Fences

We live in a world in which many believe walls to be an absolute evil. Yet we find fences everywhere. They keep animals from wandering, they mark territory, and they protect us from danger (I’m thinking of the fences on balconies).

Just because a fence exists doesn’t mean it can’t be crossed. It doesn’t mean that the fence can’t have open doors. The thing that may be bothering us are the ideas expressed in the building of the fence. The ideas of ownership, exclusivity, and fear, are not things we all accept as good.

Rather we would fight against the fence. The fence then becomes the symbol. We have been distracted. The fight has been moved. And while we fight over fences, ownership is consolidated, communities become more exclusive, and fear increases.

A simple slight of hand has caused us to lose sight. In our own sphere of influence how does ownership, exclusivity, and fear express themselves? How can each of change that? Maybe in time we’ll have a world in which the fences that were once built for a particular purpose become something new…maybe the canvas upon which community murals may be painted?