Whether it’s the need to resume an exercise routine, clear the desk of paperwork, reply to emails and calls, book appointments, face decisions, or just get the dishes done, we’ve all fallen into cycles of procrastination. Overwhelm is a common theme in our world and it can stop us in our tracks.
When something is difficult to face, there are a thousand distractions that can too easily fill the void. So here are some suggestions for taking that first step to gain momentum and bravely move forward.
Keep it small. Pick something right in front of your eyes that needs attention and just do it.
Make a short list. Write down the five most important things to accomplish in the day and start with the easiest one. Or start with the hardest one to get it out of the way.
Replace judgment of yourself with compassion. There are reasons you’ve fallen behind.
Address health concerns that are contributing to your situation and get the needed sleep.
Allow “collapse time”. If you absolutely can’t get off of the couch or take any action, then don’t. Momentum always returns!
Talk to a good listener whom you can trust to have compassion and be encouraging. Expressing yourself can create space for renewed energy, even enthusiasm. If no one is available, write what’s blocking you and your feelings about it.
Reward yourself for each accomplishment. Cross it off the list, give yourself acknowledgment, or do something briefly that gives you pleasure, with a clear boundary of when you’ll return to the tasks at hand.
Let Mother Earth renew you. Go outside, stand in the rain, look at the stars, take deep breaths, walk around the block or by the lake or ocean, pick flowers from the garden, and put your bare feet on Her as you take deep breaths.
Work with intention and ask Spirit and your higher Self for what you need. Place needs and intentions on an altar and light the candle, sage off, gong the bowl, and consciously connect with the clarity you are creating in front of you.
Breathe and meditate, including guided meditations with a purpose of shifting your perspective.
Repeat frequently and out loud, “Yes I Can”! And love your Self through it.
Loneliness has become an epidemic, and it’s no wonder. Technology has completely changed our way of communicating with one another, and our capacity for active listening is nearly extinct. What is active listening? It’s when you are fully engaged and present with the person speaking, you’re making an effort to understand what they’re saying without judgment, while demonstrating empathy and asking questions to make sure you are understanding them. You put aside your own needs and viewpoint to truly perceive them and be there from a place of attentive caring.
What it doesn’t include is a forcing of opinion, the need to be right, or projections toward the speaker. You aren’t distracted or simply waiting for them to stop talking so you can make your point, and you don’t interrupt.
Active listening creates intimacy, connection, trust, and safety. It makes a person feel seen and heard and it leaves an impact. As a spiritual counselor and former hospice volunteer, I have become quite practiced as a professional listener and have witnessed the amazing results.
In the context of humanity’s polarization, heightened stress levels, elevated fears, and increased anxieties, it takes a conscious effort to cultivate the art of listening. You have to prioritize its importance, recognize the value of human life, and desire the experience of giving someone your full attention in a way that creates deeper connectivity. What an incredible gift to give your friends, partner, children, and those in your day.
We are rapidly losing core values we held dearly as Americans. We speak carelessly and hostilely, generating further disconnect and increasing suffering and reactivity. We are an addicted culture, expecting instant gratification and fulfillment so we have little patience for others. Isolation and separation are the results.
You won’t have to look hard to find someone who is lonely. What if you joined the person on the bench at the park, knocked on the door of your neighbor, or called your lonely friend and offered words of kindness? And as they opened up, you just listened without trying to solve anything for them. You gave them your full attention and actively listened, maintaining eye contact if in person, and perhaps taking their hand.
You would witness transformation, and the return of energy would fill your spirit with joy and upliftment. You have the power to change a life with active listening, especially because so few take the time to offer it. It heals neglect, restores our inherent value, and creates the connectivity that’s longed for.
We can also become active listeners in nature and our environment. Have you ever experienced a power outage and after hours of sitting in the candlelight listening to the silence, you perceive a sense of magic? And are unpleasantly shocked when the electricity comes on and the noise returns, even feeling regret? Or taken a walk in silence, actively listening to nature’s communications? The sense of fullness and wholeness that results is undeniable.
It’s easy to feel helpless and hopeless in the midst of the world we are living in, but you CAN make a difference actively listening to someone today.
