Dear Anne Frank..... The Eyes of Truth

Dear Anne Frank, 

I woke up with a lot on my mind today. It happens.  Percolating in my head is a memory of time spent in Germany visiting family in Dortmund.  I was there for a shared birthday I have with my cousin. I was turning 21 and she 26.  We're close even those the miles and years separate us, our hearts are connected. 

We were in Koln. Enjoying time out with her friends under the shadow of that great cathedral. I noticed that many of the workers in that area were people with darker skin and beautiful eyes.  I commented on how nice they seem to be and how their eyes were mesmerizing. 

"They're Turks." I was told. It didn't compute in my head what she said next, but then she explained that they were treated like we treat Mexicans. One time a woman came into a cafe I was at in Schwerte with my cousin's friend, begging for change from all the diners. Her I was told was Roma. People tensed up when she walked in and I didn't understand why.  Those experiences stuck with me for some reason. I saw the beauty in their beings, those eyes. 

Sometimes being a stranger in a new land will allow us to see what those who reside there cannot. New eyes...

Anne, I feel like a stranger in a new land. I don't recognize people anymore and I am trying to remember that their beauty and their stories come forward, silently, when you look them in the eye. It can reveal truths rather than the programming we grew up with - 

I need coffee. 

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Image by Helmut Strasil from Pixabay