Symptoms Vs Cause

#ImStaying and our members have, over the past few months, been accused of “having our heads in the sand”, “looking at the world through rose-tinted glasses” and “singing Kumbaya” while the country slips into total disarray. There seems to be a common belief that, by choosing to look at the positive (of which there is an abundance) instead of focusing on the negative (of which there is also an abundance), we somehow try to blind our members against the realities we face as South Africans on a daily basis.

The word ‘reality’ is an interesting one, given that each of us views the world through our own filters. Our ‘reality’ is made up by the total sum of our experiences in life which shapes the way in which we interpret things.

“It takes practice and daily repetition in order to achieve a sense of inner peace”

If you have lived a sheltered life you would look at the world as a happy and warm place whereas, if you have had a tough upbringing fraught with challenges and hardship, it stands to reason that you would look at the world around you and your existence in it, in an entirely different way.

The one truth that exists in both these cases is that we have the ability to shift our thinking at any given moment, and by doing so, shift our perception and how we interact in our environment. Just like going to the gym to increase our muscle density and overall health and well being, training your thought and emotional responses become ritualistic. Grabbing a 15-minute meditation session as you open your eyes instead of reaching for your phone for a daily news update, or taking a moment to appreciate what you have instead of spitting venom at our politicians, can make a significant difference in your outlook.

It takes practice and daily repetition in order to achieve a sense of inner peace, but once we manage to cross over into a space of positive thinking, something magical begins to occur in our lives. Not only do we start to look for ways to help others, but we actively start to look for things that make us feel good. Because of this, our relationships with the people around us begin to strengthen. The most powerful shift we can experience is one that sees us viewing the challenges we are faced with, in a different light.

When your state of mind begins to move away from one of victimization and towards one of self-empowerment, then the way in which you begin to process daily obstacles also starts to adapt. We start to look at things from a solutions base, and rather than throwing up our hands when things get tough, we dig our heels in and process ways to overcome hurdles. Scientific studies confirm this and a host of reputable learning institutions around the world are currently deep-diving the effects of kindness and the impact it has on our minds and emotional well being

At a singular level, this is incredibly powerful, but at a group level it becomes atomic. When a group of 1.1 million people start to share the same mindset and act on it accordingly, the power of this is greatly amplified and we become virtually unstoppable as a collective.

“The time has come my brothers and sisters to join hands, to open our hearts and to heal”

If we apply the opposite train of thought in large numbers however, something quite different and incredibly destructive starts to happen. Using anger to fight aggression begets more anger and we can see the proof of this in a number of groups that have popped up recently, all with a similar ethos. “Fight Against”, “Shut Down”, “Take Back” all speak to incredibly aggressive methods in order to try and get people to pay attention, and although the intentions behind them may be noble, the outcomes remain the same.

If we hope to fix our current situation we cannot fight against the symptoms. We have to find a solution to address the problems, and this can only be done with the right intentions, the right mindset, and positive action, because each destructive symptom is born from a root cause.

Crime is directly linked to poverty. Poverty is directly linked to inequality and a poor performing economy. In our case, a poor performing economy links back to crime. Violence is directly linked to a lack of education – by addressing these issues, we also begin to address the symptoms, and over time things will change making life better for all affected.

We cannot do this alone as the general public. We cannot expect the private sector to handle it while we know that the government hasn’t managed the task on its own either. If we can find a way to stand together and work out a clear plan and strategy, and if each of us is willing to roll up our sleeves and play our part by using positive action reinforced by a positive mindset, there is simply no way that we as a nation will fail.

Each of us needs to make a choice. Are we going to play the victim and flee, or are we going to empower ourselves and face the challenges we come across head-on? Even if we fail we will at least know, with certainty, that we did our level best, together and we can hold our heads up high. But if we succeed, we would have rewritten history and broken every chain that held us back as a nation. We will have become a shining example to the rest of the world and a true testimony to what we can achieve when we stand together.

“If we succeed, we would have rewritten history and broken every chain that held us back as a nation.”

The enemy we now face has no colour and sees no colour. It is relentless and it is heartless and it feeds on our division as a people. The only way to face it is to join hands irrespective of culture, race, gender, political alignment, and sexual preference. United we are the most formidable force and that is why it has worked so hard to steer us away from this realisation. Now that we know, there are no more excuses.

The time has come my brothers and sisters to join hands, to open our hearts and to heal. The time has come to take a leaf out of the Springboks book and plan for the day after our victory. We are down to the final minutes of the second half. What are WE going to do about it?