"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it."
- Helen Keller
I swore several blog posts ago to write only about positive things, but realize that might be the reason for my infrequent entries. Writing has the most value when it comes from an authentic place, and though my mind wants to focus on the positive my heart aches over recent news. The government's climate report warns of hard times ahead, for us and especially for our children. The treatment of climate and war refugees on our borders strains credulity. And as Hanukkah begins, I think of last month's anti-Semitic actions - rising from no reason but from primitive, propaganda-fed places.
How do we acknowledge our authentic grief and still strive for hope, lighting candles in the dark places and trying to re-imagine a future that holds every potential for our children? My spiritual guide, Dominie, read me the Helen Keller quote (above), to remind me that more possibilities and perspectives exist than just the grim headlines. For every dire prediction springing from the headlines or from the panicked places in my own mind, I can respond with this: "That's one way to look at it."
Dominie's words poked me, woke the bear of hope from a brief hibernation, and encouraged me to remember that the dark and troubled view is not the only view, and immense capabilities for healing exist.
Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa, Saturnalia, Christmas - all these celebrate illumination. We can acknowledge our struggles while turning toward the light and becoming a light for others. Our communal hopes will feed us, fuel imaginings of a bright tomorrow, if we can share them authentically along with our grief.
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