Paige Thomas DeHart

In the early days of covid-19, there was much talk of heroes in public service and a sense of camaraderie; that we were all in this thing together. Now, with the political lines being once again drawn: the collective focus is to mask or not to mask? What a waste of energy on a ridiculous question. When did normal become insane?

In the early days of covid, we all had a sense that nature herself was telling us what she needs. For a moment, it seemed as if we had all tapped into our collective unity. But here’s the deal, the collective unity is real, but being aware of it; not so much.

The tragedy in Minneapolis has given us a brutal example of how apathy can be fatal. So, in this time, we have living examples of both heroes and villains in public service. The only difference between them is the awareness of the servant’s heart. Trust me, if you are in public service without that awareness, the front lines will chew you up and spit you out. Don’t tread in darkness without the light; it will engulf you.

But I want to talk about the heroes; those among us who truly live in service to others. They are everywhere: they adhere to a code of ethics that mandates that they do no harm; that they treat others with dignity and respect; that they protect others from abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

I don’t have a current story that illustrates the beauty of our local heroes, but two pertinent stories stand out from some years ago. In 2014, my daughter was on the streets and using meth. Her lifestyle was terrifying, and I was out of my mind for over six months because of it. I was later to discover that the police force from the Northside of Fort Worth had watched over her and protected her while she was on the streets. That’s what heroes do.

A year later, my daughter was shot in the head and dumped on a dead-end road. She survived the shooting but spent her first night in ICU as a Jane Doe; with minimal chance of survival. My first night in the hospital, the ICU nurse shared with me that he had been with my daughter her first night in ICU. He told me that he kept telling her that he knew that she had family that loved her; that he knew we would find her. That’s what a hero does.

I say all of that to say this: it’s time for the hero within to rise; there’s one inside of all of us. It’s time for the rebels with foolish causes to pick up their torches and become heroes for the cause of kindness to earth and her inhabitants. At this point, it doesn’t matter who becomes president because the government is not and never has been on the shoulders of Washington.

It’s time for us all to live the values we stand for that we may together create a “new” normal that’s actually sane. It’s time to stop the madness and wake up! If we don’t do the work of awakening, we’re already wearing masks and don’t even know it.

Namaste 🕉✝️☯️
Paige DeHart, BS, LCDC