I have been imagining this Advent as a time during which I will hold my breath for a season. But I do not want to just hold my breath. I’d prefer to breathe. So I’m investing some time now asking myself a very basic question: how do I want to live while the unknown is coming? I cannot control the weather, but I can weather it.
What is a “natural” death in our time? With modern medicine, it has become increasingly difficult to avoid life-prolonging treatments. Is it natural to undergo surgery after surgery, or endure multiple rounds of treatments? Is it natural to be kept on life support?
Anger is dangerous to your health, to your spirit, and to the quality of your life – not to mention the impact it has on others. It eats the container that holds it.
Voting is an action we ultimately take as individuals, but we do so surrounded by community. And it requires our belief that our system will work. Belief that our values will prevail. Belief that our country and our world can be better.
Gather the books that are feeding your soul, the ones that make you think or laugh or cry. Share them with friends, online or in person. Reading is a communal activity as much as it is a solitary one, and there’s so much joy to be found in the shared love of a good story.
We must do more than lament, we must act. We must shore up the courage to not look away when our sisters, mothers, aunties, cousins, friends experience domestic violence.