*because after the week I have had – much good, a lot of bad – I need to remind myself this is temporary (well, not climate change) and all will be well for, like, another 30 years, maybe? But also, that so much of what I experience is up to me, all of it, a choice to think and do and be in a certain way, to forgive or to begrudge, to let go or hold on, to fight, to weep, to give up and in, to surrender and then – if I choose it – to rise again.
“You are loved; you are capable of lives of great joy and meaning. It’s what you are made of. And it’s what you’re here for. Take care of yourselves; take care of one another.” ~ Anne Lamott
“What if our religion was each other. If our practice was our life. If prayer, our words. What if the temple was the Earth. If forests were our church. If holy water–the rivers, lakes, and ocean. What if meditation was our relationships. If the teacher was life. If wisdom was self-knowledge. If love was the center of our being.” ~ Ganga White
“We are social beings, and we need each other to thrive. A strong, healthy community can bolster us through challenging moments and bring joy to our lives. When we build community, we can build empathy for each other; and building empathy for each other helps us to build community.” ~ Elena Aquilar
“In many shamanic societies, if you came to a medicine person complaining of being disheartened, dispirited, or depressed, they would ask one of four questions. When did you stop dancing? When did you stop singing? When did you stop being enchanted by stories? When did you stop finding comfort in the sweet territory of silence? Dancing, singing, storytelling, and silence are the four universal healing salves and where we have stopped them is where we have experienced the loss of soul.” ~ Gabrielle Roth
“We have a tendency to think in terms of doing and not in terms of being. We think that when we are not doing anything, we are wasting our time. But that is not true. Our time is first of all for us to be. To be what? To be alive, to be peaceful, to be joyful, to be loving. And that is what the world needs most.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
“You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way you select your clothes every day. That’s a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind. That’s the only thing you should be trying to control.” ~ Elizabeth Gilbert
“The cure for poverty has a name: it’s called ‘the empowerment of women’. Now, name me a religion that stands, or has ever stood, for that.” – Christopher Hitchens
*P.S. It ain’t bullsh*t.