i wrote this for my personal morning practice a few years ago. an effort to strike the balance of releasing the urge to control, yet be fully engaged in this world & its needs with wisdom & an open heart.
i share in the hope that these words may be of benefit for you as well.
…………………………………………….
may we we have the capacity heart to hold the entire world & all of life, & the wisdom of mind to let go.
may we hold all of life with love & with love may we let go.
may we embody love, may we abide in love, may we align with love, may speak & act with love, may we let go into the flow of love.
our level of acceptance of cruelty towards others, whether by means of indifference to it or celebration of it, is in direct relation & proportion to our level of emotional & spiritual maturity. it is also a reflection of our understanding or lack of understanding of love & what is sacred. the harm & cruelty, embodied in the actions of the administration through DHS, ICE, HSI, w/ collaborating law enforcement & contractors is immoral. this should be obvious, especially for those who claim to know & practice love. we all need to look in the mirror & have a come to Jesus moment regarding our own moral foundations & practices in this time – a time calling for our love, embodied by empathy, fierce compassion, clarity, wisdom, resilience, & courage. a love that challenges us to give voice & solidarity to those targeted, working to end harm, while also calling to the humanity w/ in those doing the targeting. a love that calls out the harm in the actions of systems & institutions while also not seeing individuals as beyond redemption.
access to power doesn’t last. for those who wield it, their time is finite. they fear this truth in their bones & they want us to think otherwise. but we, who find our source in love rather than fear, know differently. so, every time they turn out the light, we turn it back on – with our empathy, our kindness & compassion, our thoughtfulness & imagination, w/ our solidarity, resilience & bravery, planting seeds for the future we want, a future that prioritizes health & well-being, equity, justice, & happiness for everyone without exclusion.
celebrating friends is a beautiful & joy-filled practice.
happy debut novel release day to my dear friend, Veronica Bane!! 🤩DIFFICULT GIRLS is out today! 🎉
my preordered copy arrived at my doorstep AND i’m looking forward to attending a talk and book signing this Thurs 7/10 in Phoenix, AZ 🤗 if you’re in the area, come on by 👍🏼 or check out dates for a location near you.
so happy to celebrate Veronica! she’s not only one of the most generous hearted people i know, but also one of the most disciplined and dedicated to her passion and craft. bravo, friend! so happy for you and this moment!! 👏🏼♥️🙏🏼
loving each other into wholeness can be expressed in many different ways, i think. it can look different in different situations, depending on the need.
but it most certainly doesn’t look like assaulting & grabbing people off the streets & disappearing them, or relegating them to concentration camps, or modern-day enslavement, or cutting their healthcare & access to food assistance. these are examples of cruelty, a loss of humanity, & an affront to the soul.
let us choose love, not cruelty.
resist the darkness being celebrated. stand up, speak out on behalf of each other.
love knows no bounds.compassion is one piece. it seeks out & goes to any place where there is suffering & to anyone who is suffering. authentic, complete compassion has no bias, shows no favor. it simply, directly, & profoundly goes to where the suffering is. this is what we are called to embody.
so when we notice we are leaving someone or some group out, we know that we have fallen off the path, we have missed the mark, that our heart has remained closed to that person or group. if our heart has not fully opened, our expressed love is incomplete, & we have work to do on ourselves.
we cannot say we are fully loving or that our heart is fully opened in this country, if we support or are indifferent to the suffering of the immigrant, the suffering of the trans person, or the erasure of the history of Black, or Indigenous, or LGBTQ+ people, or the withholding of food & medicines from the sick, the elderly, the disabled, & children. to do so, is to not be on the side of love.
likewise, love is not limited by borders either whether physical or psychological, so may our hearts open to the cries of suffering from Texas, from Gaza, from Ukraine, from the Congo, from wherever & whomever they come. when they are silent may we be their voice. when they fall, may we lift them up & stand beside them, walking hand in hand in however that is possible.
i grieve this present moment. the amount of unnecessary suffering this administration is causing, that the Republicans are causing should not be underestimated. i have further thoughts for a post that will publish tomorrow. for now i’m sharing two links of two previous posts one regarding self-care during this challenging time & the other a list of organizations to put our efforts into to help us in this moment. we have each other, friends, & we must take care of each other.
may all be safe, healthy, at ease, and free from suffering.
yesterday felt like a pretty dark day. T is emboldened by Israel & Iran’s ceasefire compliance…for now (BUT we can’t get one for the Palestinians who continue to be killed & starved??). T is also emboldened by NATO countries’ increase in spending. but mostly, i think he is emboldened by SCOTUS’ decision, which seen in the light of their previous presidential immunity ruling, gives T almost king like power & even though it doesn’t quite go so far, he believes it does & will act as if so.
ugh.
BUT we still have the rights of speech & assembly even though they are being attacked. we still have a free press for now, & political opposition power – though it too is under attack with DHS already taking a swing at detaining & arresting Democratic Reps, Senators, Mayors, etc. & more than this, the vast majority of Americans, even some who voted for T, are deeply unhappy, concerned, & fearful of what is happening.
this is the time to speak out, to pressure lawmakers, to stand up, & participate in whatever activism we are able to participate in.
The Metta Garden 