Bradley Grove Hyson

I can feel everything and survive. What I thought would kill me, didn’t. Every time I said to myself: I can’t take this anymore — I was wrong. The truth was that I could and did take it all — and I kept surviving. Surviving again and again made me less afraid of myself, of other people, of life. I learned that I’d never be free from pain but I could be free from the fear of pain, and that was enough.

Glennon Doyle, Untamed

My BeLoveds,

I would like to offer a GREAT BIG VIRTUAL HUG & tell you that I LOVE YOU, not because of anything you’ve done or not done, but to honor the inherent worth, dignity & respect I believe should be afforded us ALL as human beings.  I know for many this is a HARD TIME!  I offer these thoughts with Love – may they help.

First, remember to regularly practice BREATHING DEEPLY.  This can have a calming impact on our system and is ALWAYS a good practice to cultivate deeper patterns/habits so we’re more likely to do so naturally & automatically – even when we’re not thinking about it.

It is important & absolutely OK to feel our feelings – ALL OF THEM – sadness, grief, anger, etc.  It’s also important to ensure our safety while doing so and not cause harm to ourselves or other others.  Conversations, journaling, nature time, exercise, art, dancing, making music, crying, laughing, crumbling paper or leaves, breaking twigs, pounding pillows, are but a few of the safe outlets for expression.  The grieving process is not necessarily linear, and we may move back & forth through waves of emotions, but I assure you as we stay with it, our emotions will change, evolve and eventually pass.  REACH OUT to those you Love & let them know it and ask for support – family/friends/spiritual communities, or even professional assistance if needed, etc.

I asked an African American friend at vigil about her ability to smile & remain Loving and she shared that she draws upon a DEEP WELL of perseverance from her ancestors who endured CENTURIES of hardship & suffering – women, people of color, minorities and indigenous/native peoples.  Context & perspective are POWERFUL tools indeed.

So many, worked so hard, for so long for a different outcome.  I want to personally thank EVERYONE for all their efforts.  I remind us that we STILL HAVE AGENCY and the ability to exercise our right to self-determination, including standing & working for the kind of Healthy, Compassionate, Peaceful & Loving world we all most want.  We need not ever cede this right or be bowed by the actions/choices of others.  This is a PRACTICE.  It doesn’t mean our minds won’t wander down paths of fear & doubt from time to time, but when we become conscious & aware, we return to exercise our Sacred birthright to choose. JOY is part of the work, and research suggests it has us be MORE effective, clear headed, energetic, healthy & has us serve as good models for others.

We must actively avoid the urge to catastrophize.  EVERY challenge also provides opportunities, and we have the chance to transmute & alchemize this disappointment into something else – soil into roses, lemons into lemonade.  A new game I’ve decided to play & am inviting others to join goes something like this – “what outcomes EVEN BETTER than the one we’d hoped for – can we have emerge from this?”  This is not “the truth,” it’s simply a place to stand or context to look from that may help or empower.  The work of Justice, Peace, Compassion, Healing & Love are long games, and as disappointed as we may feel at times, there are forces of Universe far greater than we’ll ever know at work.  None of us TRULY understands how, in the long arc of human history, this’ll turn out.

One thing I saw that is COMPLETELY within my control is that I can resolve to bring forth an EVEN BETTER VERSION OF ME.  More Loving, Compassionate, Understanding, Joyful & Resilient.  A teacher of mine says we must do that which we aught and avoid that which we should naught.  For some, this may be a wake-up call to put down the remote, phone/screens, drink or distraction & renew our own commitment to on-goingly improving ourselves and upping our game.  Relentlessly choosing quality & excellence is our Bhudda nature.

Finally, despite all that’s happened the Universe still is, the Sun still shines, Earth is still very much alive, and for all of us reading – so are we.  Those of us who’ve lost loved ones know that this is no small thing.  As I watch children playing, oblivious to all this, I’m reminded how life demands that we carry on, so resiliency & renewal must be parts of our game.

I am honored to be part of the global community of Healers, Earth Activists & Peacemakers and am SO GRATEFUL, despite the outcome-that there are tens of millions of others who feel the same.  What we stand for is FAR BIGGER than any one individual or election outcome.  Let us never CEDE our values & commitments in disappointment, but rather deepen our resolve.  I’d invite us all to pull out our calendars NOW & SCHEDULE reminders ahead of the next elections in 2026 & 2028 so we may plan how we’ll get involved & have our voices heard.

Finally, I remind us all that we are children of the Universe, children of Earth, we are MIRACLES and THAT lineage is unassailable. I Love you & I’m never-ever-ever giving up & I invite YOU to do the same.