We orbit the circles as time comes and goes, no beginnings or endings, our soul’s journey grows. Gains and losses all one and the same, profound lessons learned through the joy and the pain. Love, the continuum that binds all our souls, hearts’ passions the fuel to strive for our goals. We die as we…
Whether it’s the need to resume an exercise routine, clear the desk of paperwork, reply to emails and calls, book appointments, face decisions, or just get the dishes done, we’ve all fallen into cycles of procrastination. Overwhelm is a common theme in our world and it can stop us in our tracks. When something is…
Loneliness has become an epidemic, and it’s no wonder. Technology has completely changed our way of communicating with one another, and our capacity for active listening is nearly extinct. What is active listening? It’s when you are fully engaged and present with the person speaking, you’re making an effort to understand what they’re saying without…
I’m writing this on the Leo New Moon, July 24th. Today and in the next few weeks, we are in a special time of portals: gateways to transformation, with amplified energy to support personal change.
Our successful release of old patterns and conditioning that restricted our true identity, now becomes the power to recreate ourselves anew. If you are still struggling or avoiding letting go, this time period will clearly (and possibly forcefully) bring forth the reminders of what to work on.
This morning I wrote a list describing the old me, and another for the new me I want to become. I had charged a glass of water by putting a quartz channeling crystal and citrine in it, then leaving it in the sun and moonlight for over twenty-four hours.
At the time of the New Moon today (12:11 Pacific) I placed the “New Me” list on my altar with crystals around it and an Eagle feather on top, then lit candles, and saged. I drank the charged water after each statement I spoke out loud, and gonged Tibetan bowls to signal and send my intentions. I will visit this altar daily to reinforce and align with these resolutions.
Between now and the end of the month, you can do rituals like this to set and reinforce your own intentions, and be blessed by the new moon portal energy.
Another portal opening returns on August 8th (8-8), the Lion’s Gate. This is an annual occurrence roughly between July 26 and August 12. From the Times of India: “The Lion’s Gate portal is activated when the Sun in Leo, the Earth, and Sirius (the brightest star in our sky) move into an alignment with the Orion’s Belt.”
“In numerology, 8-8 is a divinely auspicious number that represents infinity, abundance, and karmic balance. It is an invitation to connect with your higher self. Set clear intentions about what you want to manifest and visualize it as already yours. Meditate with the Sun or Sirius energy, visualizing a golden light surrounding you and filling you, giving you courage and clarity. Journal or create a vision board, as this is the best time of year to manifest via creative expression. Create movement, and express gratitude for what you have and what you wish to receive to create a mindset of abundance.”
We are conscious co-creators as physical beings that are One with our Source. Participating now with your intentions and connection to Spirit (such as ways mentioned here), are examples of how to unite with the greater powers at hand to rise above misperceived limitation. Spend time with Mother Earth, and do your rituals with Her. Then follow through with action, by demonstrating the higher values, qualities and consciousness you are choosing to attain. Interact from those higher perspectives, in life and with others, to embody your choices and become an example of our unified capability.
Change is at hand, and I celebrate each and every one of you with the courage and conviction to be your higher self in all of your expressions and interactions. It’s time.
The biggest theme I currently hear from clients is the difficulty of coping with uncertainty in their lives. Since 2020, when the covid pandemic changed everything, it has reigned over us all, remaining a constant.
Uncertainty is a natural part of life, but we have created a dependency on the illusions of safety created by our unconsciousness conditioning and attachment to existing material structures. Now, as those structures disintegrate, our safety bubbles have popped and many are left feeling fragile and fearful.
The more we accept the true nature of life, which is change (often beyond our control), growth, expansion, evolution, and eventual death and rebirth, the more inwardly powerful and outwardly adept we become.
We are not here to control the greater forces of creation, or one another, we are here to create with them, in respect of all life. But when our greed defies natural law, and the false belief in superiority prevails, we also defy our true oneness. Thus, the human belief in separation creates conflict and desperation as it promotes ignorance.
Nature reflects the truth. What enters a river, affects the communities downstream. What fills the air, sails through currents afar. What we kill and destroy affects the ecosystem. Nature is the picture and reflection of our oneness.
Nature also reflects the uncertainty of life quite well. A fire rages, a storm becomes a tornado, a luscious garden suddenly becomes diseased. And Mother Earth’s resilience creates new growth from that which dies. Life is a continuum, and when we make friends with the nature of life, we learn to cultivate the same resilience.
Acceptance of our realities is a key, even as we remain connected to the miraculous potential of possibilities. Surrender of our fears and attempts to control in any form, is necessary. We can strive to manage, but control is not an option. Control never wins.
