This little light of mine
As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
– Marianne Williamson
It seems my two cents worth about the current state of affairs in the world haven’t quite been spent yet, so here’s another penny for my thoughts.
I recently saw a video where the Inuit people, who live on the north pole, have noticed that their sky has changed, the sun stays longer on the horizon in the winter, the weather isn’t as predictable as it used to be, “the earth wobbled”. So when the poles shift, does that make the people become more polarized too? Things are seen much more black and white, grey areas are fading, just like common sense. It’s a challenging world to keep yourself afloat in.
Whether some people like or not, we’re all connected to this planet -and each other- and so whatever happens to “it”, affects us too. Being creatures of habit, humans hate change. So when change is happening out of our control, we can do two things: we can ride the wave, grow and expand from the change, or we can clamp down on the things that we feel can stay the same in the hopes that the change will go away by itself.
I think that’s what’s happening in the world right now. Things are changing at a pace a lot of people can’t keep up with: technology, equality, openness, … So to cope their minds narrow to a point where the world feels manageable again. They’re not thinking about the world around them, their brain has gone in survival mode and they are focused only on their own sense of safety. It’s important to remember, that fear is at their helm now, they lash out in their fear, they turn to anger to hide it, and they will fight anyone that tries to pry them off their sinking ship. Ironically anyone who feeds their fear, is revered as someone who understands them.
On the other side of the coin there are the people who embrace the wind and turn their sails, who realize that the old ways are no longer a sense of safety, but are hindering growth, that what was once a revolution (the industrial revolution) has settled into a rigid shell that leaves no room for growth and they are willing to shed the shell and build a new world, where corruption and power are shaken off and connection, acceptance and higher awareness become the new norm. And you can bet your sweet petootey that the friction between these two groups is part of the polarization, one of the reasons the storm is brewing and I don’t know who the survivors will be (if any) and what will be left of the world, but I know one thing…
I can’t control the world. I’m not Atlas, I don’t have the strength to carry the whole thing, but I do have control over myself (most of the time). I too am facing the storm and it is scary and overwhelming and being an empath, sometimes it does feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders. I too am left with a choice. Do I let it shrink me or do I use it to grow? Well, as per usual with me, it’s a little of both. There will be days that I’m crawling back into my shell and hide from the world for a little while, but when I do that, it’s not to shrink back in fear. When I return to my shell, it’s to work on polishing my light, working to make myself stronger, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I am in the process of change, I am flowing with the current of the world and I choose to work with the process, to embrace that I am growing and yes, it’s scary out there and yes, it’s scary inside my head sometimes too, but that’s okay. Fear is a part of life, fear is what breathes courage and courage is what is necessary to step outside of my comfort zone and let the world see my light. A lot of people live in the darkness of their fears and are currently ruled by it. So I may not be able to save the world, but I can do my part, I can work on my own change, on my own growing light and I can serve as a beacon of hope and strength. I can work on my own hopes and dreams and maybe be an inspiration for others to do the same. I can practice kindness towards those who are frightened right now, and show them acceptance too, however hard that may seem. Because if we want this world to become one of acceptance and equality for all, love is the key. Don’t accuse others of not loving their neighbors, start with your own and go from there.
It’s sometimes hard to keep hope, and yet sometimes it’s the only thing that I have left to keep me going. I may get knocked down a few times, but I will always have hope for the future, hope for humankind and hope for this planet. And as long as I can keep the flame of hope alive inside of me, hope will never die.