"Freedumb"
Tonight I went to my ATM machine, glanced up and noticed painted, in ugly, black, unartistic paint, the graffitti, "Freedumb." My first thought was , "Why sign your name, if you're going to vandalize, why not at least use a nickname or a moniker, like a proper criminal?" For quite a few moments, the stupidity and the rudeness of this act occupied my thoughts. But then, I thought, whoever the idiot was who painted their name, they're right in a way. "Freedom" means tolerating all the dumb, idiotic, lazy, immature, awkward things that human beings do. All of us, at one point or another, are "freedumb."
What was this person's motive? Why can't they just post a blog like the rest of us, or vent their feelings/creativity in some socially acceptable fashion, some manner that would not be so irritating and risk possible arrest; for example, they could buy a billboard like some folks have done in a quest for love. But, it's something in us, something primitive that has to be tamed. We can't help it, we want to carve our initials in the tree or on a desk, we want to doodle. We want to write. In college, they had a stairwell covered with graffitti...it was full of every expression imagninable-love, hate, politics, obscenity, writings, unintelligible words: some quite witty and wise, some quite, well, "dumb." But, that's a part of freedom, being able to express and live the best moments and the dumb, awkward parts of life. Somehow, it is part of creating something new. Some of the best ideas seem to get hatched out of "freedumb", or a lot of mistakes, a lot of failing. Freedom is the space to fail.
Yet, there's still something to be said for "freedom", which is a nobel word that reminds me of the sky, limitless with possibilities, yet when you think about it, carries so much responsibility. It's a word that you can share in the company of any crowd and it is respected, even if at times it is concealed, it's something real in the human spirit. Even when it is suppressed, because of "freedumb", it still is always present, sometimes it's an overwhelming yearning or a desire, but it's there, as persistent as weather. A person who truly cherishes freedom is not likely to risk their freedom for a childish, stupid impulse. Or, if they do, they're so racked with guilt over it, because they were raised with some sense of manners and of respect, some sense of being civilized. They'd feel bad, on some level, for whoever has to clean up the "freedumb" painted there. Anyone whose really thought about the cost of it, is not likely to be proud of how dumb or how ignorant some of us, who benefit and are blessed to be free, can be.
In Iraq, they are counting the votes today, an idea born of freedom. Today, I am free to read what I chose and worship where I chose. I'm free to be wrong. I'm free to learn about the past and consider the future. It isn't cheap, this place where "freedom" is the very nature of being. It's a long, hard, even bloody road. But in all the moments of "freedumb" it's always there, the need to be free. Something in the human spirit God must have given us all.
What was this person's motive? Why can't they just post a blog like the rest of us, or vent their feelings/creativity in some socially acceptable fashion, some manner that would not be so irritating and risk possible arrest; for example, they could buy a billboard like some folks have done in a quest for love. But, it's something in us, something primitive that has to be tamed. We can't help it, we want to carve our initials in the tree or on a desk, we want to doodle. We want to write. In college, they had a stairwell covered with graffitti...it was full of every expression imagninable-love, hate, politics, obscenity, writings, unintelligible words: some quite witty and wise, some quite, well, "dumb." But, that's a part of freedom, being able to express and live the best moments and the dumb, awkward parts of life. Somehow, it is part of creating something new. Some of the best ideas seem to get hatched out of "freedumb", or a lot of mistakes, a lot of failing. Freedom is the space to fail.
Yet, there's still something to be said for "freedom", which is a nobel word that reminds me of the sky, limitless with possibilities, yet when you think about it, carries so much responsibility. It's a word that you can share in the company of any crowd and it is respected, even if at times it is concealed, it's something real in the human spirit. Even when it is suppressed, because of "freedumb", it still is always present, sometimes it's an overwhelming yearning or a desire, but it's there, as persistent as weather. A person who truly cherishes freedom is not likely to risk their freedom for a childish, stupid impulse. Or, if they do, they're so racked with guilt over it, because they were raised with some sense of manners and of respect, some sense of being civilized. They'd feel bad, on some level, for whoever has to clean up the "freedumb" painted there. Anyone whose really thought about the cost of it, is not likely to be proud of how dumb or how ignorant some of us, who benefit and are blessed to be free, can be.
In Iraq, they are counting the votes today, an idea born of freedom. Today, I am free to read what I chose and worship where I chose. I'm free to be wrong. I'm free to learn about the past and consider the future. It isn't cheap, this place where "freedom" is the very nature of being. It's a long, hard, even bloody road. But in all the moments of "freedumb" it's always there, the need to be free. Something in the human spirit God must have given us all.
posted by Anonymous at 6:05 PM
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