In my most recent blog post, I shared my fears for our country given recent political events. It felt powerful to put language to my experience and I hope it felt validating to those of my readers sharing some of the same fears that I have. But, I also felt that I left something unsaid. And so, think of this post as Part II. The same forewarning still exists as in my previous post. If you feel the need to separate yourself from political discourse, please stop reading this post and go and do something that nurtures you. Take care of yourself. I will return to my normal topics soon. But for you brave souls that want to continue, let’s go…
The source of the fears I spoke to are the oppressive, often dehumanizing language being used, and decisions being made that I believe are harmful to vulnerable populations. Many people, myself included, believe that the root of the messages we hear is founded in a strong desire for power. It makes sense that all of this would trigger fear and resistance in people. But I want us to consider something else. If our assumption about the motivation for power is accurate, then how do our fears feed that?
I played football in college and I carry within me a competitive streak that propelled me to achieve on the field. One thing I learned from that experience is that getting your competitor into a defensive position was helpful in securing victory. Defensiveness can leave you vulnerable. It hands off your power. It makes you lose your focus. And so, as much as I want to honor my fears about current events in our country, I also want to balance the fear with joy. And creativity. And connection. If we look at the history of the world, resilience in the face of aggression is often fueled by the artists, the writers, and those who can bring people together. I am not talking about either/or. We either feel fear or we feel joy. I am talking about AND. We feel our fear and take action where we can. AND, we feel joy. We go for walks in nature. We openly express love for the people with whom we share our life. We plants vegetable gardens. We sing. We dance. We show up for life. Our joy brings light to a world that is desperately in need of illumination. And that joy taps into our strength.
Balancing fear with joy is a monumental task that requires us to be mindful. We need to check in with ourselves and see if we are sprinkling seeds of joy amongst our efforts at awareness and resistance. We need to make sure that we are not so distracted by our political landscape that we miss out on the sweet moments of intimacy and connection. We need to intentionally drink in the beauty around us, so that it will strengthen and sustain us through these difficult times. Joy will only come if we are purposeful about creating, recognizing, and embracing it. I know I am capable of this big undertaking. And I believe you are too.
And so, my dear readers, how will you honor fear, resist hate and power, and find joy in your life? Be well.
