Holding the Tension of Opposites
The month of March ricochets from blizzards, high winds, torrential rainstorms, and freezing temperatures to blissfully warm days accompanied by birdsong and the sound of children playing all around the neighborhood.
The equinox signifies a time of balance. The Earth in the northern hemisphere, moving towards the sun on its axis, has equal parts light and darkness in this season. Perhaps in March also equal parts warmth and cold.
I think of holding the tension of opposites in this space, Especially during this particular time collectively and personally.
Collectively, we seem to be hanging on the precipice of a world war, potentially involving nuclear weapons. In the United States, there doesn’t seem to be a clear, consistent ideology, driving the decisions of the administration, other than cruelty and power mongering. Yet, in neighborhoods across the country, people are showing up for one another in powerful and meaningful ways. This includes witnessing and not turning away from the atrocities perpetuated by ICE agents. Folks in the neighborhoods of Minneapolis organized around making sure vulnerable people had food, were receiving necessary healthcare, and provided safe escorts for children to and from school. While this situation has changed, people all around the country are tending to their neighbors in many ways.
Refusing silence and refusing to look away.
While there is much to grieve and rage about daily, I also find nourishment and inspiration from folks walking the walk these days. One example of many is the children’s music YouTube sensation Miss Rachel who lends her professional knowledge and awareness about appropriate childhood development to her heart and her passion for seeing all children in the world being able to have resource resources, be free and safe in their environments and live in peace.
Holding space in a world that contains genocide and also the heart of Miss Rachel is the practice for these times.
For myself personally, living with fibromyalgia, a condition that involves a breakdown between the body and the brain so the body experiences intense pain, I am learning to find the glimmers (small moments of joy).
It is a natural response of our bodies and of survival in general to resist pain at any cost. Fear of pain is a real phenomenon. Part of living with fibromyalgia is recognizing that the pain is not in your head and at the same time it will not kill or harm you.
My inclination is to do as little as possible, especially in public settings, where I can quickly become uncomfortable and pain ridden.
However, isolation and hibernation is also harmful to the psyche and the spirit.
What I Am Learning
What I am learning is to not let the pain consume me, but acknowledge it.
What I am learning is to not turn away from the pain, but to turn towards it with breath, gentle movement and lack of judgment or reactivity.
What I am learning Is that I can be in pain and still have an enjoyable experience.
What I am learning is that life is both terrible and beautiful, both cruel and fiercely kind.
What I am learning is to value both the blizzards and the bird song.
What I Am Committed To (No Matter What!)
What I am committing to is to live with an open heart, even in the face of the heartbreak that is daily part of living in this country and in this world.
What I’m committing to is curiosity, compassion, creativity, collaboration, connection, and community.
What I am committed to is not turning away from suffering but towards it, not in charity, but solidarity seeing the humanity in each other as an essential component of being alive.
