Forget the Past and Envision the Future

There comes a moment ... sometimes it's a flicker, sometimes a fire ... when the walls of the world feel too close, too rigid, too unfair. And in that moment, something stirs. A pulse of rebellion. A whisper of change. A call to do something bigger than ourselves.

The dream of equality is not new. It’s been shouted from podiums, inked onto parchment, stitched into banners, and painted onto protest signs. It has been a dream for those who could not dream aloud and carried in the hearts of those who refused to accept ‘the way things are.’ But still, people march. Still, people speak. Still, people fight. Because despite progress, inequality lingers like a shadow that refuses to fade.

Today, I shine a light on a new perspective that will help to induce changes in your life in ways you probably thought were not possible. I hope this inspires you in some way . . .

It's alright for you to see injustice. It's alright for you to desire things to be different and to see it all different ... but every time you look backward to see all the people, the data, statistics and the things that haven't come along into the dream you have envisioned for your life and those you love, you defy your own dream and that is what's hurting you the most. You're stunting the very forward motion that fuels your own personal life journey.

Laws are the bones of a society. They dictate who has access, who has rights, and who is left knocking at the door. History has clearly proven that laws are not neutral. They have been used to segregate, suppress, and silence. And yet, history has also proven that laws can be rewritten. Jim Crow fell. Marriage equality rose. Women stepped into voting booths. Walls that once seemed unbreakable crumbled under the weight of those who refused to stand still.

But what about now? What about the laws that still tip the scales against people of color, LGBTQIA+ individuals, immigrants, those with disabilities, and the underserved? What about wage gaps, systemic bias, voting and immigration restrictions, healthcare access, and the right to simply exist without fear?

Stop! Stop! Stop!

Stop looking for evidence that doesn't support your vision forward. Every time you say (or think) things like:

• We are among the 11 million Americans that can't get married.

• Our relationship isn't legally recognized by the USA.

• The Pope campaigns and says our relationships are disordered.

• 34 states in the USA have established a state constitutional amendment that prohibits our relationships from ever being recognized.

• In most state elections, 60% of people think I am immoral.

Every time, you count up what's gone wrong, you split yourself. You split your mindset, your thoughts, your emotions and your guidance forward and there you are, STUCK, lamenting over all that is not aligned with your beautifully envisioned dream.

Consider this . . .

John-Michael Scurio

"If we want to change the world, we must first change the way we focus our thoughts forward, not backward." /John-Michael Scurio

You have a magnificent vision as a result of what you've lived up to now, in fact, you were born to live in this contrast to give birth to that vision and that is why it feels so big to you.

Just focus yourself and your own life forward. Live it. Be in the moment. Feel it. Bask in it. Start living right now as if you are in that very dream-like life that you've envisioned.

Hey, I'm not blaming you or anyone for being mad about all this stuff, but the choice to be mad is also your choice to own. It is your choice to live in an emotionally mad state of being rather than being in your own, personally created state of bliss. Because let's face it, that beautiful state of bliss ... that is what you envision, isn't it?

Welcome to Eureka Springs - our beautiful state of bliss!

Here in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, we see the headlines. We hear the news. We voted. We know what is going on all around us, but we choose to focus on our life as a bubble of love. A place unlike any other. A haven for all walks of life to experience true community. A place where misfits fit. A place of belonging. Inclusion. Love.

Eurekans live this dream of equality every day and live blissfully in each moment. Sure, we know what is happening out there. But what good does it do to spend our days ruminating, blaming, fearing, hating? Instead, we live each day with the dream that we envision. We relish in gratitude that we are alive and that our life journey brought us here to Eureka Springs.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." /Gandhi

When I started this blog in 2019, my primary focus grew from the pure joy that I was experiencing as a new resident here and because the community and the experience of living here has been nothing but joyful -- it is that very joy that carries me forward on my personal life journey. My choices are mine. I choose bliss. I choose to be happy. I choose to live in the moment. I choose to look forward. I never forget to remember the future.

Since the beginning of time, most movements have been born from the hands of everyday people. Not politicians. Not bureaucrats. But teachers, nurses, artists, workers, students ... people who know what it means to be overlooked, undervalued, and unheard.

Sylvia Rivera & Marsha P. Johnson | Under the umbrella of the Stonewall Movement in 1969 in New York City

History’s great movements did not begin in boardrooms. They began in diners and churches, in living rooms, and school halls, in the streets and on the steps of courthouses.

They began because someone, somewhere, refused to live in the past and to step forward, push forward, dream forward.

There is no waiting for ‘the right moment’ my friends. There is no hoping that someone else will take the first step. The time to act is now. This is YOUR life.

MY BLISS: Resident Blogger, John-Michael with partner, Jeff and fur baby, Kirby.

I challenge you to break out of complacency and squash apathy. Recognize injustice and take concrete steps to demand change by living your best life, your way, right now as if that perfect dream-like state that you envision is already here all around you.

Because, my friends, guess what? It is already here, all around you.❤️