Spirituality is the central cornerstone for addressing the uncertain and temporary nature of physical existence. It is the awareness of the human spirit or soul, and the greater whole we are a part of that is cosmic and divine in nature. It includes our unique relationship with the divine or higher power. Simply put, it’s the relationship between ourselves and something larger.
Through prayer, meditation, awareness of presence, and connection with energies greater than ourselves (such as space and ocean), we feel the part of ourselves that is made of that which created us, and a higher intelligence and guidance comes forth than what typically emerges from our thought-mind, which is governed by conditioning.
Choosing curiosity rather than fear, avoiding projection into the past or future and living consciously from the now, and commanding our infinite capacity to create and love, are practices that keep us present and in the field of possibilities.
Cooperation and connection with others, are also good building blocks for mastering uncertainty. We need to participate in the network of humanity we are a part of, with a willingness to support one another. It increases hope and faith, and stimulates ideas.
Ultimately, it’s about faith and trust. Having faith in a higher power and trusting oneself to make sound choices in response to intuitive, inner guidance. When we are connected to life in higher consciousness, we recognize one another on a soul level, and understand the universal whole we are a part of. We’re able to balance our nothingness with our importance and surrender egoic dominance.
None of this is easy, but it is most certainly achievable and, with practice, we can enjoy and embrace the unknown with much greater ease and confidence. This is a time to honor the wisdom of the elders who have witnessed the ever-changing cycles of humanity over time, and have much to offer. Seeking counsel from the wise, as we look to the heavens and listen within, will surely bring the guidance and navigation we need.
Los Angeles and Malibu have been my homes for over forty-five years, though I now reside in Santa Barbara. Having lived through the Woolsey fire in Malibu in 2018, and forced to evacuate for two weeks, I know firsthand what it is like to experience a major fire.
The fires currently ravaging Los Angeles area cities, truly deserve the description of apocalyptic and it is an ongoing horror for those who live there and all who are affected. Home and beloved community are gone for thousands upon thousands of people and, once again, we are united by catastrophe.
So I want to address the vast topic of when devastation hits, because it is becoming way too familiar for all of us. Whether it’s destructive weather events or the departure of loved ones, loss of any kind changes us. Shock, disbelief, helplessness, confusion, disorientation, unfathomable grief, depression, and profound suffering commonly accompany events of devastation.
It’s a moment in time when our lives are instantly and radically changed by forces greater than our ability to prevent them. It is part of the nature of life, as is death, and no one is exempt. However, because of the extremes we now live in, we are forced to relentlessly face and adapt to these events, and cultivate our resilience in the process. The stress affects every part of us; bodies can break down and minds can scramble, rendering us useless.
The journey through devastation of any kind is ultimately a pathway toward growth, healing, recovery and rebirth. It is best met with an inner choice to evolve through it, even without knowing how. It becomes realized by going through the stages of darkness in gradual acceptance and surrender to the reality of what has happened. The goal is to not get stuck in the quicksand of pain, bitterness, regret, blame, and victimhood. Expressing emotions and sharing the experience with others can help to avoid that.
Devastation is death and rebirth, and it requires the best of us. It requires conviction in our ability to not only survive, but draw from our inherent capability, power, and strength to move through it. We are made of that which created us which means we are infinite potential, connected to infinite resource, given an infinite capacity to love. In time, the momentum to recreate comes through.
The over-conditioned, fearful mind is not where we will find answers or the way forward. The directional guidance needed for forward movement comes from the heart, intuitive wisdom, and soul. It comes from connection to Source, within us and through us, and from Mother Earth who constantly reflects Her wisdom and embodies the true nature of life.
We have to listen. We have to pause. We have to connect.
One of the gifts of devastation is the eradication of the pettiness that keeps us separate from one another. Connection in and of itself, brings healing and reminds us of our oneness. Seek connection. Give and receive as many hugs as possible.
The action of helping others in the midst of a devastating event, brings purpose that lifts us higher and ignites our capability beyond all former parameters. A helping hand, a compassionate touch, staying with someone in despair, listening, looking for what’s needed and responding, all become lasting memories for those affected as we, in turn, are uplifted by our contribution.
Asking for help when you need it is critical. Too often we are captured by mental patterns that speak of the need to do things on our own, hide our vulnerability, or feel wrong for asking. But risking our own vulnerability by asking for help, allows someone else to fulfill their desire to assist and it is part of our purpose in sharing life together.
Take care of yourselves. Whether you are in the midst of devastation or observing it, take breaks that enable you to assimilate and rest. Taking care of the mundane tasks of daily life can be a stepping stone for coping, along with mental breaks that create space for greater perspective.
