thinking of you today

searching for a prescription to take the sting out of yesterday's news, i find myself struggling today.
i wonder if you may be you struggling too.
dearest ones, this morning i sat with mary oliver, and her lovely poem "when i am among the trees".
(you can find the text here.)
i pulled on my boots and waded through the melting snow and hiked among the balsams.
i threw my head back and looked up at the sky.
i ran the branches through my hands and inhaled their clean, fresh scent.
i may have hugged a birch or two.
i took deep, cleansing breaths full of chilly vermont air.

i thought of all the educators i know and love.
four of them are my very own children.
some of them are their friends and some of them are my own friends.
they are devoted and courageous people.

tangled up in politics, policies, inertia, exasperation, shame and "thoughts and prayers" is one truth i know.
each morning that we awaken is a gift, a gift we cannot squander.

i invite all of us to raise our voices...
demand accountability from our representatives.
challenge the nra.
advocate for our local schools.
support our local mental health programs.

"you too have come
into the world to do this, to go easy, to be filled
with light, and to shine.” -mary oliver

in the face of all that is going on in our world, to be filled with light and to shine is nothing short of revolutionary.

be the light, friends.

xo