Amy Christensen’s Reviews > Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience > Status Update

The near enemy of walking alongside is controlling the path. Sometimes it can look and feel like someone is with us, but really they’re trying to control either us or the outcome. Personal note: I hear a lot of “white apologist” stuff in her work. This passage and her whole section on Cultivating Meaningful Connection just feels like a desperate plea to minority communities. Now, that is not to say that the minority groups of the Western world should be ignored. However, it feels a bit like LOOK AT ME I’M AN ALLY!!!! I don’t think the goal should be to “raise” minority voices because it implies they need a white woman to “raise” them. They do not. They might need white women to shut the fuck up though. Especially when so many of them are screaming LOOK AT MEEEEEEE!!!! This was just to say this section feels…like control to me.

Power over is dangerous because it’s using disproportional influence to achieve gain, even when that diminishes the agency and/or dignity of others. Personal note: say it with me, Christianity’s influence. Well Brown I think your ideology on power is dangerous and is extremely oppressive. I get that the word “over” was key in that phrase for her, except here’s the problem, everyone is at some point in their lives going to have power over someone else. Everyone. Even if someone never has children there are a multitude of ways to have power over. I feel strongly that this warning about power over is why I feel such envy dripping from the whole LOOK AT ME I’M AN ALLY sentiment I pointed out earlier. White women are dripping with envy because they LIKE having power over minorities and are envious because their patriarchal mindset and Traditional Christian Values demand that they shouldn’t have any power at all and it’s DANGEROUS. I have given up that idea and replaced it with: I want us to be equals, even when we are not. Power is not evil at all. Even if you argue, “But what about the ABUSE of power?!” Abuse is abuse, it has NOTHING to do with power. If I’m constantly thinking that power is dangerous as a female presenting supervisor I am likely to continue being harsher with my female subordinates. Because with this “power over” mindset I shouldn’t have power myself so God DAMN it (Bless her heart! I’ll pray to JESUS!) SHE (the subordinate) CERTAINLY shouldn’t have power. But if I accept, yes, I have power this is a fact, AND I want my subordinate and I to be equals, even though we are NOT, I will be able to encourage her my subordinate and provide mentorship and encourage her to seek a position that is similar to or even HIGHER than my own. This whole notion of “power over” is gatekeeping that keeps everyone in prison.

Practicing Story STEWARDSHIP 🤮 I’m interested in stories but stewardship is more Christianity and I am so over it. Christianity is one of the greatest evils ever unleashed onto humanity. It is possible that Brown is not a devout Christian but she is quite open about her previous struggles with addiction and Acoholics Anonymous and all of the other Anonymous addiction programs were all based on Protestant teachings. It’s why those programs become cult like and attract predatory people.

Quote - I no longer believe that we can recognize emotion in other people, regardless of how well we understand human emotion and experience or how much language we have. Personal note: that is probably true. However, I want to try! Even if I fail. I also am on a mission to find a way to have the best chance of “gifting” people emotional states intentionally. And phrases like “I like you!” are so powerful the do that like fucking magic!

So how do we know what other people are feeling? We ask them. Personal note: I ask you is giving someone Bravery. I’m certain of it.