A Moment of Peace & Beauty in the Flow of Life
In the course of history, there comes a time when humanity is called to shift to a new level of consciousness, to reach a higher moral ground. A time when we have to shed our fear and give hope to each other. That time is now. Wangari Maathai
Life cannot be captured in a few axioms. And that is just what I keep trying to do. But it won't work, for life is full of endless nuances and cannot be captured in just a few formulae. Etty Hillesum
Today’s quotes crossed my feed from different sources this week, each one aligned and active co-creating a world that’s different from the one we are currently experiencing. They come from women of different generations, times, and places that were challenging as is the time we are in. If you aren’t familiar with them, here’s a bit about each.
Wangarĩ Maathai (1940-2011) was a Kenyan social, environmental, and political activist who founded the Green Belt Movement, an environmental non-governmental organization focused on the planting of trees, environmental conservation, and women's rights. In 2004 she became the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. (Wikipedia)
Esther Hillesum (15 January 1914 – 30 November 1943) was a Dutch Jewish author of confessional letters and diaries which describe both her religious awakening and the persecutions of Jewish people in Amsterdam during the German occupation. In 1943, she was deported and murdered in the Auschwitz concentration camp. (Wikipedia)
Their words have remained alive in my awareness in the wake of last week’s election here in the (not so) United States as I have danced with my deeply felt reactions and responses and observed the reactions and responses of others, and as I consider the question: what is mine to do in this time?
I reminded myself of what I wrote in last week’s post hours before the polls closed: …‘no matter what’ the outcome of today’s votes my job is to breathe, to be present, to be clear and grounded, to trust. For indeed while the stakes of this election seem monumental (and, I believe, that they are), there is something greater at play in our world. I trust that the hand of the divine is present, no matter the outcome.’ No matter what, we must end our reactivity to the world, to others, indeed even our reactivity to ourselves. Reactivity separates us from one another, from ourselves, and from Source. No matter what envision a future where we move beyond the reactivity of fear into the mindful choice of calm abiding peace, compassion, and love.
Personally, I’m challenged to maintain that level of peace and consciousness moment to moment, not just as I minimally follow the unfolding news, but in my interactions with others. I’ve found myself triggered by so-called ‘little things’ which I’m (mostly) choosing to see as opportunities to look deeper, to what real fear or concern may be hidden. I’m asking, ‘what wants to surface from the depths of being to heal and release?’ Then I look to how those fit into the larger picture of our world and the even grander realm of the cosmos. For me, this kind of reflection is helpful as it brings me back to my belief that there is something greater at play in our world.
It would be oh so convenient to find a few axioms to explain our politics and our world today so that, with sense made of it, we could ‘get on with life’ or, as we said in Covid days, ‘back to normal’. But that is not the nature of this time, of our world, of our individual and collective selves, or of our evolutionary path. Our world has become increasingly complex in our systems of control, domination, and separation. Our individual selves are asked to choose sides and perpetuate the false divide that we are separate from one another, from our planet home, and from the cosmos. Social media makes it easy to make our choices known in ways that further illusion that we are separate. We/I forget that everything is energy.
None of us are immune. My angst and momentary judgement when I see a post about the ‘fools’, ‘idiots’, or worse is its own form of othering, of separation. Yet, beyond my own moments of separation, my heart seeks to understand so that I can maintain and be grounded in the consciousness that knows we are One, and that I choose to act from that place.
Just as there are no few axioms to ‘capture life’ and give us this understanding, there is no one way, one formula, one path to shift our consciousness. The beauty is that there are many paths that hold the potential to lead us to Oneness. The challenge for each of us is to find our path and follow it, step by step, day by day, course correcting and forgiving ourselves and others all along the way. Simple. Not easy. Back to the essence, to the core of our Being as we grapple with the very real fears, concerns, injustices, and suffering in our world.
In building a new story, I/we must hold both: the horrors and fears being experienced by so many AND the potent possibility, indeed opportunity, to create a new world.
This is the place from which we can co-create and build a new story for ourselves and the greater whole of which we are a part. I deeply believe that we are witnessing the last desperate gasps of a culture of domination and that a new and ancient culture of community, cooperation, justice, and sovereignty is rising around the globe. It’s been said often that it is always darkest before the dawn. Let us put our attention on bringing that dawn to the full light of day rather than exhausting our energy in maintaining the fear and separation of the dark. Let us hospice that which does not serve and support all Life and give birth to that more beautiful world our hearts know is possible. Let us sing that new story into Being with the gifted Jenny Bird (click here for We Need a New Story).
Take care of yourselves and one another!
Padasambava Stupa Down the Road