BuzzFlash
presents Southern Style
by Rebecca Knight
September 23, 2002
My Personal Inspirations
Southern Style by Rebecca Knight
This column is about me, so if you don't care about my personal story, please just skip this and move on to something else you really care about.
While I am very hesitant to share my personal story, I will do so out of consideration for the many who write to me about how my writing has touched them. Following my latest column, "Blind Allegiance," I received an e-mail from a gentleman in Texas who has written me several times. His words are the reason for this column. Here is a part of what he had to say:
"What a journalistic masterpiece!…I just read your latest treatise 'Blind Allegiance.' It's not just what you say that rings the bell of truth; it's the way you put your words together.
I can't believe how much your writing resonates with a style that I hope to have one day. I don't mean your exact style. It's the original way that you express yourself. Your writing is so good that I sometimes close my eyes and try to picture what your inspiration buttons are all about.
I'm not trying to blow smoke up your nose. I have no idea what your political and education background might be. You know how we all have that favorite singer and when that singer pops up on the radio we turn the volume up just a bit so we can really get into the feeling that the artists produces for us? You do that for me and to tell you the truth (not that I ever lied to you) there are times that I get misty eyed at the brilliant way of expressing yourself…
So after wading through all of this rambling, Rebecca, if you could tell me where you find your inspirations I would be very grateful."
There is nothing special about me and I know that. Each of you has a story to tell. My only significance is through the forum BuzzFlash has granted me. Why the owners and editors of BuzzFlash chose to do so is beyond my understanding. Perhaps they can add their comments at the end of this piece, if they choose to do so. I will be forever grateful to them for granting me a forum that gives voice to my words, which beyond my comprehension have seemed to touch so many of you.
I am a single middle-aged mother of a teenage daughter living in Tennessee. I am hard working and self-supportive. I have never taken a cent from the government and I never intend to. As long as I am physically and mentally able, I will keep that commitment. I also understand that there are many Americans who have not been so fortunate. They are not to be pitied or ridiculed, they are to be treated with compassion and understanding.
I have been keenly aware of political issues and the differences political policies can make in each American's life since childhood. There is no rational explanation for this. Some people just seem to care more than others. I have always cared that each American has an equal opportunity. Perhaps I learned that through paying special attention in American history classes. Perhaps I learned that through watching the struggles of members of my family. Who knows where compassion comes from, where it is rooted, but I seem to have more than my fair share. I do not take credit for this, but give credit where it is due.
My mother died of Alzheimer's disease in 1991 after a long and heart-wrenching struggle. My father, my sister, and I did all we could for her, spending thousands of dollars for her treatment and care and giving her love and understanding while the disease that robbed her of any recognition of us took its toll on our lives.
My father is 85 years old, sharp as a tack, and still works part-time. His leisure time is spent in his recliner watching sports on television and napping. It is a big joke in our family, but he deserves to do what he wants. He grew up during the depression, the oldest of three children. His father died of the flu and he quit school to help support his mother and younger siblings. He worked for the Roosevelt WPA. He worked in a grocery store. He worked for the railroad. He served in the Army as a cook stationed in Alaska during WWII, where he learned to cook better than any woman in our family. He worked two jobs until I graduated from high school, just to make ends meet and to ensure that my sister and I would have more advantages in life than he and my mother ever did. I love and admire this man more than any other on earth. Not just for his devotion to my mother for fifty years, but for what he is, for the integrity he represents.
I graduated high school during the Vietnam era, attended college for a while with the intention of becoming a history teacher, and quit to marry. I then worked full time while my husband completed his Bachelor's degree. He would later go on to get his masters and I devoted my time to raising our daughter, which in my opinion, was more valuable to us both than the money available through a career. Upon my daughter's entry into school, I entered the work force again and have continued to work. Sadly, my marriage ended a few years ago.
There you have it. As you will notice, I never completed college, but have obtained professional designations in my chosen field. You will also notice that I do not have any special training in journalism. Whatever talents I possess for writing or expressing my opinions are completely God given and I take no credit for them.
Whatever talents for political analysis I possess, I learned them through the school of hard knocks, from which I am proud to have a degree. I have watched members of my family struggle through unimaginable hardships and come out on top through hard work and determination. Now some of them would benefit from Republican economic policies, but they don't turn their back on where they came from. They also understand that times change swiftly, and there but for the grace of God go I.
It's not just about economics. It's about feelings for other human beings. It's about understanding the plight of those who struggle to do better, not just economically, but struggle to be better human beings, to treat each other well, to not look down on one another. That is compassion. That is practicing the golden rule.
