Street Life: How it Looks

Street Life: How it Looks

by Ricardo Taylor
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Streetvibes distributor Ricardo Taylor Photo: Aimee Willhoite

‘Middle class, with more than enough to eat, makes one more than those who live on the street!’

In an ever changing world; we have, or perhaps need to take a look at others, who live in a state of despair or struggle for their existence. In the preceding paragraph there is a reality of how we perceive things; that is to say, that although we all live in the same world, we are sometimes worlds apart, as to our realities.

Too, often we tend to see things from our life positions, without notification of the lives of others. Either from ease, or struggle we only have a vision of what our lives consist of. That is almost to say, that when we are ok, the whole of the world must be ok! We see only the positive of our position, and not the position of others. I’m ok, so everyone else must be so as well! Yet, there is another reality! The reality of those whose lives are in turmoil, or strife, if you will; their sight is quite different. They often tend to see only the negative; it’s as if, nothing ever seems to go right! They tend to never have enough, never have the time, never dreaming, or in high hopes! “I’m not ok; it’s not fair the world just isn’t right, and, this is how it looks! That single vision predicated on my positioning in life! That misnomer ‘it is what it is’ is absurdity! Believing a circumstance, or, condition is set in one’s destiny! This is how it looks; the way things are supposed to be!

Removing the blinders, we so conveniently adorn for our own sight and beliefs, we find that the world around us is quite different. In fact, what we see is quite different from what we have always been accustomed to. What we start to vision is anew! A total change from what we take for granted; that usual product of faulty thinking, that self-imposed idealism from our learning. That belief, that this is how things are supposed to be! Ah, too often we ignore the views of other, that which, our minds surely peruse, and yet we cannot always preclude!

The concepts of right and wrong are innate; yet, we oftentimes so condition ourselves that we are blinded by a reality, and just accept things for how they look! Never questioning, just assuming that since that is how it looks; then that’s what it must be!

So, we see it. The reality of that projection is that we now have to take apart in how a perception can be changed. This is the part where we take most of our decision making process to create a vision which is beneficial to all! We have to question ourselves; is this how it really is, or just how it looks? Am I subjecting my ideas and beliefs to others perceptions? Am I allowing my thoughts and actions to be driven and then guided by others? Am I to be the instrument of misunderstanding and conceit?

Well, for me, I am of the thought that if we would like to see, or perhaps want to see change, in both perception and involvement with those of our community, who suffer most from stereotypes and circumstance, then we individually and as a community must create that change from how it looks to a more inclusive vision. We have to stop being subjected to how it looks and change our attitudes and commitments toward a leveling condition and circumstances for all, so that it becomes what we’d like to see instead of how it looks!

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