The events of Charlottesville leave me struggling to maintain hope in the midst of despair over what’s happening in our country. I wanted to share some thoughts about what gives me hope and perhaps some ideas on how to move forward.

The Dance of Leaves and Light

Each of us finds hope at such times in our own way. It may be through prayer, entreaties to God or our higher power, the presence of loved ones. I find comfort in all three. That said, a specific image seems to embody all those things for me. Sitting beneath a tree, watching the shape of leaves quake and quiver in a breeze, dark against the light that shines through them, I feel a sense of hope. The sky above the leaves still manages to be seen in ever shifting swatches of blue. Light and shadow dance but neither ever obliterates the other.

For me, that ever shifting images is comforting and grounding both. There will always be shadow and darkness AND there will always be light. For me that light is God and the wind feels ever so much like a whisper of reassurance. (During storms, the wind can be a roar!) The movement of leaves speaks to the presence of a healing and sacred spirit, even if at times the wind is still and we wonder if it will ever return.

That image may or may not work for you, but I hope you have similar images the remind you of those forces in your life and the lives of those around you that remind you that hope is real and powerful.

All that said, seeking comfort and solace at such moments seems absolutely necessary AND not enough. Taking some sort of action is called for. But then I can feel despair all over again at the enormity of the challenges of hate and bigotry that confront us. That despair can lead to feeling overwhelmed and I sometimes end up taking no action at all. It occurs to me that part of this feeling frozen in inaction comes from a sense that political organizing or going to protests is the only way to pursue such action. Lately, though, I’ve begun to wonder if I am looking at action in a limited way.

A Two-Step Action Plan

One of my favorite passages in my faith tradition is one that talks about each of us having different different gifts of the spirit. And all at once I thought of this simple two-step action plan for myself.

Step One:  Identify my gifts.

Step Two: Use them to empower others.

In some ways, I think it may be as simple and challenging as that. Some of us are good at political organizing. Others at organized acts of empowering non-dominant groups among us. Others may have the gift of offering comfort. Still others performing random (and meaningful) acts of kindness.  For me, I believe I have a gift of writing and research. Celebrating and elevating diversity on this website is one of my responses to Charlottesville and past and present acts of racism and bias. I have the privilege of being able to afford to keep a website like this going. Its not all I need to do AND it is something. I am doing my best to remind myself that this is one kind of meaningful response for me. Yours will surely look different.

What are your gifts? And how can those gifts be used to elevate others who are all too often diminished and attacked in this world?

One other thought I have about gifts. One kind of gift all of us have on occasion is the gift of opportunity. All of us are present from time to time to witness acts of racism and prejudice, even if it is a casual ethnic slur or anti-Semitic comment. Speaking up–or if the moment passes, later taking that person aside–is something we will all have the opportunity to address.

None of This is Wholly Adequate

Even as I write this, my mind is racing with all of the ways my comments are incomplete. I offer these thoughts as one response to the terrible events at Charlottesville. I just want to say that there are all sorts of ways to take action. As I am fond of saying, there is always something we can do. Begin. Thanks for listening.

Mark

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