My friends, I am Eric. I am a great potentate, and I invited guests from around the world to join me in my grand ballroom for dinner. I am celebrating all the diverse identities of the world. May I invite them to introduce themselves, now that they are all arrived and are seated. From my left:
OK! I am Georg. I am a German man. I am straight. I am an old guy, about 80 years old. I like classical music and old movies. I am married. I have blue eyes. I am an MD and a retired physician.
Am I next? OK! I am Ali. I am a man, and I’m from Egypt. I am an engineer and tour guide. I am midde-aged and single.
Hello, my name is Chou, and I am Chinese woman. I am artist and dancer and 27 years old.
Hi, I am Hussein and I’m from Kenya. No relation to Barack Obama though. I am 54 and I am a teacher. I sing native songs.
Hola, yo soy Jose. Estoy Mexicano. Tengo ojos azules. tambien. Yo soy estudiante. Tengo vente anos.
(after several other women and men spoke:)
Greetings, I am from no place. I have no name. I am not my body. I have no one profession. I have no title. I love everything. I am ageless. I am a gypsy guru. Or not. I have no followers, for fear of being followed. I didn’t even write that joke. I borrowed it from my friend Swami Beyondananda. I offer you peace that passeth all understanding. If you don’t understand me, that’s OK. I don’t need anyone to stand on. Or anyone to lean on. I have no identity, and neither do you guys. Our identities are not who we are. They are all just labels. We wear them on our lapel. Some of us speak them with our Adam’s apple. We have no original sin, except the sin of not being original. I don’t even eat oranges either. But flowers grow wherever I go.
Well, said Eric, I am glad to know you. Not knowing your labels I can experience you better. There’s no identities in your way. Folks, what do you say we all jump into my big potent potentate’s pool and wash away our sinful identities so we can be our original selves.
Great idea, said the guru. I have some special identity cleaning fluid I can pour into the pool.
And everyone jumped in, washed away their identities, and went back to their normal lives and lived happily ever after, watering the flowers, and eating nothing but apples and oranges all day long.