This morning I did not feel so great.
It was cold and rainy and while I always have work I can do, there was nothing pressing enough to keep me from pulling the blankets back over my head for a little while. A most mild depression in a season that has been nothing but abundance and gifts. I have no reason to feel gloomy. I have every privilege and every reason to feel full of joy and light. But today felt hard for one reason or another.
I gave myself until 11:00AM, then I make a promise to go out to support the Women’s March – a protest to end violence, and discrimination against women. It’s a mission and movement about which, I am passionate. Even still, it took far more effort than it should have for me to layer up and make my way to the center of town to the rally. A hundred people or so had gathered and it made my heart sink a bit more.
How could more people have not turned out to demonstrate their support of such an important cause?
How is there this little enthusiasm for doing the right thing?
And then I remembered how difficult it had been for me to get out of bed this morning and a wave of empathy crashed over me. So many of us are marching every day. Fighting the good fight against inequality, discrimination, financial insecurity, mental and physical health battles, simply by getting out of bed and living our lives. We are marching in protest most days, simply by facing the world bravely and doing what we can to make it that much better. By giving back in our teaching, and our listening, and our support. And to each of you I say, “keep fighting the good fight.” Let’s keep holding one another accountable to our own forms of protest. Being fear(less) takes on many forms and not all protests happen in groups with signs.
This week I’ll be looking for those smaller, more subtle ways we fight together every day.
Keep holding one another up, and stay fear(less).
