The Single Story, Politicians and You

Yesterday while traveling back home after meeting with a friend I turned the dial to 91.5, National Public Radio. Fresh Air was on with guests Michael Kranish and Scott Helman who co-authored, “The Real Romney.” The book describes how Romney is “a complicated man who also loves dichotomies ... strong versus weak, stagnation versus prosperity, leadership versus drift." The authors told a story about the generosity of the Romney family and then told one about their greediness. They told a story about how Mitt was well respected in the Mormon Church and another of how he abused his power. As the interview continued, I tuned out.

I am not a registered Republican but I found myself wanting to defend Mitt Romney as I listened. Isn’t Romney’s life just like mine in the sense that it is shadow and light? What is so abnormal or disconcerting about a person being both greedy and generous? Why is it scandalous that a person is both stagnant and prosperous?  Who hasn't at one time or another abused their position? Isn’t dichotomy the very essence of humanity; the thing that is true about all of us?

But, it seems that our culture, maybe even our world, is hungry for a single story. We want to hear that Mitt, Newt and Barack are saints or serial killers. It's much more comforting to believe that Newt Gingrich is a womanizer than it is to believe that he has some good traits and some not so good traits. We don't like hearing about the gray tones of a person's life. We really don't like thinking about our gray tones. In our quest to get our need for comfort met, we trap people into lying. We lie to ourselves. We want consistent records for others, everything must line up, there can be no dichotomies. But we want grace for ourselves when we realize how messy our lives have become. I have yet to meet a person with a consistent life. Clergy who sometimes rent pornos? Yep. It happens.

Human development guarantees inconsistencies. As we hopefully grow in our consciousness,  our views change, our beliefs change, and therefore our decisions change. What we stood so firmly on 10 years ago, we may not stand on today. It's growth and progress, or decline and descent.

Today I listened to a TED talk on the danger of believing a single story. A Nigerian woman, Chimamanda Adichie explained how vulnerable we are to stories and how believing a single story can be the basis of all kinds of biases. Consider the single story that is so often told about the homeless? They are lazy. What is the single story that is told about inner city black youth? They are gang members. What is the story that you tell yourself about the person you don't get along with? I would almost guarantee that you've concocted a single story of that person and it has formed a strong bias that separates you from him or her.

I grew up in Northern New Mexico in the midst of nine Native American Reservations. As a white kid, I came to realize that there was a single story being told about White people. We were robbers. We robbed the water and the land and someday we would take over. One summer, armed Native American gunmen were posted at the irrigation canals (acequias) that wound through our valley. The gunmen shut off the water that fed white and hispanic landowner's crops. Some people were shot and killed. A coalition was formed and bumper stickers were made. "El Agua es La Vida....Let's share it." 

The white people told a single story about the Native Americans, too. Our story was, "they are greedy." Most of my friends were Native Americans and it was really only a few people who told the single story of the white people. But, the younger generation didn't really buy into it. As a teenager I decided to attend the feast days at the reservations and what I discovered was villages with beautiful traditions, amazing food, and abundant generosity. At one reservation, San Ildefonso, I visited a friend who sat me down at the table inside of their adobe house and I didn't get up for 3 hours. Plate after plate of food came my way, women pinched my cheeks. I was accepted. The single story wasn't true.

Do we really need to look back at all of the records, receipts, interviews, signed bills, opinions and soundbites to try to find the one story of our candidates lives. Presidential candidates aside, do we recognize the danger of doing this to each other? What is the one story you believe about Christians? Or atheists? Or Muslims? Or the LGBTQ community? Do you tell yourself one story about your wife, husband, girlfriend or boyfriend? If there is only one story, it's a lie.

One of my friends wrote a book about looking at your life as a story. I confess, I didn't read the book entirely. But, I watched the book come together and read several chapters before the book was published. At some point, he said, you have to decide what kind of story you are living. Here, pick one:

1. Quest
2. Adventure
3. Pursuit
4. Rescue
5. Escape
6. Revenge
7. The Riddle
8. Rivalry
9. Underdog
10. Temptation
11. Metamorphosis
12. Transformation
13. Maturation
14. Love
15. Forbidden Love
16. Sacrifice
17. Discovery
18. Wretched Excess
19. Ascension
20. Descension

I would assert that you could take these 20 types of stories, and there are more if you care for a longer list, and easily say that each might be the title of a chapter in the book of your life. In the end, it's a beautifully messy story.  It's hundreds of stories woven together that form the tapestry of your life.

It would be nice if one of the candidates would come out with an ad like this:  "I'm Wade Trimmer and I'm running for president of the United States. I don't deserve your vote but I'm asking for it. I don't know all of the answers to the predicaments we find ourselves in but I will search for good answers. If you look at my life, you'll see many inconsistencies. I almost divorced my wife a few years ago. I had an anger problem that nearly broke us apart. I smoked a lot of weed in high school and inhaled deeply every time. I've left my faith several times but have come back to it. I may leave it again. Some people love me and some people hate me. I don't recycle as much as I could. On a few occasions I did not pick up my dogs poop at the public park. Once I dented a persons car in a parking lot and I didn't leave a note. In my younger days I bounced a few checks. I think you can all relate. I'll do whatever I can to serve my country and I'm sure I'll fail at many things. I need your help."

I'd vote for someone that understands that there is not a singular story that describes their life. I think that person could actually affect change.