Beliefs and the Big Picture
Note: Although this message discusses aspects of the presidential election, I have no interest in debating the merits of each of the candidates and their positions.
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No matter which candidate you supported in the U.S. presidential election, I think you would agree that Tuesday night was an important moment in American and world history.
I learned some very valuable lessons on Tuesday night when Barack Obama was declared the next President of the United States. Prior to November 4, I underestimated the impact that an Obama victory would have on this country and throughout the world.
While I realized that the election of an African-American as president would be a very significant event for the United States, I underestimated how I would feel and what I would see when the event actually happened.
This is a monumental event in terms of race relations in the United States. Virtually everyone in this country, whether or not they voted for Obama, was touched by the tears of joy shed by African-Americans and whites.
I realize there is still widespread racism in the U.S., just as there is racism in every country. We haven’t reached a perfect world where everyone is perceived as equal. We are far from it.
But on November 4, 2008 the U.S. made huge strides in race relations. African-Americans, in huge numbers, appreciated the whites who voted for Obama. Although white people could never understand the full depth of the feelings being experienced by African-Americans, the whites could feel the intense emotions expressed by African-Americans – and it was deeply touching.
I also underestimated the response this would generate all around the world, where people have been wildly enthusiastic about the election results. So many people saw the U.S. in a different light – in an instant.
Why didn’t I see this coming? Why didn’t I realize the monumental significance of electing Barack Obama as president of the United States?
It’s because I was caught in the limited perception of my beliefs – and the emotions generated by those beliefs — during this election campaign. I was focused on who I was FOR and even more so, on who and what I was AGAINST. This blinded me in many ways to seeing the bigger picture.
I think the media missed the boat here as well. While they would occasionally say “this would be the first African-American ever to be elected president”, the words were uttered more as a statistic and did not have a strong emotional impact. Nobody emphasized that this would result in whites and African-Americans celebrating in joy together and finding a connection that has never been seen in this country.
Throughout the campaign, I didn’t hear media reports that predicted how people around the world would be dancing in the streets and that they would see America in a more positive light. Instead the media focused on the attacks each candidate and his supporters made on the other candidate and his supporters.
I think many of us became embroiled in a war of BELIEFS and lost the big picture. That certainly happened to me. Beliefs can drag us into a dark hole where we get carried away with right and wrong – and winning and losing. Emotions run rampant.
Many people told me during the presidential campaign that they were getting so emotionally involved and agitated during the campaign that they had to stop watching and listening to the media reports. They had to stop discussing the election with friends and co-workers. And many of these people are calm, open-minded people. Yet they were taken out of their normal personalities while getting over-invested in their beliefs and emotions. When the mind gets very engaged, watch out!
Many people idolize beliefs and often use this quote: “If you don’t believe in something, you will fall for anything.” I am finding the opposite to be true. When you operate from that place of no beliefs (or no attachment to beliefs), you will feel a natural love and compassion. That is our true nature.
We need to be taught to hate and judge others. It doesn’t come naturally. Someone must feed us this belief and we then accept it.
And yet, there is a paradox here. You could persuasively argue that Barack Obama’s beliefs propelled his candidacy and inspired others. Thus, he used the power of belief for a very positive purpose. I would agree.
Beliefs can serve us in many ways.
Beliefs can distract us and drag us into highly charged emotional states where we become intolerant and miss the big picture.
Come to your own conclusions as to how beliefs serve you… and how they may lead you astray or limit your view of the world.
– Jeff Keller
© 2008