What We Can Do

This is an excerpt from the weekly News-Loveletter. If you would like it sent to your inbox directly (with all the other juicy bits, including a mini joy practice), you can add yourself to my mailing list here.

Today, half of our country is in mourning and half in celebration. The grief is real, the joy is real. I honor both. The half that's in celebration feels heard. They spoke, and their voices mattered. I like people to feel heard. The other half bow their heads in grief and worry that so many needs will not be met. My heart goes out in this grieving. I bow together with them.

In this space of witnessing, of feeling with one side and another, learning emerges. I wonder, how can we better hear what's important to each other on a grander scale? How can we better see across party lines into the heart of pain on one another's "side"?

Because starting today (if not before), working together—listening to each other—will inform our success as a nation. Listening will inform our health as individuals and as a collective. Change is needed.

Where do we start? It's clear enough, after the events of the past 24 hours, that we cannot change others. What we can do is change ourselves. We can start by feeling our authentic feelings of grief or celebration, feeling those through. We can find empathy, hopefully in community. I hope these feelings are fully expressed and heard, down to the core needs that matter.

And then, after these blessed emotions have touched our every cell, we can attend to our thoughts. Are they empowering or disempowering? Are we making choices and using words that help us feel more or less capable?

We can participate in change more easily if we have the energy, if we feel empowered. There are skills to build in this arena and a sense of will to develop. That learning doesn't have to be a dull job. It's part of my practice of joy, and you're in luck. I happen to be sharing a lot of it for free in the next week. Good timing, right?

Whatever empowerment and joy you bring to yourself, you bring to the world exponentially. Are you ready for a change?

You can register now for my free Joyful Life Reboot Workshop on November 10 or 16th here. These don't happen often. I hope to see you there!

Photo credit: Julie Staub