About prayer: I found myself overwhelmed when trying to pray about the Los Angeles fires. There was so much to pray for and it’s so personal to me, I couldn’t find a focus. It’s called complicated grief, and what helps is to pick just one thing, one aspect to pray for. And continue to pray in that way.
Life is a continuum and nothing can remain the same. You cannot remain in pain forever, grieve forever, be lost in darkness forever, or suffer forever. If you are willing, change will come and you will feel the light of relief and hope. You will be supported in getting there in unexpected ways. The beauty of life will caress and engage you into new states of aliveness, gratitude, rebirth, and joy.
The holiday season is here and the currents of life are rapidly moving us forward. With all the activity, travel, company, shopping, cooking, and preparing, I want to offer some practices for staying grounded, connected within, and open to Spirit. These practices can also help those who find themselves alone, in grief, or lonely.
PRAYER
Prayer is communication with God/Spirit/Source. There is no right or wrong way to pray, but I do find praying out loud to be more powerful. I begin with authentic, honest expression of what I’m feeling or praying about, just as I would speak to a friend. The emotions are important because speaking words from the mind is like reading a book out loud to God instead of sharing your heart and soul. We connect to Spirit from heart, soul and consciousness.
There is nothing you cannot ask for. If we are One with that which created Us, we have infinite resource to draw from at all times. As the nature of life is responsive, so is Spirit. I highly suggest praying ahead the day before you even get out of bed. Scan your body, mind, heart, soul, emotions, and the agenda of the day and pray for what you need, seek to aspire to, or wish to co-create.
When someone in your life seems to be beyond your ability to help, pray for God to do for them what you cannot. Be fluid, expressive, and reverent. I always close with gratitude for all prayers answered.
CREATE AN ALTAR OR MAKE A NEW ONE
An altar is a designated space for creating an opening to connect with Spirit. Traditional ingredients are: fresh flowers, candle, something that burns like incense or sage, and any objects that invoke spiritual energy, charm, or a sense of wonder.
We place on the altar what we want altered, healed, transformed, or manifested. Loved ones can be placed on an altar, by placing their picture or writing their name. You can make a family altar, personal altar, community altar, or even world altar, placing the intention of your heart’s desire in written word or through the use of symbols or pictures. Once created, I sage it and activate the altar with the gong of a Tibetan healing bowl, then light the candle, burn the incense, and state out loud the meaning of the altar.
The more you engage the space by viewing it, replacing the fresh flowers, or adding to it, the more your mind can release concern as the heart opens in greater trust. An altar can become a portal opening for the physical realm and the non-physical. Never put harmful intention on any altar, as it will most certainly return to you in plenty.
HOT BATHS WITH EPSOM SALTS AND ESSENTIAL OILS
Epsom salt baths relax the nervous system and help to cleanse energies absorbed throughout the day. They improve sleep and, when adding essential oils like lavender, eucalyptus, rose, or frankincense, enhance the senses and promote healing energy .
BREATH WORK AND TONING
In a stressful moment, one deep conscious breath with your eyes closed, can release tension immediately. Taking a few moments to breathe in with a focus on receiving what benefits you, and breathe out as you release what doesn’t, circulates life-force energy and helps transmute any inner disturbance.
Toning is also a practice for releasing negativity through the power of sound, your voice. Eyes closed, palms open, choose an emotion you wish to release and sound out Om or Ah on every exhale until you run out of breath. Repeat for several minutes and sit silently with eyes closed afterwards, feeling the vibrations and relief coursing through you.
EARTH CONNECTION
Depending on weather conditions, if you are able to take walks, do it. Be in nature in any way possible. Mother Earth’s energy is so much slower than the pace of our minds, that in Her presence our internal rhythm and timing come forth and we feel better. Imagine a tree with roots going into Her body to receive what they need to grow and flourish, and be that tree. As you walk, let each alternate step be a Thank – You, Thank – You. You will feel Her more, and your moving into gratitude will shift your perspective. If unable to be outside, make a fire, buy fresh flowers, take a sauna, or make things with Her leaves, acorns, branches, or pine cones. Cook foods that come from Her with love and care.
CREATE A GOING-TO-BED RITUAL
If you are in partnership, sit face to face with the palms of your hands on each other’s chest and breathe simultaneously together as you look into each other’s eyes. After, speak words of appreciation, gratitude, recognition, acknowledgment and love to one another. If inclined, pray together.
