In the movie “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” the character Sonny says several times, “Everything will be all right in the end … if it’s not all right, it is not yet the end.”
A colleague and friend wrote and recorded a song based on the writings of Julian of Norwich. The chorus is, “All will be well, all will be well. All manner of things, will be well.”*
As I write this, the presidential election is still too close to call. So, I expect that however this goes, on this morning after a very long and divisive election year, many reading this may feel despair, disbelief, or even depression (and I acknowledge some may not have these feelings) with how close this race has been. This election may have revealed much about people in our country that some of us did not see, or were in denial of its existence.
We heard blatant racism, misogyny, and xenophobia in abundance during this campaign season. The high number of people who seem to support these ways of being may be surprising to many of us. This reflects attitudes and perspectives in our country that fly in the face of our Unitarian Universalist values of equity, justice, and the worth and dignity of all people. And, we may also be challenged to express our values towards those who have strongly opposing viewpoints.
If you are experiencing a heavy heart, I encourage you to remove yourself from any news of the elections for a few days and seek beauty, awe and wonder, and be with those people and activities that fill you with a sense of gratitude. Gratitude can be a revolutionary attitude to hold during difficult times.
I invite you to revisit the metta meditation published in this blog on November 1 as a way to approach the coming days. Perhaps an emphasis on the second verse directed toward all whom you encounter will shift the energy: May you be filled with loving kindness.
After taking a short time to catch your breath, regain the ground of your being, and nurture beauty and gratitude, then it’s time to get to work building the connections and relationships with the people in our neighborhoods, schools, workplaces in ways that help us to heal our communities. Seek first to understand, before being understood.
Life goes on. If it doesn’t seem that all is well, or that everything is all right, then it’s not yet the end. There is work to be done to look into people’s hearts, build bridges, and open up new ways to move toward building the world we dream about in which all people experience respect and dignity. We are all inextricably interconnected with all of life, there is no Planet B for us to run away to, and we need to find our way towards the Beloved Community.
Jan Taddeo
[I will be holding a healing circle at UUCG on Wednesday 11/9 from 5:30 to 6:45. The circle may continue to gather as long as needed that evening while I’m in a meeting.]
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Kadbd3tCqc
Thank you for these words
Love my community of faith and good works.
This morning I am remembering Courage as my mission the most. An addition of curiosity mixed with hope to see any potential good. And compassion for myself and others who are afraid.
All will be well.
Thank you for your good example, Barbara. In my practice of the Metta this morning I did what I have done now for 9 days–on the “may YOU be filled with loving kindness” I focused on Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump, our whole nation, our world, and the Earth our Mother. I can imagine nothing greater right now than that a sudden epidemic of loving kindness overcame us all. Some may call that magical thinking. I call it something more like your courage with curiosity mixed with hope. It’s still what I long for, live for and envision for today and tomorrow.
This is a beautiful message for the morning. Thank you for leading our community with your courage, compassion and grace.
Dear Jan, Bob and Barbara,
As I have read your words, and feel beneath them into my own heart, what is coming to me quite clearly is how significant it will be for all of us who are “Progressives” to find a deeper center from which we live and move and have our being. The Metta Meditation is one powerful way to bring that grounding to us as our “Embracing Center.” We then find ourselves moving, not from values or principles, but from the very Source of Life that holds us all in Loving Presence. This is how I choose to navigate through the challenges that lie ahead. Thanks all.