Few and far between are the neighbourhoods that extend the extra effort and shovel just one property more. Divisions and separations clear and tangible.
The movie Crash is a poignant, powerful film that tells the story of lives ripped apart through divisions of race. The stark depiction of a reality of harsh boundaries between people. The line between me and you is solid, heavy and cruel. Fear erases the possibility of "us" without mercy and with deep sadness. Shoveling snow may seem like a stretch to the racial divisions of Los Angeles but big problems start with small problems that never get fixed.
Simple, small steps can bridge the divisions in my neighbourhood, in my city, in my country, in my world. Be it a unified thought or action. Without efforts to come together, to expand the borders of "me" there is a trajectory for people to be as the narrator at the beginning of Crash states "... we crash into each other so we can feel something". Divisions bury the feelings we most desire...love, happiness, joy...
Shovel your neighbours walk...literally or metaphorically. Your mind, heart and body will be stronger as a result...so too will be your neighbours. Connect rather than crash.
I try to expand the borders, but I sometimes find that they are patrolled very closely by the other party. Once I realize that the border is closed (after a couple of attempts) I turn around and expand in a different direction. Sad that it happens, but it's reality.
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