Currently, there is a lot going on in the world, or at least my little corner of it. The Black Lives Matter movement is in full swing and I stand in support of the fundamental principles behind the movement. As a form of meditation and to practice my calligraphy (shūfǎ [[書法]), I went looking for something that would resonate with the current situation and my solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. While I was searching for such a phrase or word to use as practice, a couple of videos popped up of people of all other ethnicities marching, singing, holding hands, and peacefully protesting for the common cause of equality for all. I was inspired.
I recalled the 2008 Summer Olympics motto of, “One World, One Dream.”, and I thought, that was almost exactly right. Better yet, the 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Beijing. So the motto was already easy to find in Chinese. (Tóng Yīgè Shìjiè Tóng Yīgè Mèngxiǎng [同一個世界 同一個夢想]). I just needed to make a few changes.
The result was this piece of calligraphy. As my Chinese is not all that good, I am not sure, but I do believe that it says, “One World, One People.” (Tóng Yīgè Shìjiè Tóng Yīgè Rénmín [同一个世界 同一个人民]) This is my hope for the world, that one day, all people of all nationalities, all colors, all religions, all political ideologies, all orientations are able to understand that we are all one people, one community, on family!