If doing something on your own, I often suggest writing acknowledgment of yourself in a journal. Recognize every small, medium and large accomplishment you made that day, from the mundane to the extraordinary. Be generous, and only focus on the positive aspects of your achievements. Offer gratitude for all that supported you in that day.
Guided meditation for sleep is another tool I frequently use, choosing one with a focus that supports my needs. Jason Stephenson offers endless sleep meditations on YouTube, and I also listen to Joe Dispenza’s meditations.
SURPRISE SOMEONE WITH A GIFT
Random acts of kindness are powerful. Wrap a little something and leave it in someone’s grocery cart, the doorstep of a neighbor, or on someone’s car – with a note from the Elves and Fairies that this is a special gift just for them, or adding your own words and blessings. Engage your children in making little gifts to disperse together.
Another favorite, is paying for the person behind you in line. Maybe it’s just a coffee, or a meal in a drive-through, but it’s the unexpected gifts that surprise and last in memory. They also inspire others to do the same.
Giving replaces emptiness and loneliness.
FORGIVE SO YOU CAN BE A VESSEL
Forgive yourself and others, and forgive the whole world. It will enable you to stop dragging the past around like rocks in a bag, and allow you to be a clear vessel for higher expression and co-creation. All you have to do is be willing, maintain your intention through rising resentments, and ask for the help you need to sustain your efforts.
May you free yourself this season, to create holidays that speak to your heart, whether traditional or non-traditional. And may we all intend to live in higher consciousness, respectful of ourselves and one another, with a willingness to be of service.
November has been an intense month, to say the least, and there has been much to process and reflect upon. For many, including myself, the election results brought despair and disbelief. It blasted open our frames of reference and crushed our hearts as we revisited the gut-wrenching memories of 2016.
I’m not one for politics, but when women’s rights for reproductive freedom were withdrawn by the Dobbs decision, leaving countless women at risk, suffering, and dying, I saw another red flag on the field representing loss of our human rights with the likelihood of more to come.
It took seemingly weeks to lose those rights, yet decades to achieve such hard-fought victory, just as the toll the civil rights movement took on so many lives and families, yet continues to require vigilance to uphold. Our strength is in our unity and it’s the overall escalation of division, blatantly used and touted by, immoral political characters and strategies of late, that has moved me into more of an activist role.
My response to the election results was to immediately participate in a call with 40,000 other people who felt the same way, organized by groups that work to preserve our rights, and democracy itself. I have since been involved with a group called Indivisible (indivisible.org) to build community and be prepared to stand and fight for those rights, should we need to.
Even if you do not feel affected by current politics, this Scorpio season has brought much from the depths to the surface, with the need to face ourselves and the circumstances at hand. It’s meant to be a soul-searching time and yet the currents of life are now swiftly carrying us forward into the holiday season, beginning with Thanksgiving.
The good new is, what naturally follows deep internal diving, is a rising to the surface to come up for air, bringing the greater insight and perspective gained. Now we can have more openness and willingness to enjoy one another, regroup, and gain clarity about our new directions. And it can be a welcome time of returning to a focus of gratitude, sharing, and generosity.
When I am saging a client in a cleansing ritual, I ask them to silently offer their willingness to let go of the past, only taking the wisdom gained and the love shared. I ask them to offer their willingness to release and forgive everything else, themselves, and the whole world.
I believe our spiritual path in these times of even greater uncertainty and remaining division, is to demonstrate our infinite capacity to love and express our highest attributes of compassion, forgiveness, active listening, and kindness; to take positive action to replace grievance, re-build community, and offer unconditional love as much as possible so we can heal.
I wish you all, warm togetherness and the blessings of this holiday season, and continued strength and inspiration to overcome any challenges you are facing.
We are One, and Happy Thanksgiving to All!
A Holiday Note: Gift certificates are available for purchasing phone sessions ($300/60 min.), so make sure you contact me to buy them in time to mail for Christmas (or any occasion). xoxo
The upcoming election in the United States has the world watching with anticipation. It marks a defining and critical moment in our history that will shape the future globally.
It’s not easy to watch or take in. As an HSP (highly sensitive person) and an intuitive channel, there are days when I cannot turn on the news because my senses and emotions are too overwhelmed. I almost have to recover before I can digest more. But even during those times, I am praying and allowing the tears to flow as I grieve the distress our country is in, and the damage being done.
