Day 12 - David Fletcher

Dear Ifeanyi the Third,

Greetings from Canada. This is the annual letter that I write to family on my birthday. I'm 100 this year! I've written letters like this to your great grandfather, your grandfather, your father, and now you. I hope you find it interesting. Ha ha.

You might think getting this kind of letter instead of a holograph speech or a video image is pretty primitive, but for me, it's still a unique way to communicate. When your great grandfather and I first became friends in the 1980s in Nigeria, writing letters to each other was the only way to communicate. There was no internet or cell phones back then. Imagine! I find these days not much happens for me, and I remember more about the “good old days” than I do about yesterday, Ha ha. 

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about that period 2026 to 2029 when I was in close contact with your grandfather and just before your father was born. Many people wouldn't think of those years as “good old days”, but they were a time when some of the change we wanted finally happened and light started to shine through the darkness.

And it was really dark. There were wars and injustices you couldn't imagine, and violence and greed was the norm in many human interactions. People only looked out for themselves. Leadership was corrupt, and the Earth itself was being exploited and abused. Yet, it was in these darkest times that change started to happen. It was in this time, that light started to shine in the darkness. It was in this time, that hope grew, and eventually we achieved the great turning and created the world that you enjoy today. As a 12 year old, you might not appreciate it, but the world's a pretty good place right now. It wasn't so good in 2026.

Where did the hope come from you ask?

It was many, many things, but a big part of it was people simply no longer accepting how bad it was getting. People wanting things to be better for everyone. People simply wanting a decent life and clean water to drink, and food that was not full of chemicals. The light of hope grew in many forms, but a big part of it was simply people turning within and saying, “I'm going to be the best I can be”. “I'm going to be part of the solution”. “I'm going to treat everyone with dignity and respect and love”.

It seems so natural today to love each other and love all living beings, but back then, it was a radical act. It got everyone cooperating together on common goals, and broke the military-industrial-media complex that thrived on pitting people against each other. The power of non-cooperation with the status quo and dissolving the illusion of how they wanted us to see the world was transformative. It wasn't immediate, but as more and more glimmers of hope grew in small places, in small ways, they multiplied and over time, the shift happened.

A big part of it was people believed. The veil over people's higher consciousness was removed, and they recognized the power not only of their physical collaboration, but their mental and spiritual collaboration as well. People believed in their power within – their power to influence change – simply by shifting their own awareness and attitudes they brought positive, transformative energy to situations. And sharing that energy and love with others would resonate with the best in others and they’d start contributing to the change as well. It started in a subtle way, but eventually grew to a groundswell that tipped the balance of power to a completely different way of being – a way focussed on peace and understanding and helping our fellow beings rather than competing with them. 

There are a thousand, thousand stories of the efforts people made for change – and I hope you are learning about some of them in school – but I remember it was the glimmers of hope on the smallest scale that got things rolling in the right direction. I remember we used to use the image of a dandelion plant pushing up through a crack in the pavement. That simple act of creating a different world to what the establishment expected is what got us through to where we are today. 

I could write more, but I find my energy only lasts so long these days. I hope to hear from you on your birthday, because I know it is young people like you that are going to make the world even better for everyone in the future.
Stay well – and have fun.
 
With love,
Uncle David
(David Fletcher, Antigonish, Nova Scotia)