If We Can Survive Our Times

Image by Diane Petrilli

“A woman who has uncovered and honors her intimacy with the earth through developing a relationship with nature or through the power within her own body carries a wisdom of infinite mystery and potential. She moves through life with one foot in a strange ocean, one on the solid land of her ordinary life. This is not just an idea, but a way to live. Mystics, artists, and mothers of young children know this ability to be half-absorbed in unnamable creative forces.”

— Hilary Hart

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“The answer to why so many of us have difficulties is because our ancestors spent centuries here under unrelentingly brutal conditions. Generation after generation, our bodies stored trauma and intense survival energy, and passed these on to our children and grandchildren. Most of us also passed down resilience and love, of course. But, as we saw with my grandmother — and as we see with so many other human beings — resilience and love aren’t sufficient to completely heal all trauma. Often, at least some of the trauma continues”

― Resmaa Menakem

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For many years now, the East has followed the West down the path of technological and material development, to the point of neglecting its own spiritual values. In our world, technology is the main force behind economics and politics, but those in the forefront of science have begun to see something similar to what the spiritual disciplines of the East discovered long ago. If we can survive our times, the gap that separates science and spirituality will close, and East and West will meet one another on the path to discover true mind. Those in whom the seeds of this important endeavor have already been sown can start working towards that convergence right now, using their own daily mindful lives.

- Thich Nhat Hanh

We live on a planet in crisis, a crisis wholly due to the stunted consciousness of human beings. Our disconnection from nature and feminine values of respect for life has pushed us to the edge of real disaster. The current troubles are just a foretaste of future lessons we’ll be given if we fail to cure our cavalier and cruel vision of existence.

Our politicians are generally not equipped with enough depth and vision to understand our situation…