For me, it’s not about taking sides anymore. It’s about our values and commitment to fight for, and do the work democracy requires. It’s about making sure we don’t give away the freedoms and rights we cannot afford to take for granted, and recognizing the sacred privilege of voting that democracy offers. We are the role model for the world at a most precarious time, and the outcome of this election will have monumental consequences.
Living in California, if you are pro-Harris/Walz, it can feel like your vote won’t matter because our state predictably and heavily votes democratic. Based on the electoral system, if you’re not in one of the swing states, you may also feel your vote isn’t needed. But every voice of vote matters, everywhere!
It can feel like our choice will be swallowed whole when billionaires, corporations, and countries are using their power to determine the fate of America. That only makes it more critical for every American to participate. The collective power in how we vote is still recognized as the rule of law. For now.
It can be very difficult to stand up and follow through when we have been, and are, going through so much. Wars are raging, our jobs and lives are demanding, we’re suffering a loss, we don’t want to get involved with politics, we’re numb, we don’t care, and we may even be fighting to survive.
Whatever your situation, I hope you take a moment to realize how important and needed you are. We cannot create the future we want without using the sacred privilege of our vote, and we cannot maintain our democracy without participating in it.
On another level, if we ever doubted our words can change the world, the evidence could not be clearer now. The words we speak and write have impact and consequences, whether spoken to one person, a country, or the world. Grievance and blame are the easiest and laziest forms of expression. They keep us from rising above.
Expressions of universal wisdom, compassion, empathy, unity, and the truth of our oneness, require a higher mind, a higher consciousness. They lead us home to our true capacity to love, and light the path for a future that lifts the world and everyone in it. Our votes determine our leaders, and those leaders will take us one way or the other.
My favorite line in The Course in Miracles, is “You can have a grievance or you can have a miracle, but you can’t have both.”
Have you been feeling overwhelmed of late? Fatigued? Sleepless and anxious about the prevailing uncertainty that hangs in the air? Given the catastrophic weather events, political climate, inflation, and ongoing wars (among other stressors), there are so many reasons we can feel paralyzed some days or incapable of taking in one more disaster.
Working as a spiritual counselor is my saving grace because helping others brings a shift of focus, and time spent in higher frequencies always makes one feel better, but I’ve been doing something else to keep moving forward with an open heart, and it’s been fun.
I’ve been taking love to the streets. Every day, I find ways to be generous and connect with others to acknowledge them and lift their spirits. As part of the struggling middle class, I may not have extra money to give or grand ways to contribute, but I have found that the smallest things can make the biggest difference and here are a few examples:
As I drive by people walking in my neighborhood, I smile as I pass, and they are usually surprised as they smile back.
At a Starbucks drive-through, I paid for the person’s order behind me, imagining their surprise and the gesture potentially duplicating through the line of cars. When taking the money for the order, the cashier at the window was so happy and excited it changed her whole demeanor and she couldn’t stop gushing with gratitude.
When I saw a young homeless man who had caught my eye on other occasions, I immediately recognized he had taken a bad turn. Even his sign had changed to “Homeless and Hurting”. So I stopped at a nearby store and bought a big roast beef sandwich and bottle of water, then had to get on and off the freeway several times to be able to hand it to him on the offramp. I wanted to do more and ask what he needed, but the light changed. He thanked me brightly and walked away to put the items in a plastic bag by a bush near his “post”. My intuition tells me to watch for him and do what I can, so I’m putting a spare backpack in my car for the next time I see him, so he can have a better way to carry his belongings.
Just taking the time to look people in the eye and find something nice to say, creates connection that helps us remember we are all part of the same Universe, going through the same things together. And when you express and reflect that unity, it reflects back.
Today, with just a couple items in my arms, a woman called me over to her line in the grocery store to go ahead of her, since everyone had full baskets. We had a lovely exchange and her gesture warmed my heart. The day before, as I was standing in yet another line, I caught a woman’s eye and she commented on what a beautiful smile I had. Rather than be shy and resistant, I thanked her directly and said “what a kind thing to say”.
In a world that’s fighting, in a country that’s scorched with caustic, demeaning rhetoric from so-called leaders, and in the midst of our own personal struggles, taking love to the streets can bring the remembrance of unity to the surface and spark some joy in our hearts. There are so many small things we can do in a day to spread the love and ease our burdens. You never know how much someone is suffering internally while looking as if they’re fine, and how much you can alter their course just by smiling. Try it! There’s no better time than now.
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