On Dignity And Classiness: Preface,

I must clarify ahead of time, that the word class that I use here,
has been misused in history, and as a result has a dark past.

Alas, we need that word back, we have lost the Noble Knight, we have lost The Gentle Lady and the Gentleman,
even the word Officer has lost prestige.

But the young people need a way to say:
"I won't fight you, because you lack class.", they need to be able to say "I am too classy for that, you jerks" and not do something stupid that everybody else did.

Cornel West whom I feature in this poem, uses the word Ennobled,
and I hope that word will return to our daily language.

Instead of saying "This woman has class",
it would be much more beautiful in my opinion to say "This woman is ennobled by her deeds."

But that is not how we use language today,
so we will use the word class here.

The aim of this poem is not to divide Humanity anymore than it already is,
but to help us converge together on wisdom, with Great Class and Dignity.

On Dignity And Classiness

Dignity is complicated as it has multiple facets or sides,
it means and it is less of a rule and more of an armour.

Class, starts of as the behaviors you inherited from all that surrounds you,
I think frequently this is not enough to progress and grow up.

And certainly you want to inherit the class of great beings.
the class of a citizen of the world.

Great Beings are people that truly change the world for better,
and citizens of the world are those who are not divided by borders, religions or beliefs, but converge together on wisdom.

Class and Dignity, grows with us, it is dynamic,
our minds are doing everything to make sure that we feel whole, but that is not good for those who transform.

If a person that has undergone a transformation, is still scarred by the past,
they are making a mistake, and need help.

People who are growing up, who are transforming,
must frequently ask, if they would still make the mistake they once made...

If the answer is no,
then they are different person from who they once were, and they need to stop blaming themselves.

See Class and Dignity may sound simple,
but actually they reach deeply into a Human Being.

Cornel West, in the opening of Astra Taylor's Examined Life,
captures the subject beautifully.

Mr. West could maybe say that everything we do is a mistake,
it is in correcting those mistakes that we find greatness.

But we will not speak like this,
not everyone makes mistakes, and those who do need to check if they have changed, and let themselves be free.

If we are taught that there is such a thing as Precious Dignity, and Evil Poverty,
we will not allow the sickness of poverty take our dignity away, we will not rob, or sell drugs, or worse.

We will stop and ask, "Who made this poverty?", "Why are we in it?",
and we will learn from fools onward to becoming wise.

Not everyone of us can leap into Knowledge, Wisdom and Greatness,
precisely because they are being held back by poverty, or violence, or crime, or all the other terrible things.

But having been made aware that we can rise to have more class in life,
that we have dignity that others may try to take, in order to turn us into some tool, or make a fool - and that we must protect it.

Creates a stepping stone,
maybe a starting point.

Here young people can ignore drugs and alcohol and other stupid ideas,
understanding that dignity is a treasure, that it is something that their elder selves will appreciate.

And transcendence of class, be it a class that holds bullies in high esteem, or corrupt politicians,
or sees drugs and alcohol as fun, - leaving that behind, is a sure path to more knowledge.

To improve ones class, is to inherit it from Great Beings that we admire,
and that inheritance requires the reading of books, or listening to narrated books from the library.

Interestingly, at first, it does not always matter what the books are about,
it is not so much the content, but the kind of thinking that Great Beings do.

That is what getting more class is about,
spending time among the great beings to understand who they are.

Once we have the who:
the great beings, their companionship, and their class.

We will be ready for the what,
the things they are attempting to share or achieve.

To think in terms of dignity,
is to grant ourselves the opportunity to say no, even to our best friends.

To say:
"No, because my dignity is more important, then some stupid, temporary shit, that the elder me will end up regretting later on.".

To think in terms of class,
is to ask, many questions, and even to begin comprehending that unfortunate people may have their freedom of will taken away,

"What is the best class?", "How do I get there?",
and most importantly "Why was I not born to it?", "What went wrong and where?".

"Does a person who uses violence have class?",
"Are they truly themselves, when they lack class? Class that is their right, that is their inheritance, and treasure, their beauty and prestige.".

"If they transcended to the class of Great Beings,
what would they think of their younger selves?"

And even the cute and silly question that one may ask themselves in the morning:
"Am I Classy?"

(I can answer that one for you, Yes you are! You are classy!,
say it with me: "I am classy, and sassy.")

In closing, use dignity to draw a line that no one is allowed to cross,
and use class as a path towards understanding, towards Knowledge and resulting Wisdom, and onward to Greatness.