No one knows where I’m coming from… and no one knows completely where you’re coming from either… when we say anything at all. At any given time, we could be saying what we’re saying out of spite, or because we wholeheartedly believe what we’re saying. We never know. One of my students, Angela Terrell, someone I taught in the first grade who is now a grown woman, once wrote a piece here on ArrowheadOne about racism. She said this about one of her high school experiences when 911 happened:
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“Our teacher was an Arab woman and she felt the need to explain to us that her people weren’t like that. Many of us didn’t know the difference between Arabs and Muslims; we looked at them as one in the same. She shouldn’t have had to explain the actions of those who look or sound like her in order to justify who she was, or which side she was on.”
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Angela also said,
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“I can’t make up for every negative stereotype attributed to my race nor do I expect white people to take up that ancestral fight. They can’t erase what’s happened.”
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Yes, we here at ArrowheadOne live in a vacuum. Do I believe that’s really possible? Not really, but I hope we can do that so we can all live side by side, peacefully. How do I know that’s even possible? Because some of our writers, and myself, feel completely different on some of the most basic human and political issues, and yet, here we are, working side by side, peacefully, to bring you Chiefs content on a daily basis.
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Peace. That word means so much to me. I once wrote a song about it. It’s called, “Peace by Peace” and here are the words and music.
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I know, I know, it sounds like a bit of a funeral march. What can I say, it was a long time ago.
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When I was downloading the picture of the vacuum you see in the feature graphic for this piece, I was reminded of the time I used to clean restaurants at night back in 1978, including some hoity toity establishments down on the Plaza. I remember one of my co-workers, who said he could see me doing that the rest of my life. Of course, I knew I would never be doing that. Now, it just seems funny that he even said that to me. However, at that time, I recall being rather emotional in response to what he had just said.
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I had already graduated from Northern Arizona University with a BS in Elementary Education and had run a private school for two years so the idea of remaining on a night cleaning crew was preposterous to me. My wife was pregnant with my one and only child and I just saw that time as a short hiatus from teaching, which was my first love. Another love of mine was writing and I used to brag that in high school and college, I never got less than a B+ on any paper I ever wrote. The reality is… while I could write, my test taking skills sucked big time. Nevertheless, I made it through and was even invited to join Kappa Delta PI, an Honor Society in Education.
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After 6 more years of running another private school — and this time it was a huge success — I moved on to teach for 11 years in the Kansas City Missouri inner-city (pictured on the feature image). After KCMSD I moved with my 2nd wife to the Dallas, Texas area in 1997 (near to where my mother grew up) and I taught in a suburb for 20 years until I retired. My last 22 years teaching were spent in a computer lab.
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Working with kids my whole life has given me a unique perspective. One that includes making sure each person receives the recognition they deserve. Some kids want and need stability and emotional support… and I could give them that. Some kids needed and wanted structure and Love… and I could give them that as well. Most people want to be heard. That doesn’t change when we grow up. That’s certainly a big reason we all share each day at ArrowheadOne, we want to be heard.
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There’s a child in all of us. Even if we say we’re grown up now… that child is still there. Wanting. Needing. Hoping. Who among us doesn’t hope the Chiefs win the next Super Bowl? It’s one of the reasons I love the offseason: it’s a time of hope.
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So, why not admit that part of what the NFL represents is political? I could certainly do that, but if we do focus on that, we’re going to spend all of our time debating those issues instead of talking about what’s actually happening on the field with the Chiefs. If we do bring the political front and center… some people will be so put off that they’ll never come back. Is that a bad thing? I say yes.
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In every school district I ever worked in, there have always been opening day ceremonies for teachers including a national guest speaker. Sometimes they’d be funny, and sometimes they’d be succinct, in each case attempting to inspire the masses of teachers in our district. One such speaker said something I’ll never forget: “Don’t make your children walk the plank.” What did she mean by that? If you sent a student to the office, or another teacher’s room for discipline, or even if you gave them a time out in the hallway for 10 minutes because they were being disruptive… you made them, walk the plank. You’ve kicked them out of your room, out of your life, and you no longer will have the ability to influence them.
