Remembrance Day. This brings up feelings of sorrow and hope for me. Sorrow that young men, barely starting their lives, died for ours to matter equally to those people in the world who thought that they deserved more and had become greedy or grandiose in their attempts to try to obliterate the 'weak' or 'inferior' according to them. The deaths and grief for these young men reverberated throughout their families, friends and neighbourhood relationships. And what do we have to show for their lost lives? Well, we have our freedom. To live, to vote, to work, to be ourselves and feel safe in our country. We have the opportunity to consciously think about the fact that they fought and lost their lives in order to prevent people from overtaking the world with the idea that they were the 'superior race' (I'm referring to the Second World War now). These men fought for our right to live and be and feel safe. When we remember them and thank them for what they sacrificed on our behalf, then their lives were not lived in vain.
For most people living at this time, we will not remember a time when we did not feel safe in our country. Our country has not known war within it's borders for over a century now. It is a difficult concept to teach people who don't know what a lack of safety feels like. Cynthia Ozick stated “We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.” It is a privilege to feel safe. To trust, mostly, that if you walk down the street that a gun or bomb won't threaten your life. This is a basic human need and those men died for us to be able to experience it.
And why do I feel hope you ask? Because that is the only way to move forward. If you dwell on your fear and anger then it won't invoke change. Listen to what bothers you the most. That you want to see change the most and pick something 'doable' to start to 'be the change'. Politics: Vote. Or help to educate other people to vote. Environment: pick up that plastic bottle that someone threw down on the ground. Switch to cloth bags. Mental health: make someone smile. Hold yourself back from judging. Most people are doing their best. You don't know what is going on in their lives. Be patient. It doesn't have to be huge things. Just commit to being the change. For yourself as well as those that you impact. Those soldiers gave their lives for our freedom. We can be inspired by them to use our lives towards the same ideals. We will all have sorrow in our lives at some point. Acknowledge and name your truth. Let the grief come in waves. And then move forward, deciding who you are and how you will contribute to making the world safer, kinder, healthier, less materialistic, more humane place to be. Pick a cause and use your spirit to instill hope and safety back into the world. Whether it is with one person or groups of people, knowing in your heart that you deserve to be here and that you can make a difference in the world every day.....will likely be something that makes you feel better inside and will inspire hope for you too.
For most people living at this time, we will not remember a time when we did not feel safe in our country. Our country has not known war within it's borders for over a century now. It is a difficult concept to teach people who don't know what a lack of safety feels like. Cynthia Ozick stated “We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.” It is a privilege to feel safe. To trust, mostly, that if you walk down the street that a gun or bomb won't threaten your life. This is a basic human need and those men died for us to be able to experience it.
And why do I feel hope you ask? Because that is the only way to move forward. If you dwell on your fear and anger then it won't invoke change. Listen to what bothers you the most. That you want to see change the most and pick something 'doable' to start to 'be the change'. Politics: Vote. Or help to educate other people to vote. Environment: pick up that plastic bottle that someone threw down on the ground. Switch to cloth bags. Mental health: make someone smile. Hold yourself back from judging. Most people are doing their best. You don't know what is going on in their lives. Be patient. It doesn't have to be huge things. Just commit to being the change. For yourself as well as those that you impact. Those soldiers gave their lives for our freedom. We can be inspired by them to use our lives towards the same ideals. We will all have sorrow in our lives at some point. Acknowledge and name your truth. Let the grief come in waves. And then move forward, deciding who you are and how you will contribute to making the world safer, kinder, healthier, less materialistic, more humane place to be. Pick a cause and use your spirit to instill hope and safety back into the world. Whether it is with one person or groups of people, knowing in your heart that you deserve to be here and that you can make a difference in the world every day.....will likely be something that makes you feel better inside and will inspire hope for you too.
Love Sorrow, By Mary Oliver
Love sorrow. She is yours now, and you must
take care of what has been
given. Brush her hair, help her
into her little coat, hold her hand,
especially when crossing the street. For, think,
what if you should lose her? Then you would be
sorrow yourself; her drawn face, her sleeplessness
would be yours. Take care, touch
her forehead that she feel herself not so
utterly alone. And smile, that she does not
altogether forget the world before the lesson.
Have patience in abundance. And do not
ever lie or ever leave her even for a moment
by herself, which is to say, possibly, again,
abandoned. She is strange, mute, difficult,
sometimes unmanageable but, remember, she is a child.
And amazing things can happen. And you may see,
as the two of you go
walking together in the morning light, how
little by little she relaxes; she looks about her;
she begins to grow.
Mary
And here is a little musical video that was put on the news because this young girl inspires such joy when you watch it. She just proved my point!
Enjoy. www.facebook.com/newschannel5/videos/10155029953092548/
Love sorrow. She is yours now, and you must
take care of what has been
given. Brush her hair, help her
into her little coat, hold her hand,
especially when crossing the street. For, think,
what if you should lose her? Then you would be
sorrow yourself; her drawn face, her sleeplessness
would be yours. Take care, touch
her forehead that she feel herself not so
utterly alone. And smile, that she does not
altogether forget the world before the lesson.
Have patience in abundance. And do not
ever lie or ever leave her even for a moment
by herself, which is to say, possibly, again,
abandoned. She is strange, mute, difficult,
sometimes unmanageable but, remember, she is a child.
And amazing things can happen. And you may see,
as the two of you go
walking together in the morning light, how
little by little she relaxes; she looks about her;
she begins to grow.
Mary
And here is a little musical video that was put on the news because this young girl inspires such joy when you watch it. She just proved my point!
Enjoy. www.facebook.com/newschannel5/videos/10155029953092548/
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