“Somehow we’ve weathered and witnessed a nation that isn’t broken, but simply unfinished.” – Amanda Gorman
I don’t watch a lot of the pomp and circumstance that accompanies political events. I’m more interested in what happens behind the scenes, but I had to witness the source of all the great quotes I saw today. All too often people value style over substance or image over reality, as evidenced by the performative brand of patriotism some exhibit while conducting themselves differently behind closed doors. Although poet laureate Amanda Gorman’s presentation of her “The Hill We Climb” poem didn’t lack for style, she delivered the substance that matters most of all.
Dan Rather described her work as both grand and intimate, and yeah – I felt it.
What I like about the line I quoted in particular is you can replace ‘nation’ with ‘person’, and it still works. A nation, much like its people, is a work in progress. The founding fathers knew they were working toward an ideal they had yet to meet, as I’ve addressed in past entries; centuries later, Coretta Scott King noted struggle is a never-ending process.
Some conflate civic pride with an unwavering belief in the greatness, infallibility, and superiority of their nation, but imagine thinking of ourselves that way. We should all strive to be the best version of ourselves, but there’s a danger in taking one’s greatness for granted. Without a growth mindset, you put yourself at risk of not just stagnating, but falling behind. You may even blame others for your decline. We see this in people who feel left behind not because they have been, but because their complacency or arrogance hinders their ability to compete with those who’ve had to work twice as hard to be taken half as seriously.
I sometimes see people express sentiments like “I can be proud to be an American again,” and it confuses me. While I haven’t been happy with a lot that’s happened the last few years in particular, I never internalized it, but the notion always seemed esoteric and strange to me. Lately I’ve grown to think of pride not as something you have, but something you do. Simply being proud is passive and possibly unearned, which leads to hubris, but taking pride in yourself (or your country) is active and ongoing. It means striving to do your best, and you can’t do that without being honest about your strengths and weaknesses, and committed to self-improvement.
Nations are inherently flawed because people are inherently flawed, but it doesn’t have to be a source of shame unless you become complacent.
On a personal level, I’m at an awkward stage in my life as I look back on failed dreams and missed opportunities, some due to unidentified ADHD, others due to life choices, not all of them defensible. I find myself pursuing a lot of goals others might find odd. Like, nobody’s looking to hire a stunt performer in my demographic, but here I am taking kenpo karate and contemplating an aerial class just because I’ve always wanted to do it, and I want to be strong and powerful for as long as I can be. I also know had I attempted these things before treatment, I would have had less success, and even with treatment, I have to work harder than most. I’m also trying to relearn my first language on the off-chance I ever visit Germany again. Guitar is another hobby I keep plucking away at. Even if these things don’t have any practical applications, it’s about keeping my mind sharp.
That became more tangential than intended, but I think there’s a point in there somewhere about personal growth (it’s also a testament to privilege that I can be this erratic, and still live above the poverty line). I’ve said I have to keep swimming or I’ll drown, and it’s true. I suspect the day any of us think we’re done is the day we die. I don’t think countries are much different than people in that regard. We can accomplish more as individuals and a nation if we learn to separate humility from shame, and pride from hubris. Feeling proud of one’s accomplishments and acknowledging one’s challenges and failings are not mutually exclusive acts, no matter what someone else tries to sell you.
Amanda Gorman’s story demonstrates the complex relationship between overcoming personal challenges, receiving support and encouragement from others, and identifying and nurturing innate talent, and the role these facets play in achieving individual success. Her story also reminds us about the importance of representation.
National pride should be a reflection of its people.
Some like to say people are more alike than we are different, but it’s our diversity, not just of race, ethnicity, or gender, but also neurodiversity, and individual challenges, talents, and skills that contribute to the depth and substance of the nation, and drive innovation and progress.
