The Modern Monster

     In the society in which we live today, I have began to ponder daily if the majority of the human race have morphed into monsters. I am a 32 year old African-American woman. I presently reside in the inner city of the U.S third largest city.  I am an educator that's constantly being educated as I travel down the different roads of life.  Day in and day out I have witnessed and encountered  many disturbing scenarios. These scenarios have led me to start this blog. My intentions of this blog is to be a voice that could possibly be heard by other individuals. I want to create a noise that resonates so loudly that the sound resides in the ears of the deaf, movement moves the unmovable, and people think of the unthinkable. It is not expected for everyone to agree on the things in which I say, but to plant a seed of thought so you're able to form your own opinion. Then we can proceed to create possible solutions to save us from our own demise.
Think About It!
     Do we live amongst monsters? As a youngster, when I would hear the word monster I'd visualize things like the gory beast in Texas Chainsaw Massacre or the flesh burned man wearing a black and red striped shirt smoothing the brim of his hat with nails made of sharp blades.  My aunts often tortured my uncle and I with horrifying stories of monsters such as The Boogey Man, Mr. Tristen, and the most terrifying of them all Raw-Head Bloody Bone.  This was their method of comical discipline. If we misbehaved they would wait until bedtime and put on a production that included everyone in the house. They would pretend as if they had heard or seen traces of these horrifying monsters. As one would scare us in words another would bang on walls while the other would go outside and tap on the windows. This would go on until they saw tears or heard the threatening words, " I'm gonna tell momma(grandma)".  Those were the days when monsters were considered to be creatures that were a combination of animals bred with human life.  These creatures would grotesquely deviate from the normal  shape, character, and behavior with the ability to seek, mutilate and destroy anything in sight.
     Now, all I can say is that time is a changing! Today when I hear the word monster a totally different picture comes to mind than I envisioned as a child. Instead of the man with the black and red striped shirt I now see a human with a suit and tie or sometimes a nice dress and heels. This monster is very articulate. It has the ability to charm you with words that make you feel a sense of comfort. You trust them and truly believe that they have your best interest at heart. This monster will knowingly over work others to gain a higher profit, but cut the benefits of the ones in which backs they rode to their destination of wealth. This monster can witness poverty and see life lived in such deplorable conditions and yet turn their heads as if they are blind to the scene.  Although they have sworn to do the things that would be for the people and by the people, they sometimes make decisions that have a root that seems to stem from something evil.
     There's also another image that my mind creates when I hear the word monster.  This monster is very wicked and cruel. This monster can do things that I could never imagine a person that gives life could ever do. It bares or assist in the reproduction of a new life. Once the life is brought forward, the monster either abandons, neglects, or abuses their precious creation. Some do it for chemically manufactured dependencies. Some do it because they seek approval and affection from a fellow monster. And sadly, some only repeat the damaging cycle in which was done to them. This monster is scary but you can't help but to harbor a bit of sympathy for this monster. Sympathy is developed simply due to the fact that some factors outside of this once humans' control may have heavily influenced their mutation into a cold-hearted creature.
      The last monster that comes to my mind is the most bloodcurdling of them all. This monster is without a doubt heartless, wicked, and corrupt. This monster originates as something very pure. It's brought up in an environment where you always have to watch for the wolves. Its pureness is tainted from evil that surrounds it. Eventually with the ability to no longer resist, it too evolves into a monster.  It has no regards or respect for anything that breathes life. This monster can brutally beat, still innocence, or take the life of anything that has vital fluids flowing through their capsule. It does these things without any remorse, any second thought, or regrets at all. It's almost as if they were exempt from getting emotions or the ability to be compassionate. Although this monster seems to be the most gruesome, there has to be yet much sympathy felt for it also.  Like the monster previously discussed this monster too may have had the influence of elements beyond its control that caused their transformation or worse be it's by product.
    As a kid, when I would hear the mentions of any of those fictional monsters I would shiver under my sheets. I would become brave at moments and peer from behind them to see if I were alone.  When I realized that the monsters in my mind left me companionless I would sigh in relief and eventually doze off to sleep. I know you would think that as I've grown that things would have gradually changed. They did for the worst. The fear has grown, but has brought along hurt and shame. The modern monster is no longer a fictional character you see, the modern monster now looks like you and me.