Living into the “Yes… and” when it feels like the world is on fire.
Hi Friends,
These days, it’s pretty impossible to ignore that it feels like the world is on fire, literally and figuratively.
It seems society and humanity are being burned down by greed, narcissistic self-importance and political insanity. And with Global Warming, the earth is literally warming, with terrifying consequences around the world. From dramatic heat waves and cold snaps to increased storms, floods, fires, and other extreme weather events.
Understandably, more and more of us are feeling lost, disoriented, depressed and hopeless. I wish I had a cure for these feelings. I wish I could say that everything is going to be fine. I cannot. What I can say is that you’re not alone. And even though it can be scary and challenging to acknowledge negative thoughts and feelings, especially things this massive and out of our control, being honest about what we’re experiencing is essential. Because if we live in denial of our fears and feelings, they just fester inside us.
So what DO we do?
Unsurprisingly, I have found that the most beneficial thing is to be in connection and in community and share with one another - to recognize that we are not alone in our fears, anxieties and feelings.
We also cannot stay in hopelessness and helplessness - that does not serve us and it certainly doesn’t serve those that need us to be stronger than they can be (human and non-human alike). So I think it is essential to embrace the “Yes… and.”
Yes… we can feel scared and anxious… and we can also feel joy and connection.
Yes… we can feel incredibly alone… and we can find connection in that aloneness.
Yes… we can feel helpless… and we can still help those in need.
Yes… The news is seemingly always bad. People are being systematically wiped out. The government is a disaster. The Earth and all her dependent beings are suffering. And so on.
And… There is a child laughing next door. The ocean’s waves are lapping rhythmically on a beach somewhere. The birds are abuzz outside and green shoots are popping up out of the ground, reminding us that despite her suffering, the Earth is still alive and waking up. And so on.
I have found that grounding into reality and specifically connecting with Nature is a huge part of experiencing the … and part of the “Yes… and.”
I personally find it incredibly helpful that there are four corner anchors of the year with the Solstices and Equinoxes. Every three months, honoring these pivotal days for the Earth reminds me to and provides me the opportunity to ground. To restore my sense of connection, hope and intention: to recharge my “… and” batteries. This plays out on all four levels:
Connection to the Land: I connect to the Earth, what she is experiencing on the macro and micro levels in the cycles she is moving through.
Connection to Self: I check in with myself and how I am experiencing the cycles of the Earth that I am a part of - how they are playing out in me.
Spiritual Connection: Connecting to Nature is Spiritual connection for me. And remembering and honoring the religious Holy Days surrounding each of the Solstices & Equinoxes (that often are thematically related to Nature’s changes) grounds me in the interspiritual interconnection of all religions and spiritual ideas, deepening my experience of spiritual connection.
Connection to Others: I am reminded of the interconnectedness of all that is - we are all part of this cycle of the Earth. AND I feel connected to everyone that attends the Sacred Gatherings - we are growing and healing in connection.
So whether you have resonated in the past with the idea of being part of the cycles of the earth, or have felt drawn or not to honoring the Solstices or Equinoxes, I hope you’ll join us:
The Spring Equinox Gathering next Tuesday, March 19th from 7:30-8:45PM will be a time for you to ground, to reconnect, to recalibrate and move into the next three months with restored connection and intention.
We are living in an age where we must embrace the “Yes… and.” While it feels like the world is on fire, literally and figuratively: Yes, we must acknowledge and allow for our fears and feelings… and we must also ourselves to experience connection, wonder, joy and hope so that we can move forward with intention to show up for ourselves and others as we’re meant to.
I hope to see you next week.
Love, Rev Dev
P.S. I do not have answers for how to reverse or stall Global Warming, or what will happen with our systems that are clearly not working anymore, how we got here, or exactly what the coming years will bring. That said, if you want to learn more about all of this, I cannot recommend enough the books of Bill McKibben, who I had the honor of studying under in college. I just ordered his most recent book called The Flag, the Station Wagon and The Cross, in which he explores how we got to this point with the climate, race, the religious right and authoritarianism in our country. And apparently he is “not without hope” which is one of the reasons I am going to read it.