So I am called sick, and disabled, and for many I might be considered one of the unlucky.

’Tis true of late I find it difficult to do most of the physical things we often take for granted.
Yet, I also consider myself to be one of the very lucky few. I am fed, sheltered, and cared for. In my lifetime I have not seen my home, my family, my loved ones ravaged by war. And most crucially, I still have the ability to love others, and to receive love. Yes, I may be confined to a body which often limits, but am not trapped in the much darker illusion that I am alone in this world.

What others might not see, is that my situation has also given me the most tremendous gifts. Daily I have been given the wonderful opportunity to contemplate, to evaluate what is truly of importance to me. Some might see that I was torn away from the life I had known, but on the very bright side I was torn away from the life I had known.

In other words all the indoctrination, the taking for granted that life is arranged as it is because “that is just how life is”, “it is just how reality works” became exposed as untruth when I was given the beautiful opportunity to extract, when I was given some perspective. I think of it like a detoxification- while on a drug life seems one way, but when it is purged from your system you can see things anew.

All self-important philosophizing aside (one of my remaining addictions). My great wish is to share the freedoms afforded me. To pass along this gift- the knowledge that the world does not simply run by a fixed set of rules dictated to us by others, but instead is made anew each day by our own actions, and by the decisions we make each moment.
So let’s make them very good ones, let’s shape this world beautifully, because it is and can be a magnificent place, because life can truly be wonderful for all.

Our culture is one which is geared in many ways to help us evade any need to face this inner, silent self.
-Thomas Merton

I am less afraid of Donald Trump or even of the bullies, bigots and climate change deniers then I am of us, of this. What I deeply, deeply fear is that we will slide comfortably back into the status quo as the world slides downward to the point of no return.
I fear television, video games, sports and bar room babble. I fear daily dalliances and petty squabbles. I fear anything and everything that numbs and distracts us from confronting all we need to.
So this I vow, I will not let myself fall back to sleep. I will not go about my existence pretending all is right with the world when so clearly it is not. I do not yet know what I will devote my minutes to, but I promise to spend them wisely and devote what is left of this life to furthering the worthy efforts others have made and are making, to serving in any way that I can.
Since I am always trying to better learn how I can do these things, and since I would like to help others do the same, one of the next projects I will be working on is called:
A practical guide to dreaming but staying awake
(empowering ourselves as citizens)
So to be continued. I will update you on how all of this is going.
With infinite love,
Rachel

I have seen many posts today from people (loving, kind, thoughtful people) struggling to reconcile todays violence, and wavering with blaming religion or Islam for these acts. So I feel compelled to add my thoughts into the mix–Until we learn to love one another completely, to see our inate similarities, to celebrate our divine differences, to accept that violence will never mend whatever pain we feel inside, these things unfortunately will continue to happen…and my controversial two cents, I also think fewer weapons floating around might help, but regardless. I think this horrific propensity is a glitch in us humans , not simply our religions. Were that we were to ban religion I fear that we would simply find a different vehicle to vent these hatreds through (you know perhaps ’cause people believe in driving different cars then us 😉 ) In all seriousness until we get over the tendency to raise our own life’s worth above that of another, this sense of our own inherent righteousness and others wrongness, the thought that other means enemy, this will not end. In summary the only true remedy is long term and it is love…just my silly thoughts ❤

A few days ago I posted the quote:
“Love is the only way to rescue humanity from ills”
-Leo Tolstoy

And one of my wonderful, loving friends commented:
“I believe this wholeheartedly but unfortunately, in my experience, most don’t. I wish there was more empathy and tolerance and people not being so quick to judge. But then, I’m told I don’t live in the real world. I like my dream land.”

Here is my response to that :

And I would debate whomever said that to my last breath. The more I study and learn of all our actions as human beings, the more I see that the most enduring and successful acts are always those wherein we compromise the fewest ideals, wherein we account for and care for the greatest number of lives possible. In fact it is our failure to live up to those ideals that inevitably causes the downfall of any movement or individual actor. I believe if you scan through examples throughout history (and look for the long term, not short term results) this point will be well illustrated.

I suppose this question feels particularly pertinent to address at this moment in history when we as a human race are being challenged to evolve to the point where we realize our unbreakable bond to all our fellows. When we are being challenged to see that every time we try to avoid this responsibility it comes back at us one hundredfold. I actually don’t so much see a “migrant crises” or “climate change”, I see that I am part of a human race which keeps continuing to try to avoid coming to the inevitable realization that we are responsible to and for the whole of life, not simply our lone fraction, and unless and until we embrace that fact we will continue to manifest these disasters which force us to look.

And once again that whole statement could be summed up as “Love is the only way to rescue humanity from ills”.