Unprecedented

This is not the post that I had intended to share today. I had a different one started. I’d brainstormed, outlined, gathered my thoughts, made my observations… It was half-written, to be honest.

And then I woke up today to a world that is changed - and charged - in a very real, very new, very distinct way. While nothing in my daily routine was altered, while my work tasks, exercise routine, chores and errands are all the same, everything feels different. And I am pretty sure that I am not alone in this. 

And I knew immediately that the post that I had started… is not what needs to be said or heard at this moment.

We are all exhausted by these unprecedented times. Our world has been irrevocably changed in ways that no one could have possibly imagined, much less predicted. The last 10 years… 5 years… these recent months, weeks, and days… have been full of situations, circumstances, and events that no one could have ever dreamed possible except in post-apocalyptic, dystopian science fiction. And while it is true that some of the changes that we have seen are positive, beneficial, and the direct result of progress, some of what we are seeing and experiencing… is not. Some of it has to do with resistance to progress, fear of change, and the desperate clinging to what we think will provide us or maintain our comfort.

But the sad truth is that these changes are driving a wedge between people that never needed to be there. And each unprecedented event that occurs continues to drive that wedge deeper and deeper into the grain of our existence, splitting us at our seams and tearing us apart. 

So today, all I have to offer is a moment. A breath. And a hope that you will share this moment with me.

Close your eyes. Just for a moment.

Inhale deeply. As deeply as your lungs will allow.

Hold that breath for just a moment and see where your body sends it. Feel it in your lungs, your limbs, your heart. Send it to the pieces of you that need to be held, that need to be nurtured.

And release it. Blow it out. Exhale fully and let it go. Let it flow from you, taking with it some of the tension that has crept in, some of the fear that feels like it is taking over.

Remember that you are strong, even when you feel powerless. Remember that your heart is true, even when it is hurting. 

Remember that humanity still exists in this world, even when it is scared and hiding. Even when we can’t see it. Even in the darkest of times.

But for today, right now, in this moment, also please remember that it is okay to feel all of the difficult feelings. It is okay to take a moment and regroup. It is okay to not know what to do next.

But also remember that your voice is still strong. That you have not been - and can not be -  silenced. Remember that there is more power in you than others wish to admit. Remember that you are not done. Not by a long shot.

So today, we pause. Today we breathe. Today we huddle and rest in our safe spaces with our safe people, and we feel.

And then tomorrow we get back up and do the work. We take the next step forward. We do the next right thing. We continue to be good humans. We show the world that we are still here. We show the world who we are. Who we always have been. And show them that they cannot break us.

Yes, we are living in unprecedented times. So now we will show unprecidented strength.

Because we can. Because it makes a difference. Because it matters. Now more than ever.

And because we are worth it.