Consistency and Growth Amid Oppression
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I don't share memes with Liberation Martial Arts (LMA) practitioners often, but this one is worth the exception.
Consistency is not a straight line. It is non-linear, non-uniform, and devoid of an idealized form. Progress is not linear, non-uniform, and devoid of an idealized form. We, too, are non-linear, non-categorical, and lack an idealized form.
We just are.
Oppression, on the other hand, imposes linear expectations, idealized forms, and uniformity. Perfection, uniformity, and linear progression are myths that oppression sells us as natural laws where we are unnatural if we don't conform.
It's crucial to acknowledge that our reality is imperfect and shaped by the oppressive conditions we've inherited. The only way for us to be fixed, uniform, and perfect is for the world to be fixed, uniform, and perfect, and in both scientific and philosophical terms, a static, inert, uniform world is a non-living one. Perfection means death, whereas life is messy. Oppression robs us of life, time, and energy and then blames us for it.
The image above depicts the reality of consistency in an oppressive world—that's real. It's a stark contrast to the idealized uniform expectations imposed on us. Oppression devalues our reality or convinces us that our current state is a voluntary choice rather than a material reality.
Oppression isolates us and makes us believe we are alone and act alone. It decontextualizes our contributions as individual rather than as part of a whole. But the truth is, if we, as a group, bring water every day, there will be a steady stream. If one of us is lacking, others can step in. The West makes us think of ourselves in isolation—as trees without a forest—when we belong to a community. Otherwise, we wouldn't be here. We are our community's consistency.
Consider the tree, particularly a sapling. There is no steady, predictable way a sapling gets water. A sapling's journey is not a smooth, predictable one. That's what's consistent with its reality. It can be damaged, wither, revive, lose branches, grow new ones, fold over, and aim upward. A sapling is rooted and flexible. It bends around obstacles and reaches for the sky.
We tend to fixate on the surface: what gets done, what's achieved, and the visible results. But we often overlook the depth of our roots. Despite the visible ups and downs—the non-linear progress—if we are consistent, our roots continue to grow, even if there is no apparent growth above the surface. What truly matters is what lies beneath the soil, in the mess.
When we stretch our roots deep and strong and make our bodies adaptable, even the fiercest storms can't knock us down. And if they do, that's alright because we are members of a forest. The next sapling will continue on. And so it goes.
Keep trying, keep failing, stumble, and rise again. When you're tired, take a break. When you've recovered, stand up. Consistency is collective. Even if one tree falls, the forest endures. The forest is consistent.
We are here because of our ancestors. We are consistent.
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