Heavy baggage for a life's journey.

A Life Time Away

The memory is crystal clear to me. It was 1961 and my father took my sister and I to see the movie West Side Story. I had yet turned 7 and I remember us going to the Rivoli Theater in Manhattan. This was the first time I ever had Reeses’ Peanut Butter Cups which has remained my “main” candy for my whole life.

 While watching the movie my father pointed out the actress Rita Moreno who played Anita. Apparently, this was an important factor to him for he was very proud of his Puerto Rican heritage. And, Rita, of course, was from the same island that produced his parents. Since that time, Rita became a favorite of mine. I made it a point to follow her career throughout my life and lucky for her, it’s been a long fruitful one.

The Glare of the Knife

That night I was awaken by the memory of a flash off of a switch blade. It was the dramatic moment when Bernardo flicked opened his knife and Riff runs into it. This was a disturbing scene for me because I liked Riff.

 Ya see, at this early point in my life, I had no concept of racial differences. It made no difference to me that Riff was “white”. I just knew that I liked him. Of course, my innocence could only last for so long. And yet, for some of us the cold fact of not fitting in comes early.

 Part of Life?

 In Rita Moreno: A Memoir, Rita tells about her early days in the Bronx. She wrote that through the absorption of 1930’s American culture (which hasn’t changed since), the blond movie stars, the blond beauties gracing advertisements and popular blonds in school reinforced the fact that she was “the wrong race”. Her prior life in Puerto Rico, with the varying “shades” of people in her family, showed her that skin color really wasn’t an issue.

All of these insecurities can “color” the way we feel about ourselves well into our adult lives. They, in fact, can be a burden that can only impair and hurt us. God doesn’t want us to be shackled in this way.

 God’s Way

 One big problem with such attitudes is that they’re not easily detected in ourselves. This is especially true when our friends and family subscribe to the same belief systems. God tells us that there should be a renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). Learning to think His way frees us from fear and pain. We learn about that peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7).