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I must admit, I have banned certain bloggers for their comments on AO. I realize that some people can in no way limit what they say. They’ll say ANYTHING they want. If someone does that and crosses the line consistently, I can’t be responsible for what they’re saying. I won’t be responsible for what they’re saying. However, if there’s any way to make repairs to our relationship, I’ll do that and continue to be open to that. Walking the plank… for adults… is a two-way street.
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So many of us have felt like we only want to commiserate with those who feel just like we do. It’s natural to feel that way. However, it’s also what may be wrong with our country and the world we live in, the world we’ve created for ourselves. I say, it’s natural to feel that way because, it’s one of the reasons why we come to AO every day, to share our mutual enjoyment of the Chiefs. I grew up outside of L.A. and was originally a Rams and Dodger fan. While I still like the Dodgers, I can’t stand the Rams ever since they left St. Louie.
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Could there be real problems living in a vacuum? Sure, we could all be lounging on the Titanic deck chairs ignoring the fact that the ship is going down. The reality is, we’re all going down in the end. For me the choice is simple: do I focus on the fact that the ship is destined to go down, or do I enjoy myself in the process? Now, I’m in no way suggesting that we all go out and get bombed or start smoking Mary Jane 24/7… but it has always been a choice for me: do I wish my daughter to “Be safe” as she walks out the front door… or do I say, “Have fun!” whenever she leaves. I choose the fun… and I visualize those in my life as being happy… not worrying about them.
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One of our AO bloggers wrote to me recently and said, “Racism is not political. It’s a matter of human decency and mutual respect.” While I couldn’t agree more, I also recognize that I have been on a road to self discovery during my life, and no one knows where I’m at along that path… just like no one knows where anyone else is at along that path. So, why not just state that I feel that way too? Even in an AO blog? I recall one time while working in the inner-city, in a parent teacher’s meeting, that I said, “I don’t see color, I love all my students equally,” to which a grandfather in attendance stood up and shared with me, “You dang well better see the color of my child’s skin, because that’s all anyone will ever see when they look at him, for the rest of his life.”
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Of course, I thought he was wrong at the time. Now? I can see that I may have been the blind one. The racist one. Maybe. Perhaps. My favorite person in the world, my cousin Shannon Paula, who has worked as a nurse her whole life… and… is married to a black man. I love him, and he loves me. Period. So, could I be racist? Sure, I could be. I don’t know the whole story of anyone else’s life… or there thought life. No one does.
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That’s an important point. No one does. The internet is a place where we jump so quickly to judgement.
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I don’t want to be part of a systemic racism problem we have here. Or any racism at all. I thought – erroneously so – that the racism issue had been resolved in the 1960s, when I was growing up in California. My head is not In the sand here. I attempt to do my best to treat all with dignity. I do my job, and I pray that others will do their best as well.
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Could I be wrong for taking ArrowheadOne to a place where we turn off the vacuum? Sure. I once helped put my second wife through Seminary and she read a book by Joseph Yoder that pre-supposes that everything that Jesus did was political. So, should I be expecting everyone to come to AO and not feel the way they feel about those issues? No. How can I? This view of Jesus is a pervasive one, and one I agree with. Jesus also said, “Pray without ceasing” (1st Thessalonians, 5:17) and under that theology, every thought we think, is a prayer. Consider that for a moment… every single thing we think… is a prayer.
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I just pray that we can all get along on ArrowheadOne. If not, I realize that nothing lasts forever, and we can put an end to our website, if need be. In the meantime, I focus on the things I love… My wife… My daughter and her family… My friends… Writing… Creativity… Teaching others how to write, and… the Chiefs of course.
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Some may say that I am blind. That may be. I don’t have all the answers for everyone. I only have the answers for me, and at times I’m not so sure about that.
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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