The air is changing. The season is deepening. The tides are turning.
Another year is soon to be exhausted. Another year without my brother and I feel the empty space he left behind even still. He would have been 30 in a few days. The last time I saw him he was still a boy, but he quickly had become a father, a husband, and a soldier in the short span of his last year of life.
As I too am getting older, I wonder what will I make of this life I have been given? I read a quote this morning.
"What you are is God's gift to you, what you make of yourself is your gift to God".
(Insert whatever Higher Power you subscribe to in place of God, but it's still incredibly poignant.)
As I begin to reflect on the year, I recognize a lot has changed, and yet, there is still more work to do. The work we do to better ourselves, our planet, our community, our way of life, our government; is like peeling layers of an onion. To really understand this metaphor, one has to assume that we don't peel layers of an onion to get anywhere. The entire onion tastes the same, but the beauty of it's stripes and colors can and will astound you with each new layer. There is no there there. It's a metaphor illuminating the beauty of just enjoying this new layer and that more has been revealed.
This is a post about doing work. Work on oneself, work within our communities and work with others. This is a vibrant and electric time. The dynamic energy we put into ourselves and our fellows is paramount to growth as a species. I see you out there, changing us. I am wholly inspired by love lost through death and sacrifice, tragedy among my peers and the pain they've endured and survived, and through my own ability to painfully peel back one more layer and realize so much is possible still. Though times may be uncertain, scary, harsh and unjust; going through it with courage, honesty and service to others will ignite the spark in the next person to prevail and keep fighting, and so on. It certainly has done so for me.
Peace and Autumnal blessings to all. May you find the charge to your march.
"When you're going through hell, keep going" ~ Winston Churchill
