What does it Mean?

What does it mean,
to be a “patriot”?

Does being a patriot,
mean to follow our infinitely expanding true spirit?
Or does a patriot,
mean to conveniently conform to false,
limiting,
mainstream bullshit?

Does being a patriot mean,
Putting more emphasis on fitting in?
Or is being a patriot,
Focusing more on truth,
WITHIN??

Does being a patriot mean,
To always,
QUESTION??
Or does being a patriot,
mean for others to make our decisions?

Does being a patriot,
Mean to believe the “truth” others believe?
Or does being a patriot mean,
To discover our own truth,
And have the freedom to believe,
Whatever we decide is most helpful and beneficial,
to believe?

Does being a patriot,
Mean wanting to be saved by what we don’t believe in,
In moments of great desperation,
Or does being a patriot mean,
Sticking with our truth,
To truly do our best to help us,
Make it through our most painfully challenging situations?

Does being a patriot,
mean worshiping a supreme being?
Or does being a patriot mean,
Further aligning,
In a feeling of true oneness,
With all beings?
No matter how supreme..
No matter who or what they created
?

What does being a “patriot”,
Truly,
Mean??

Does being a patriot mean we treat others based on their “achievements”?
Or does being a patriot mean,
Empathically acknowledging,
Any other manifestation,
Of sentient existence?

Does a patriot mean we challenge and teach others,
To “toughen them up”,
Or to “break them down”,
and “build them up”,
By screwing them up?
By traumatizing them?
Or does being a patriot mean that we,
Teach others,
whether it’s building character or determining ethical loyalty,
In a way that’s challenging,
YET,
Healthy?
Beneficial for development that’s for ourselves and/or to further align with the spiritual,
To experience in ways,
Far,
Far more meaningful,

Does being a patriot mean we teach others,
In a way that’ll open to truer and truer discovery,
Such as what it truly means to embody being a patriot?

Does being a patriot,
mean to,
Do our best at utilizing our freedom,
the best we know!!?

Is me attempting posting how I’m truly feeling,
Based on my level of truth understanding and present ability of interpreting and articulating in the form of writing,
At least some sign of me being a patriot,
By using my VALUABLE right for expressing myself freely?
I think so,
?

Is being a patriot,
Caring what others think in the sense that,
Hoping that my presence is helpful?
Instead of going down a path of insatiable ego,
That I know is not the deepening, truthful way to go..?

Is being a patriot,
Promoting violence,
Even as the “only means” of self-defense..?
Or is being a patriot,
Intended to find ways to advocate for freedom with non-violence,
While developing compassion for even those who oppress us,
To cultivate peace as a foundation in us,
To sustain and improve more clearness and FREEDOM,
To appreciate,
More of this experience?

Is being a patriot,
Resisting those who oppress us,
While not resisting inner present pain,
To be less weighted down and more clear,
To save more strength,
To sustain,
Advocating our rights,
To proceed down a path of increasing awareness capability,
To improve this reality,
In infinite new ways,
That proceed,
Everlastingly?

Is being a patriot,
(As I asked/considered questioning in the last stanza..),
Cultivating inner peace,
To reduce exploitation,
Or any forms of oppression,
To cultivate society,
In a more FREE,
Moral direction?

Is a patriot,
A “snowflake”?
Or is being a patriot,
Courageously opening,
And..
Trying to make,
The world a more free,
Compassionate,
Peaceful,
Equanimous,
Less brutal,
Ethically stable,
place?

Is being a patriot,
Someone who cultivates peace to be “soft”?
Or is being a patriot,
Someone who cultivates peace,
To be more at peace,
And FREE,
From inner painful emotional (and/or physical),
Hard to control,
intensity?

Is being a patriot,
Someone who arrogantly,
Closed-mindedly claims they totally understand or “get it”,
Or is being a patriot,
Someone who empathically welcomes new ways of seeing it?

Is being a patriot,
Someone who is shut down and obedient?
Or is being a patriot,
Someone who is,
Willing to discerningly face their fears,
Of how others (including authority figures),
Will react,
To them,
Following their truth,
To truly experience more of the present,
To APPRECIATE more of the moment,
To be FREE,
From mental obsessive demons,
Or whatever inner distracting torment?

Is being a patriot,
One who puts a lot of pressure to have the most “perfect future”,
Or is being a patriot,
Someone who aspires to be FREE from,
Painful present distracting pressure,
To CLEAR to what the present,
HAS to offer,
To experience the present with less inner awareness restricting,
Less mentally imprisoning pressure,
Yet to CLEAR restrictions,
To CLEAR pain,
And to CLEAR,
whatever mental inhibitions like pressure filled expectations,
To be less restricted,
Yet more FREE,
To experience the present,
More clearly,
And be less weighed down,
And have more room,
For a deeper level,
Of existential,
Capability?

Is being a patriot?
Being truthful,
or full of judgmental,
shallow bullshit?
And,
To be honest,
For me it’s an ongoing challenging commitment,
To reasonably,
not be a hypocrite,
But I still must try it,
Since I believe,
It’s important to be,
A true,
Patriot

What does it mean?
To be a “patriot”?
Well..
As for some of what I said in this post,
Those are some ways I would consider what it means to be,
A patriot,
True to what we presently view as our truth,
To not only understand,
And experience more of it,
Always aspiring,
For truer,
Better,
Spirit,
That feels more and more non-pressured, Yet,
worth it