As you can probably deduce from my writing, I am a Christian and have been for forty years. I believe in God. So what! That is my choice. It makes me no better or worse than anyone else. Christianity is not a club of superiority to be wielded over others. Yet, that is what right-wingers attempt to do. What is Christ-like about that? I don't get it. Individuality, freedom of thought, and freedom of expression are the keys to the success of America. When we lose that, we have lost everything.
And that is the divisive aspect of the Republican Party. You must be like them, believe like them, behave like them, or you are not truly American. Straighten up America! How dare you think that you should have the right to determine your beliefs! How dare you think that a woman should have the right to decide through whatever faith she possesses whether to have an abortion!
Don't get me wrong. I oppose abortion for myself. But, you must decide how you personally feel about it. I don't have the right to tell you how you must feel and the government should definitely stay out of it! That is my understanding of pro-choice and it definitely is not pro-abortion. So, you right wing nuts can stop calling us "baby killers" now! If you are capable of understanding the logic of what I just stated, you will.
During my childhood I witnessed the civil rights movement. I remember the divided "white" and "black" bathrooms, drinking fountains, restaurants, and waiting rooms. I wondered, why the difference? I value the enlightenment obtained through the marvelous struggles championed by Dr. Martin Luther King, the most eloquent voice of reason in human rights to date.
One problem in the world today is that the younger generations have not lived through such struggles. They seem spoiled and demanding. Of course they can never truly translate through our descriptive reminiscences the same understanding that comes from living in those times. That is the problem.
While my generation worked to succeed, we somehow failed to instill in our children the compassion we learned through the struggles of the Vietnam, civil rights, and Watergate eras. That is what has led to the selfishness of the younger generation. That is why our children have little or no interest in social issues or politics.
That is also a reason for the growth in numbers and strength of the Republican Party. Somehow the Republican Party has tapped into selfishness and twisted it into a virtue. I find nothing virtuous about cutting social programs for the truly needy and repeating a mantra that denounces Democrats as "welfare lovers" who are lazy and expect the government to take care of them.
I find nothing virtuous about excusing lying during the days of Iran/Contra, but then making "lying to the American people" their mantra during the Clinton impeachment. I find nothing virtuous about denouncing Clinton/Gore in every conceivable fashion and then giving Bush a free pass on many of the same transgressions.
Hey stupid, it's the hypocrisy! It's the hypocrisy! It's the hypocrisy! Hypocrisy is the problem. It is my number one complaint with the Republican Party. Not a day goes by that I don't find them to be hypocritical on some level. I must have some huge hypocrisy meter imbedded in my brain from all the exposure to those wonderful human beings in my family and my circle of friends.
Many readers write to me to ask what they can do, what can they contribute to the struggle that America is facing today. I confess. I don't have the answer. I only have my answer. I became so frustrated, so livid over what I saw happening in America during the Clinton impeachment and the 2000 election that I decided I had to do something.
I began to write. When I found no outlet for my writings in the mainstream media (surprise!), I turned to progressive sites on the Internet. BuzzFlash was my first choice and much to my amazement, they consented to publish my very first article. They have published every article I have written and I am deeply grateful. In some small way I hope I am making a difference. I realize I am preaching to the choir, but maybe the choir needs a sermon to inspire and motivate them every now and then.
So, if you feel the need to do something to help America in these divisive and often frustrating times, I suggest you find your niche. We can all do something. We all have a talent. Yours may be Internet activism, fund raising, writing, phone calling, knocking on doors, speaking, stuffing mailers, or just donating your time or money. Whatever your talent is, just do it and don't be intimidated. Jump in the fray and have a great time knowing that you are actively participating in democracy at work!
I am having a great time for those reasons. I write for love of country. I am not compensated. Everything I write comes from deep within my heart. It comes from my interest in American history and the eloquence of our founding fathers, from the American struggles of the past thirty-five years, but most especially from the wonderful family it was my fortune to be born into.
For that reason this column is dedicated to my family and to my dear country of birth, America, both of whom I love with all my heart. I owe them both for everything that I am. They are my personal inspirations!
* * *
Rebecca Knight is a native Tennessean, who grew up in Nashville, and currently resides in a small town near Nashville. Ms. Knight's political awareness evolved through the civil rights movement, the Vietnam era, the Watergate era, and the cold war. The debacle of the 2000 election increased her sense of responsibility for political activism. You may contact Rebecca Knight via e-mail at tennessee_gal655@yahoo.com.
© 2002 by Rebecca Knight
