Yesterday was fantastical! Not only did I get to attend the theme park I used to be employed at as a guest with the hubs and bunch of friends for a haunted fright fest, I also somehow got myself embroiled in an interview with a local political operative and was told a tale of authoritarianism most foul.
It was such a glorious day!
To start out with, the hubs and I were sipping coffee, basking in the heat that is our delightful little woodstove, when our daughter and her bestie popped in.
She proceeded to tell us of a conversation that she had with a very close family friend who is employed by the state in a position that has quite a bit of power attached to it.
This person is also 25 years old.
Well, our girl proceeded to tell us how this particular person was spouting off that people needed to be sterilized, have permission to have children when the state deems they were stable enough to do so, and men's bodies should be governed like women's are.
My mouth was hanging open is the only polite way to put the expression of my shock and awe.
I love education. Heck I am in college right now. I also believe that not everyone needs to go to college to be educated and that experience is an important factor in learning. In fact, upon hearing all of that horror-inducing dribble I spouted,
A degree gives you tools. Experience gives you the wisdom to use them."
I am not an ageist, but I do believe that putting a person in a position of authority over others without proper oversight is a rights-violating disaster in the making. How many people with institutional formed mindsets are lurking and working as agents of the state right now without the proper perspective of a human being's worth and dignity being the absolute pinnacle of freedom. I have about a billion more thoughts on that story and the realm that is authoritarianism dispensed by ill-equipped and educated so-called educated agents of the state, but I will leave this here.
Perhaps because I had gotten a touch riled up over the earlier tale of statist woe, I later in the day found myself in another somewhat surreal scenario.
Since the hubs and I were going to go to Scarywood after his Friday Night Youth Shooting Program, I decided to go with the hubs that afternoon and we'd would just go straight to the theme park from the range. This also worked because we gave a couple of his kids from the team a lift to the park as well.
Well, one of the parents of one of his team members is way into politics and is instrumental in running the precincts of one of the region's political party. This parent is always at the state capitol, always at public meetings, always everywhere. They are tireless.
They also are one of the most fervent zealots I have ever met.
In fact, they were instrumental in messing up my beloved library district through conducting a slanderous campaign against me and my fellow local librarians in order to get their cronies elected to our library board.
But that is a whole other story...
Anyway, this parent drives the other parents crazy with their Apostle Paul level of zeal. They rant and rave about saving the children, what Christ calls them to do, Improper behavior, the list goes on.
The thing is, as I have observed this parent, I have seen things. One, that they are kind and loving, and have a heart for children. Even in the most annoying and ill-behaving folks there are often glimmerings of of virtue.
And you all know me, I love to look for the good.
Well, some of the other parents were mystified that I had publicly stated that I believed that the parent wasn't a complete harpy. And as I was in a bit of pensive and mischievious mood, when this parent sat down next to me and opened their chrome book to work on their massive precinct spreadsheet, I struck up a conversation.
And that is exactly what we did, had a conversation. I asked them questions and tried to glean their point of view without bias. Before our hour long interlude was over I had uncovered a hurting soul who was struggling with some pretty major trauma and loss while also trying their best to live with virtuous purpose.
It was really a rather surreal scene.
It wasn't all me being pleasant rainbows and kitty purrs either, I gently confronted them about the damage they had done to my community and slander that they had foisted upon me and my dear coworkers. I went into detail about how it's not so great when people who come from messed up places assume the place they come to is messed up as well and begin to disrupt the place with scorched community earth behavior without getting to know the actual community.
You know what was cool, the zealot and I actually listened to each other, and even on points that were contentious, we had a back and forth dialogue that was at times pleasant, and completely respectful and empathetic to each other's point the all of the time.
That's the key that I think is missing a lot of the time in 21st century human interactions. It takes a lot of work to not devolve into a haughty or emotional pile of goo when one's thoughts and beliefs are challenged or disagreed with, and in much of my viewing and experiencing life all around me, all I see is a bunch of dang fit throwers instead of people who respect the dignity and worth of each other, even if you think the others are super beyond wrong.
I'm not going to quit engaging with people in a spirit of respect and love. I think that's how we lose, and that's the most horrifying thing of all that I can think of.
Plus, I was so elated to have experienced so much interacting with unique individual awesomeness, that I giggled and screamed my way through the haunted attractions at Scarywood with an even more elated than normal sense of glee.
One thing to note though, if you are the smallest person in your group, the haunter/scarer people are gonna come at you every single time, I was a target I tell you!!
And on that note, I need to go get ready for day two of fun pre-Halloween themed festivities, I got a ballgown to put on!
More on Scarywood and The Murder Mystery Performance later!