Equality and Equity have been on my mind lately.
When I think about equality, it seems so natural-why shouldn’t we all be ‘equal’? As a soul leading this really interesting, and very complicated, human life, I know that when a person’s 
perspective starts believing they are better or worse than another, it is borne out of pain.
We have all been there, and I would venture to guess that you who are reading this now have a kind heart, and you do your best to treat everyone with kindness. What I am exploring is something a little different-perhaps only by degrees. I am thinking of looking to others within a greater human system, and seeing how their needs may be different from their place in that system.
In the first session of Year/Level One, Nura Laird taught us about how to listen to each other. The principles are very practical, but have incredible effects. She taught us that we must try to empty ourselves, to really create space for the other. We must also sensitize ourselves to the sometimes minor cues that someone is in pain. They may have sticking points that even they aren’t ready to show, even when they choose to talk about it. We must hold those places with the most tender touch, and meet the person where they are. Truly, to find healing, we need recognition.
So there it is then, I suppose. Equity is creating ‘fairness’ by engaging with another person from their unique perspective, and perhaps arrange ourselves to be able to better view the world from their point of view-if only for a short time-to understand them just a little bit more. To walk with them for a little while, and help them remember what a beautiful miracle they really are (especially if they have heard a different message from the rest of the world).
As you are out there in the world, undoubtedly encountering many people who are different from you in a plethora of ways, remember we are-all of us-feeling through our own, specific human experience. The best thing we can do for ourselves, and for each other, is to try to listen and offer a moment of peace, and keep recognizing-and helping others recognize- the divine light that is inside each one of us.
