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Now that the elections are over, we can finally leave behind the ad nauseam political commercials and go back to the old set of annoying ads. I never thought I’d  be happy to see Cheryl’s burning She Shed again… but it will actually be refreshing!

For Cheryl in the Allstate commercial, the “She Shed” in the backyard was a place where she could apparently go and spend some quality “me time.”  Allegedly, the said She Shed was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. It was obvious that her husband, Victor, standing next to her staring blankly with the limp, water-trickling hose in hand was less than enthused about Cheryl’s She Shed.

So far so good. The commercial started to lose me though as Cheryl began to contemplate replacing the old She Shed with, as I heard it, a new She Sheer She Shed. What?!?  I had to go to my wife for an explanation. Initially my wife was as confused as I was but evidently her latent desire for her own She Shed led her to the revelation. Cheryl wasn’t longing for a She Sheer She Shed, she was catching a vision for a “chichier” She Shed.

Chichi—adjective (pronounced Sheshe)

  1. showily or affectedly elegant or trendy; pretentious.

Ahhhh, the lightbulb came on. Cheryl saw the opportunity to raise up out of the ashes of her old She Shed, a new “chichier” and perhaps even the “chicheist” She Shed of all time! I get it now! I had a real mental block about it though. Even after the initial revelation, I would “forget” what Cheryl was saying and literally had to stop and recalibrate my brain to recall what she intended. I’ve heard the word chichi before, but there was just something about it that refused to click in my brain. For some reason, my head refused to acknowledge Cheryl’s desire for a chichier She Shed. Maybe it was a “man thing,” but whatever it was, it kept me from seeing and feeling from Cheryl’s perspective. Just call me “Victor.”

Seriously, when for whatever reason our minds block us from having understanding, empathy and compassion for the hopes and desires of another human being, it can lead to dire consequences. It’s happening right now in our culture. We are experiencing the ramifications of living in a society that has reached a volatile point of increasingly polarized thinking. The hatefully insane are being affirmed in their hateful insanity, and people are dying as a result.  Both racially and politically, there is more than a She Shed burning. Until there’s an intentional change of course, the trend line of tragedies will remain ominous.

With our psychosocial senses of really hearing, really seeing and really feeling dissipating, we are in essence losing our common sensibilities. We as a nation need to regain and master the seemingly lost art of empathy, recognizing that empathy does not require agreement. Empathy is simply the practiced ability to feel from someone else’s perspective. Until empathy is restored, words like justice, fear, mercy, and even “greatness” will be to some, like “chichi” was to me… a wall that’s in the way of understanding, rather than a bridge toward it.

I see you Victor, standing there watching the fire, limp hose in hand, unexcited, uninvolved, unseeing, uncaring and looking so innocent. Some suggest that it was no so-called act of God, but Victor himself who burned down the She Shed on his own property. Was Victor feeling victorious until Cheryl spoke of reconstruction?

What about us? What are we feeling? Will we stand by and watch America burn in the flames sparked by callous polarization? If so, we will have only ourselves to blame. Woody Guthrie sang truth: “This land is your land, this land is my land.”  We need to rise above our tribalism to see, value, and fight for the common ground of our humanity… with genuine liberty and justice for all!

We need to collaboratively find ways to put out this national fire or each of us may be found guilty of arson. I’m suggesting dousing the flames with real talk and open minds, not avoidance of real issues. I’m suggesting real actions that will speak louder than any words.

Among the beatitudes we read, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” I’m suggesting genuine peacemaking, not insincere, short-lived, ineffective peacekeeping. These flames are ours to put out. We owe it to the generations to come to take it upon ourselves to do exactly that. Grace and Peace to us all.

Todd was the lead Pastor at Church on Rock-New Haven for 25 years before turning the work over to his successor. He is currently looking to reinvent himself and explore 4th quarter career options.

To contact Todd directly: toddfoster1207@gmail.com

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