I had good intentions. I truly did.
I wanted to paint every room in my house a different color. At the paint store, Morgan (my downstairs neighbor) and I chose what we hoped would be a deep, calming blue, like diving into a swimming pool on a hot day. It turned out looking more like Smurf blue. Okay.
Once the blue was done, I decided to paint one of my favorite spiritual quotes on one wall.
I read "Only love is real" in a book about A Course in Miracles, and I thought it would make an inspiring quote for me to contemplate each day during breaks from work.
I began, painting high on a ladder in thick, white block letters.
I soon finished, happy with my wall.
But then Morgan gently noted that I hadn't left much space between the "is" and the "real."
Since I wrote it high on the wall, it was visible from the street below, as we are on the second story.
So to Palestinians passing by -- people affected every day by the brutal Israeli occupation -- it looked like my wall said:
"Only love isreal." Or, to the quickly glancing eye,
Only love Israel.
And I had written the unintentionally political message in white on a blue wall, exactly the colors of the flag of Israel.
Who does that? Sets out to write an uplifting spiritual quote and ends up reminding her neighbors of the bane of their existence?
Me. I did it. Hahaha.
Although this happened close to when we moved into this apartment back in March of 2013, I thought it blog worthy now, since each time I tell the story it gets funnier. Mistake + time = funny.
Don't worry, I hussled back up that ladder to paint over the "real" with my Smurf blue. I moved it way over to the right and down, at such a safe distance that "is" and "real" could never, ever, be in danger of turning into "Israel."
Now the wall looks like this:
Lesson learned. Don't move into the middle of an oppressed people group and write a pro-oppressor message on your wall.
Love is real,
