The ideals of the French Revolution,
brought to the world much to early,
misunderstood for so many years,
are barely contained now with meaning.
So they remain merely as slogans
incapacitated for action.
How can we do what's needed
to transpose them into reality?
The human essence is lacking,
the slogans remain abstract.
Freedom is freedom for the other
as Rosa Luxemburg said.
Only when freedom is granted the other
can he truly develop as a person.
Equality of rights is in the Constitution,
but meeting and seeing each other
in daily togetherness are not practiced
where power and hierarchy reign.
Fraternity means to see the other's needs
and not what I can gain through him.
Thus must I live every day
giving the other freedom and rights,
readily accepting his needs
and forgetting for the moment
my own desires and interests.
Only when the other is the reason for my actions
can society be healed
and human dignity infuse our deeds.
July 11, 2010