“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, love never fails.” - 1 Corinthians 13:7
Forgive What?
Although my posts have ranged from scientific to motivational, there is a huge elephant in the room to address today. Many of you, my dear readers, have been criticized for your beliefs. You have been othered and treated as less than human. You were not invited to birthday parties, weddings, Thanksgiving, or Christmas get togethers. You were not allowed to see your parents, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or friends. You were fired from your job because you refused an experimental product.
You were belittled, ostracized, and discriminated against on every front. You may have been fined or refused service for not wearing a mask or showing a vaccine card. You may have been unable to fly or use public transportation. You were treated as the Jews were in Nazi Germany before the holocaust started, as dirty, unclean, and diseased. You have been dehumanized and stripped of your rights and now many of those oppressors realize that they were wrong.
My Experience
I will never forget speaking at a local school board meeting. That day we had received news that the mask mandate would be lifted within a few days. I’m not sure why or how they can determine these dates ahead of time because we all know very little changes in a few days. On that day I did not wear a mask and when they tried to kick me out and a few others sitting with me, we spoke up that we have an exemption. Our state law does allow for mask exemptions, yet the mask Nazis did not want to admit this, and we do not have to disclose our personal medical information related to our exemption.
When it was my turn to speak and I approached the podium, a member of the school board stood up and walked to the opposite side of the room as if I had rabies. It was perfect because I spoke about the discrimination of students and school employees who were not vaccinated and recited the definition of othering. I used the very same book that all the school employees read for their diversity, equity, and inclusion training. The book titled, “Belonging Through a Culture of Dignity, The Keys to Successful Equity Implementation” by Cobb and Krownapple.
In this book, Chapter 6 is about distortions and obstacles to dignity. It goes on to define othering as “viewed, treated, and made to seem different in a way that ostracizes, denigrates, reduces, and dehumanizes (labels, objectifies, animalizes, etc.” pg. 122. It further discusses mistreatment, marginalization, and dismissal as violations of dignity.
I used this information to preface how on a very cold day while construction was ongoing and students had to eat outside, a teacher told her students that only the vaccinated could eat in her classroom. I also spoke about a member on the board who publicly stated she felt unvaccinated employees should be fined or jailed. I wish I were joking about this but I’m not.
How to Forgive
Now this may sound bitter but it’s not and I’m sure many of you have much worse stories about vaccine or mask discrimination than I have. I know that many of you have broken relationships with family and friends over different opinions on this issue. This is where the power of forgiveness is so important. Not forgiving is like poison to the soul but the only person it hurts is you. Forgiving others does not mean that we forget their actions, but it means that we choose to let it go and move on. It gives great peace and freedom to be able to let mistreatment go and it takes time and work to be able to do this.
One thing that helps is to remind yourself that they were lied to and do not want to accept that they were fooled. Even when it’s obvious that the experimental injections do not prevent infection, do not prevent transmission, do not reduce hospitalizations, are completely unethical in children, and carry significant risks. It’s obvious to see an abundance of vaccine injured people and an explosion of adult sudden death syndrome that perfectly correlates to the vaccine rollout.
Set an Example for Others
Now you may wonder if I have forgiven those who have wronged me. My immediate answer is “yes” but it’s been a process. I learned years ago that I needed to forgive those who have harmed me in serious ways, and I have been able to heal from trauma because of that. In my case, the vaccine discrimination is insignificant and has been easy to forgive. I also want to point out that one ophthalmologist attacked my credentials and emailed my bosses to get me fired from work for speaking out against the vaccines at a school board meeting.
I have forgiven her too and shocking surprise, I still have a job! She has moved on now, viciously attacking other conservatives in our community. The truth is I pity her and others like her because they do not know God and have no love in their hearts. Forgiveness can be an exceedingly difficult process but if you pray and ask Jesus to give you a heart of forgiveness it can be done and it’s the most freeing experience in the world. God bless!
References
Meeting Recordings: https://meetings.boardbook.org/Public/Organization/997
No recordings prior to May 17, 2022.
What a great post for parents to read. I highly recommend! https://margaretannaalice.substack.com/p/50-reasons-to-give-your-child-the
I’m not sure one can forgive when the violation is not even acknowledged. I do agree that it makes no sense to carry bitterness in your heart and mind. But forgiveness is a two way street