “rights.” We vote again and again for more dependance. Hoping for different results. We don’t see those who are fighting. Those actually trying to win. We don’t see their tears and sleepless nights. We don’t see them hurting. We mock them, fight against them and pull them down. Unconsciously yelling at them to give up. Saying that it’s not really worth it, not when you can get free Healthcare and free everything else.

No. We’re not happy. So we yell at them. Blaming them, saying that everything is all their fault. We’ve gotten really good at pointing fingers, at everyone but ourselves. We still refuse to see the pain. The tears. The struggling. We are blinded by insignificant details. We refuse to see the real war.

And because of it we are losing.

What would they say if they could see us now? What would they do? Give up? I seriously doubt it. Yes, we are losing. Yes, it seems totally hopeless. I sometimes want to give in and give up. To just stop fighting. But I don’t. They didn’t. So I can’t.

They bled, died, fought with their swords, guns and words. They lived for Her and gave everything they had, and more, in Her defence. They didn’t have to. They could have given up and given in. They could have. But they didn’t.

Why?

It’s almost impossible to tell exactly. I really don’t know. But it must be the same reason that I keep fighting. Why do I keep fighting? Even when it seems like every turn is a dead end?

I keep fighting because I know we will win.

- Missy Nelson