We can all rededicate ourselves, every single day. "We human beings have created many of the problems in today’s world. As long as we have strong negative emotions and we view our fellow beings in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’, there will be a tendency to try to destroy them. We must recognise the oneness … Continue reading Rededicate to Peace
hope
The thing about independence
This weekend the United States celebrates its declaration of independence from Great Britain, made in 1776. An event that is, as all historical events are, a mix of hopefulness, exclusion, ethnocentrism, positivity and harm, progress and potential. We acknowledge this mix with humility and dedication to rise to the promises made. We can also focus … Continue reading The thing about independence
Equality
True equality for anyone depends on true equality for everyone. We are either all equal participants in our democracy, or none of us are. Work for true equality, which intersects with all our lives.
Discomfort
Let us not run from our discomfort into misplaced certainty. Discomfort is a sign of a powerful, profound opportunity, that we cannot afford to squander. In the discomfort of this moment, there is an opening for something beautiful: Change.
Focus
If, like me, you are having a hard time focusing this week, I offer this: Focus on the love made visible around you; Focus on the birds swooping in the wind; Focus on the willingness of so many to stand for change; Focus on the first blossom on a pea vine; Focus on all the … Continue reading Focus
Listen
In 1966, Martin Luther King, Jr., said: "A riot is the language of the unheard." As my country experiences so much pain, so much injustice, so much anger, so much sorrow, and so much loss, all expressed in sweeping, massive protests, my intention is to ask: What, and who, have we refused to hear, that … Continue reading Listen
Opposites
On a day we heard of a terrible milestone of losses in our country due to the pandemic, can we feel anything but sorrow? This morning, on a walk in this beautiful valley, sun shining and birds singing, I pondered the invitations we receive, all too often, to divide ourselves from one another. It occurred … Continue reading Opposites
Our memories of this time
This weekend in the United States, we take an extra day off work to honor those who died in military service. "Memorial" - the name calls out our intention to use our memories in this way. Memory looks backward, brings the past into the present, brings those lost into our immediate awareness, and makes them … Continue reading Our memories of this time
The soft spot and the fierceness
Hold fear lightly, and touch the soft spot behind it. There lives kindness. Hold kindness lightly, and touch the strength behind it. There lives fierceness. On any day, at any moment, even if we can do nothing else...we can be kind.
We are here
In the face of overwhelming loss Loss of life and livelihood, of routine, of expectation We find it so hard to turn inward, and remember: We are here. We are one. We are here. **** The little poem above came to me this morning, after a(nother) night of "pandemic dreaming." I share it today, along … Continue reading We are here
Elizabeth Fountain, Author 