The self-worth of all people is mirrored in the attitude of their environment. We learn to see how we see ourselves, by how we are seen. When a person realizes the contribution that they are, just as they are ~ that’s when they have arrived at the source of their True Self.
Self-worth IS, and needs no demonstration or proving. We are in touch with it when we simply see the intrinsic worth of another human being.
In so-called advanced cultures, we have lost much of the connection to creative or authentic aliveness ~ our real self expression. We have lost touch with who we are outside of the doing and the having. Doing and having have become the standard for self-worth in material cultures. To “work” for self-worth in the “doing and having” sense, is to gain a self-worth based on human standards originating in a predominantly material focused society. It is a temporary bandage for lack of intrinsic self-worth – which is the true source of suffering. It has been said that men have to do good to feel good, but women have to feel good before they can do good. I believe that the united soul of humanity doesn’t have to do anything to feel good. We just have to be in touch with our innate self-worth. We will then create a world that truly mirrors our greatness.
We need to shift our focus. Change our perception. Less ‘advanced’ cultures have much to contribute to us. They are reminders of our authentic selves. They are keeping the flame of human spirit alive.
I am questioning an attitudinal imbalance between dependency/interdependency, and a lack of recognition of worth and contribution for those we perceive to be ‘lacking’ based on western culture and its attempt to “help”elevate their standard of living. I am putting forth that there is a deeper underlying causal root that needs to be addressed and emphasized as the primary focus for realizing self-worth, and that is in being seen, not for what you do, or accomplish, or have, ~ but by seeing and experiencing our intrinsic selves.
Yes, we as human beings have to eat, and need shelter in order to survive. But survival issues and self-worth are not necessarily mutually contingent upon each other. The ability to feed and clothe oneself can be a temporary placebo to booster one’s self-worth but it is not lasting. We all grow old, and we all at some point must learn the opposing lesson of accepting dependency. True and lasting self-worth is the ability to see and embrace ourselves just as we are, despite age, incapacitation, and debilitating circumstances. Otherwise, self-worth is only available to those of us with the physical and mental capabilities to do and to have (entitlement). Self-worth is not an isolated issue encompassing only the poor, the indigenous, and women. It is a human epidemic.
Making a shift from the split victim/savior mentality, and focus instead on, that ALL people are contributions to humanity, is paramount in retrieving our human worth as a whole. By opening ourselves to the idea that those of our global family who are perceived as lacking ~ but as having much to share, to teach, and to contribute, ~ goes a very long way in granting our own selves ~ self-respect, and self-worth and self-empowerment.
A Project:
The motivation for this project is to give the world the gift of experiencing people in their authentic self-expression. Perhaps in recognizing and appreciating the authentic self-expression of others, we will rediscover parts of our own discarded selves, ~ a spiritual renewal. By recognizing that others, whom we normally relate to as needing help, are important contributors to the goal of human connectivity and oness ~ this is the real contribution to sustaining all of humanity’s self-worth.
Folk art cultures have much to contribute to us. They are reminders of our authentic Selves. They are keeping the flame of human spirit alive.
Folk art is an effect of authentic being. We all live from the same heart of the folk artist. Most of us have simply lost touch with this. Folk art crosses over all lines of separation – age, sex, socioeconomic, and cultural. It is an expression of our common human experience, rather than an individualistic self-expression. Folk art carries the soul of all humanity, not a separate identity. It is the expression of organic aliveness that people of all ages and persuasions, and bridging distance and time, ~ feel a connection to.
Folk art it is the vehicle by which we want to illustrate our shared humanity, by capturing a glimpse of the spirit of the people creating it. We want to emphasize our commonality and unity, not the split relationship of victims and saviors. We want to contribute to expanding the understanding and experience of “folk art”. We want to flesh-out its true nature as an integral expression of all humanity. We believe this is a gift to the rest of the world, as a reminder of who we are.
The measure of our commonality resides in humanity’s expressions of joy, love, peace, freedom, and authenticity or true self-expression. This language is universal, and this is what we hope to capture and share from the lives of those that contribute to our global family in these ways.
The interdependency of the human spirit, and worldly material concerns needs to be balanced, so that all of us know that we are equally contributing, and equally of value, and equally a part of the whole.
Our intent is to address and instigate measures to reinstate the intrinsic self-worth of humanity. Our goal is to balance the yin and yang, spirit and matter, that make-up the wholeness of what we are. Presently, the contribution of “spirit” is being overshadowed by the emphasis on the material. We need to give equal value, and regard, and voice, to those cultures whose roots lie in spiritual contribution. We propose to create a series of media essays, which capture the human spirit depicted by “everyman”, using folk artists and other soul based expressions as the thematic vehicle. These will be distributed by international non-profit organizations for purposes of promotion to shift the victim/savior paradigm to one of interdependent and equal contribution by all people.
With true self-worth intact, creative people will find creative ways to live and be in this world.
Passing Through the Eye of the Needle 